This three-year, $760,000 project grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse will support the development of novel therapeutic lead compounds for stimulant use disorder. Funded under the Drug Abuse and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279), the award to West Virginia University Research Corporation will focus on chemical synthesis innovations to produce analogs of illudalic acid, a potent and irreversible inhibitor of protein tyrosine phosphatase receptor type D (PTPRD). PTPRD has...
This Project Grant award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), under the federal Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279), supports research to identify and validate G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) expressed by somatostatin-expressing inhibitory neurons in the prefrontal cortex as potential targets for developing new treatments for opioid use disorder. The $1,717,200 award, spanning August 1, 2024 to May 31, 2029, will enable researchers at the University of...
This $399,884 Project Grant award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279) aims to identify small molecule compounds that can bind to the GPR26 receptor, which is believed to be a novel target for treating opioid use disorders. The research strategy involves using DNA-encoded library (DEL) screening technology to efficiently test over 125 million novel compounds and identify high-affinity binders to GPR26 that can...
The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) awarded a $11,872,077 Cooperative Agreement (CFDA 93.279 - Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs) to Sparian Biosciences Inc. (doing business as Palion Therapeutics) to develop SBS-226, a novel chemical entity that acts as a mu-opioid receptor agonist and delta-opioid receptor antagonist, for the treatment of opioid use disorder (OUD). The project aims to advance SBS-226 through IND-enabling studies and a Phase 1 clinical trial. Sparian...
The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) awarded a $634,048 Project Grant under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279) to The University of Kentucky Research Foundation to conduct a human laboratory study on advancing troriluzole as a treatment for methamphetamine use disorder (MUD). The study aims to evaluate the effects of troriluzole, a glutamate-modulating compound, on the reinforcing and abuse-related effects of methamphetamine in people with MUD alone and those...
This Project Grant award of $847,000 from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279) supports research to evaluate the therapeutic potential of the neuropeptide S receptor 1 (NPSR1) as a target for reducing opioid self-administration and relapse in opioid use disorder (OUD). The research team at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center plans to leverage pharmacological tools to agonize and antagonize NPSR1 and test...
This federal Project Grant award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279), is funding the development of a novel epigenetic regulator as a potential treatment for opioid use disorder (OUD). The grantee, Epivario Inc., a for-profit biotechnology research organization, will screen a new class of ACSS2 inhibitors and evaluate their efficacy in preclinical animal models of OUD. Specifically, the $275,253 award will support...
This Project Grant award of $399,536 from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279) supports research by Chemregen Inc. to design, synthesize, and test non-opioid drug candidates as a new approach to combat the opioid crisis. The key objectives are to: 1) Design and synthesize lead and control compounds, characterize them chemically and pharmacologically for receptor binding, and conduct ADMET studies; and 2) Characterize human...
This federal Project Grant award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279), provides $419,876 to conduct preclinical trials targeting the neuropeptide S (NPS) receptor to mitigate opioid taking and seeking behaviors in animal models. The goals of the project are to demonstrate proof-of-concept that NPS receptor-targeted molecules can reduce oxycodone self-administration and motivation in rats, which could inform the...
This Project Grant award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279) aims to utilize the recipient's DNA-encoded library (DEL) drug discovery platform to identify therapeutic compounds targeting the orphan receptor GPR37 for treating amphetamine use disorders. The $398,093 award to Jillion Therapeutics Inc., a Brooklyn-based biotechnology company, will fund a 1-year project to produce and purify the GPR37 receptor, screen a...