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news.Glial attenuator drugs to alter the analgesic efficacy of opioids
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Avigen, a biopharmaceutical company, has announced that two preclinical reports with glial attenuator AV411 support the pharmacological effect of the drug on enhancing the pain-killing effect of opioids while reducing the addiction properties of commonly used opioids such as morphine and oxycodone.
The first study investigated the effect of glial attenuator drugs to alter the analgesic efficacy of opioids like morphine. Additionally, studies were performed to test the hypothesis that attenuating the morphine-induced glial activation in the brain by overlaying AV411 treatment with morphine would yield reduced withdrawal behaviors upon termination of opioid dosing.
The data generated from the studies showed that glial attenuators suppress the expression of opioid withdrawal while enhancing acute opioid analgesia.
The premise of the second study was to examine the impact of glial attenuation with AV411 during a morphine dependence regimen on neurochemical changes in the reward center of the brain. Specifically, levels of the neurotransmitter and neuromediator, dopamine, in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) region were measured during a challenge dose of morphine in opioid-dependent rats.
The study found that vehicle-treated rats exhibited a significant morphine-induced increase of NAc dopamine release versus the AV411-treated rats across a broad range of time. Moreover, withdrawal symptoms were likewise reduced in the AV411-treated rats. Behavioral signs of withdrawal were also assessed. As increased NAc dopamine levels are evident in other drug addiction or compulsive behavior indications, the findings are expected to pave the way for additional research on AV411 utility in other addiction settings.
Kenneth Chahine, president and CEO of Avigen, said: These promising studies support our ongoing clinical trials of AV411 for the treatment of chronic pain and addiction withdrawal, as well as the need and opportunity for a non-opioid alternative in this large market.