Rensselaer Team Develops Novel Opioid Receptor Compounds Licensed to Alkermes, Inc.

Discovery May Lead to Further Development of Compounds to Treat Central Nervous System Disorders and Addiction

Troy, N.Y. — Mark Wentland, professor of chemistry and chemical biology at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, has led a team in the discovery of a family of novel opioid receptor compounds that may be used in treating central nervous system disorders and addiction. The team included more than 15 undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral students in Rensselaer’s department of chemistry and chemical biology. Jean Bidlack, professor of pharmacology and physiology at the University of Rochester, along with members of her pharmacology group, also contributed to the research. 

In October, Rensselaer announced that they had entered into a license agreement granting Alkermes, Inc. — a biotechnology company based in Massachusetts — with exclusive rights to the compounds discovered by Wentland and his team.

“This latest discovery is the result of an interdisciplinary collaboration between chemists and biologists,” said Wentland. “In the process, we are working together to identify novel therapies to treat human diseases and find possible solutions that work. Most importantly, this discovery allows us to see the significant role that biotechnology plays in improving  health, creating new materials for myriads of applications, and addressing some of the world’s most challenging scientific problems. I am pleased to see this exciting technology move from the laboratory toward treating patients.”

According to Alkermes, the compounds represent an opportunity for the company to develop important therapeutics for a broad range of diseases and medical conditions, including addiction, pain and other central nervous system (CNS) disorders. Alkermes will screen the library of compounds and plans to pursue preclinical work of an undisclosed, lead oral compound that has already been identified. The company will be responsible for the continued research and development of any resulting product candidates.;

“This agreement underscores Alkermes’ commitment to building our franchise in the area of CNS, including addiction,” stated Richard Pops, CEO of Alkermes. “We are excited to begin development of this promising family of compounds, which provides us with the opportunity to leverage our success and experience with VIVITROL and build our proprietary product portfolio.” 

“We are delighted to partner with Alkermes,” said Ron Kudla, executive director of the Office of Intellectual Property, Technology Transfer and New Ventures at Rensselaer. “This is a wonderful example of progress under the Rensselaer Plan in the areas of biotechnology and technology transfer that demonstrates Rensselaer’s unique strength in its ability to translate scientific discoveries into practical application.” 

The initial research leading to Wentland’s latest discovery was funded in 1999 through an $826,000 grant from the National Institutes of Health/National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIH-NIDA) in an effort to discover novel drugs to treat cocaine abuse. In 2002, Wentland’s NIH grant was renewed for an additional $1.6 million, and he was awarded new funding from Albany Molecular Research, Inc. for a postdoctoral associate position.

Cyclazocine

Wentland earned his bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Central Connecticut State University, and his Ph.D. in synthetic organic chemistry from Rice University. For more than 24 years, he conducted drug discovery research in the medicinal chemistry department at Sterling Winthrop, serving as a Sterling Winthrop Fellow and Oncology Discovery Co-Chair, respectively. During this time, Wentland also served as an adjunct professor at Rensselaer from 1971-1994 and taught over 30 graduate-level organic and medicinal chemistry courses. Currently a full-time faculty member, Wentland teaches courses on drug discovery.

Wentland straddles the boundary between basic and applied research. “Medicinal chemistry, foremost among traditional approaches to drug discovery and development, retains its value in a high-tech world,” he said. A medicinal chemist is “a person whose primary aim is to get a drug into the clinic,” he added.

In the future, Wentland will continue to work with Alkermes to develop the existing family of compounds and possible application to other diseases. 

Source / Credit Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute