Scientists discover new pain-relief drug
Scientists have developed a painkiller as strong as morphine but with fewer side effects
NEW DELHI :
Scientists have developed a new peptide-based powerful painkiller that is as strong as morphine but has fewer side effects and is not addictive. Using rats, scientists compared several engineered variants of the neurochemical endomorphin—found naturally in the body—to morphine to measure their effectiveness and side effects. The peptide-based drugs target the same pain-relieving opioid receptor as morphine, according to scientists at the Tulane University and Southeast Louisiana Veterans Health Care System, US. Opium-based drugs are the leading treatments for severe and chronic pain, but they can be highly addictive. They can cause motor impairment and potentially fatal respiratory depression. Patients also build up tolerance over time, increasing the risk of abuse and overdose.
“These side effects were absent or reduced with the new drug," says lead investigator James Zadina, professor at the Tulane University School of Medicine. “It’s unprecedented for a peptide to deliver such powerful pain relief with so few side effects," says Prof. Zadina. In the study, the new endomorphin drug produced longer pain relief without substantially slowing breathing in rats; a similarly potent dosage of morphine produced significant respiratory depression. Impairment of motor coordination, which can be of particular importance to older adults, was significant after morphine but not with the endomorphin drug. Scientists conducted several experiments to test whether the drug would be addictive. Researchers hope to begin human clinical trials of the new drug within the next two years. The study was published in the journal Neuropharmacology.
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