Researchers co-led by University of Warwick have discovered a potent new non-opioid analgesic with potentially fewer side effects compared to other potent painkillers.
Their study found that a compound called BnOCPA (benzyloxy-cyclopentyladenosine), is a potent and selective analgesic which is non-addictive. BnOCPA also has a unique mode of action and potentially opens a new pipeline for the development of new analgesic drugs.
The research is published in Nature Communications.
Chronic pain has a negative impact on quality of life and many commonly prescribed analgesics come with side effects. Opioid drugs, such as morphine and oxycodone, can lead to addiction and are dangerous in overdose.
Drugs that act on G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are one possibility, but their development is hampered by the propensity of GPCRs to couple to multiple intracellular signalling pathways. A unique feature of BnOCPA is that it only activates one type of GPCR, leading to very selective effects and thus reducing potential side effects.
University of Warwick’s Dr Mark Wall, who led the research said: “The selectivity and potency of BnOCPA make it truly unique and we hope that with further research it will be possible to generate potent painkillers to help patients cope with chronic pain.”
Source: University of Warwick
