Abide Therapeutics said it has commenced dosing in a Phase 1 study utilizing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine patterns of neurological activity linked to oral administration of ABX-1431, a first-in-class investigational monoacylglycerol lipase (MGLL) inhibitor that controls the activity of the endocannabinoid neurotransmitter system, Abide said in a press release.
The goal of the fMRI study is to show the regions of the brain regulated by ABX-1431 that engage in the perception of an activated pain stimulus in the skin, Abide said.
“The ABX-1431 fMRI study provides a long-awaited opportunity to verify whether the mode of action of a (central nervous system-active) drug based on brain imaging can be predicted,” Irene Tracey, principal investigator, head of department and Nuffield chair in anaesthetic science, Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences at University of Oxford, said in the release. “Understanding the activity of this compound in the brain has the potential to be a foundational step in the development of CNS-active drugs."
ABX-1431 has succeeded in dosing its first-in-human, placebo-controlled, Phase 1 study, Abide said, and it was tolerated well overall with no serious adverse events.
“At Abide Therapeutics, we are excited to initiate this fMRI study that will give us new insights into how ABX-1431 may work in the brain,” Alan Ezekowitz, CEO and President of Abide Therapeutics, said in the release.
