MEBIAS Discovery Receives Grant from NIDA to Advance Its Signaling-Pathway Selective Mu-Opioid Receptor Drug Candidate

PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- MEBIAS Discovery, an emerging leader in the field of drug discovery targeting G-protein coupled receptors, has secured grant funding from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) to progress a mu-opioid receptor candidate. Preclinical data presented last year at the Academic Drug Discovery Consortium revealed that its G-protein agonists lack the dangerous side effects of respiratory depression and abuse potential associated with all currently marketed opioids. MEBIAS Discovery will use the NIDA funds to complete preclinical pharmacological and pharmaceutical profiling. A portion of the activities will continue to be supported by BioAdvance. Once milestones outlined in the grant are met, MEBIAS is eligible for continued funding from NIDA to progress the lead compound into Phase 1 clinical studies.

According to the American Society of Addiction Medicine and the NIH, over two million Americans abused or were dependent on prescription opioids and over 19,000 died of overdoses from prescription opioid pain medications. Respiratory depression is the leading cause of death associated with opioids.

“Given the overwhelming societal need for new pain drugs, we are excited to advance our lead candidate towards IND filing and human clinical Phase 1 studies,” said Lawrence Kuo, Ph.D., one of the founding partners of MEBIAS Discovery. “These compounds could redefine the risk-benefit paradigm of opioids and thereby lessen the opioid crisis our nation is facing.”

This content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

About MEBIAS Discovery LLC

As a platform and early development company, the mission of MEBIAS is to efficiently generate, on its own or through partnerships, preclinical compounds devoid of dangerous on-target adverse effects associated with many currently marketed drugs targeting G-protein coupled receptors.

MEBIAS has produced proprietary mu-opioid agonists designed to achieve analgesia without respiratory depression, constipation, sedation, and addiction potential seen in standard opioids. Our lead program demonstrates the ability of MEBIAS’ unique platform to find highly signaling-pathway selective compounds; the high degree of selectivity is required to avoid on-target side effects in vivo.

For more information visit www.mebiasdiscovery.com

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