A revolutionary new anti-schizophrenia drug has been approved in the US

2024-10-06 20:40:00, Shëndeti CNA

The first drug in decades to treat schizophrenia from a different "perspective" has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The drug, known as Cobenfy or KarXT, combines two active ingredients that target a completely different mechanism than traditional antipsychotics and promises to expand treatment options for patients suffering from this disease.

Schizophrenia is a serious psychiatric disorder that changes the way you feel, behave and perceive reality. Those affected may suffer from hallucinations (such as the sensation of hearing or seeing things not heard or seen by others) and delusions (the pathological formation of false, absurd and impervious beliefs), may lose contact with reality, having disorganized thinking, speech, and behavior, the inability to maintain eye contact, show emotion, or experience pleasurable sensations.

Because psychotic symptoms such as delusions and hallucinations have traditionally been associated with the oversensitivity of cellular receptors for dopamine, a key neurotransmitter in the brain, standard therapies for schizophrenia have so far focused primarily on blocking dopamine receptors. But this type of approach is not effective for everyone and includes debilitating side effects such as weight loss, sedation and movement problems, symptoms that often force patients to discontinue treatment.

The new drug does not target dopamine receptors, but a different class of receptors critical for nerve transmission, called muscarinics. Activation of these receptors moderates the release of dopamine and with it psychotic symptoms, but in addition, it also regulates other brain circuits involved in cognitive and emotional processes. In clinical trials, the innovative drug has been shown to not only alleviate the classic symptoms of schizophrenia, but also improve cognitive function and without the traditional side effects of antidopaminergic drugs.

KarXT, marketed by the pharmaceutical company Bristol Myers Squibb, combines the action of xanomeline, a substance that activates muscarinic receptors that was originally designed to alleviate memory loss typical of Alzheimer's, with another drug called trospium, which blocks the action of xanomeline outside the brain. While xanomeline causes nausea, vomiting and stomach pain as side effects, the action of the second drug blocks gastrointestinal disturbances, while maintaining the cognitive benefits.

The limitations of the drug, for now, are the type of use, oral, but twice-daily care can be a problem for patients with schizophrenia and the costs, estimated at $20,000 per year per patient (about 18,000 euros). However, there are other new generation drugs under study that attempt to treat schizophrenia with a more targeted and personalized approach and that may provide more effective treatment strategies./ CNA