InterveXion’s therapeutic approach is to prevent the abused drug from rapidly reaching the brain in large quantities. These therapies involve antibodies that can “absorb” drugs of abuse in the blood to block their rewarding effects and simultaneously reduce their detrimental health effects.
IXT-m200, an anti-METH monoclonal antibody
Our lead clinical asset is IXT-m200, a monoclonal antibody directed against methamphetamine. Pharmacotherapies for treating methamphetamine addiction have traditionally sought to lessen CNS effects by substituting for (agonist therapies) or blocking (antagonist therapies) methamphetamine at its site(s) of action (Vocci and Appel, 2007). Thus, development approaches have almost exclusively focused on small molecule treatments that attempt to modulate one or more neurochemical pathways in the brain. Because methamphetamine has many neurotransmitter sites of action (e.g., dopamine, epinephrine, serotonin), and interactions among these systems are complex (Cruickshank and Dyer, 2009), this development strategy has thus far failed to produce an effective, non-addicting, safe medication.
IXT-m200 selectively binds methamphetamine in the blood and renders it inactive as a stimulant and reinforcing agent of addiction. IXT-m200 is highly specific for methamphetamine-like stimulants, and through rapid, high-affinity binding it can quickly antagonize adverse effects. IXT-m200 is a pre-formed (passive) antibody, and is active as soon as it is administered. Unlike active immunizations, there is no need to wait weeks to months before the antibody titer rises to therapeutic levels. In addition, IXT-m200 has a relatively long elimination half-life suitable for use in the chronic abuse setting, where recidivism is notoriously high, to help a patient overcome their drug dependency.
Information on current clinical trials of IXT-m200 may be found at clinicaltrials.gov or on the study websites, METHODforpatients.com and OUTLASTstudy.com.
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