Fact Sheets
SELECTED MEDICINES IN DEVELOPMENT FOR MENTAL ILLNESS
Alzheimer’s disease: More than 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. Some 4.9 million people with Alzheimer’s are age 65 and older, but at least 500,000 people younger than age 65 either have early-onset Alzheimer’s or another dementia. A potential medicine in development is a humanized monoclonal antibody designed to remove beta amyloid protein from the brain and prevent or reverse progression of Alzheimer’s disease. The medicine provides the patient with antibodies directly, rather than the patient having to create their own immune response to beta amyloid. This process – called passive immunization – may provide greater reduction or the elimination of safety concerns due to the lack of stimulation to the patient’s immune response to beta amyloid.
Cocaine Addiction: The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration estimates that 2.4 million Americans use cocaine. Currently no medication addresses cocaine addiction, but a therapeutic vaccine in development may prove an effective treatment. The vaccine is designed to induce cocaine-specific antibodies that bind to cocaine in the blood, blocking its uptake into the brain. The physiological response to cocaine is thus altered, reducing the reinforcing properties of cocaine and permitting patients to break the cycle of addiction.
Insomnia: The National Sleep Foundation estimates that sleep problems and disorders affect nearly 50 million Americans. One potential medicine binds more selectively than currently marketed products at the specific subtype of GABA-A receptors within the brain believed to be responsible for promoting sleep.
Anxiety: Anxiety disorders affect more than 40 million adults in the U.S., more than 18 percent of the population in this age group, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. The manifestation of anxiety and depression, involves the elevation of a key substance in the brain and its subsequent attachment to a receptor in the brain. One potential medicine in development may prevent the interaction of these two key substances and subsequently treating the disorder.
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common reasons children in the United States are referred for mental health services. It affects as many as one in every 20 children, according to Mental Health America. A potential medicine in development appears to significantly improve the core and associated symptoms of ADHD without producing clinically significant side effects. The medicine targets specific receptors found on nerve cells that modulate the release of several key neurotransmitters that play a key role in a number of neurological disorders. The medicine is also in development for Alzheimer’s disease.
Depression: Mood disorders – major depressive disorder, dysthymic disorder, and bipolar disorder – affect nearly 21 million American adults, or 9.5 percent of the U.S. population, according to the National Institute on Mental Health. One potential new class of antidepressant selectively stimulates neuronal activity in a specific area of the brain that plays a role in depression.
Schizophrenia: Schizophrenia affects some 2.4 million American adults, or 1.1 percent of the U.S. population, according to the National Institute on Mental Health. Symptoms of schizophrenia are typically divided into positive and negative because of their impact on diagnosis and treatment. Positive symptoms are those that appear to reflect an excess or distortion of normal functions, while negative symptoms are those that appear to reflect a diminished or loss of normal functions. One potential medicine in development has shown to relate to both the types of symptoms in animal studies. In addition, the medicine may also have a very low potential for side effects associated with some antipsychotic medicines.
Click here to read the press release.
Click here to read the Report.
* From Medicines in Development for Mental Illnesses, PhRMA, 2008
May 2008
Alzheimer’s disease: More than 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. Some 4.9 million people with Alzheimer’s are age 65 and older, but at least 500,000 people younger than age 65 either have early-onset Alzheimer’s or another dementia. A potential medicine in development is a humanized monoclonal antibody designed to remove beta amyloid protein from the brain and prevent or reverse progression of Alzheimer’s disease. The medicine provides the patient with antibodies directly, rather than the patient having to create their own immune response to beta amyloid. This process – called passive immunization – may provide greater reduction or the elimination of safety concerns due to the lack of stimulation to the patient’s immune response to beta amyloid.
Cocaine Addiction: The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration estimates that 2.4 million Americans use cocaine. Currently no medication addresses cocaine addiction, but a therapeutic vaccine in development may prove an effective treatment. The vaccine is designed to induce cocaine-specific antibodies that bind to cocaine in the blood, blocking its uptake into the brain. The physiological response to cocaine is thus altered, reducing the reinforcing properties of cocaine and permitting patients to break the cycle of addiction.
Insomnia: The National Sleep Foundation estimates that sleep problems and disorders affect nearly 50 million Americans. One potential medicine binds more selectively than currently marketed products at the specific subtype of GABA-A receptors within the brain believed to be responsible for promoting sleep.
Anxiety: Anxiety disorders affect more than 40 million adults in the U.S., more than 18 percent of the population in this age group, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. The manifestation of anxiety and depression, involves the elevation of a key substance in the brain and its subsequent attachment to a receptor in the brain. One potential medicine in development may prevent the interaction of these two key substances and subsequently treating the disorder.
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common reasons children in the United States are referred for mental health services. It affects as many as one in every 20 children, according to Mental Health America. A potential medicine in development appears to significantly improve the core and associated symptoms of ADHD without producing clinically significant side effects. The medicine targets specific receptors found on nerve cells that modulate the release of several key neurotransmitters that play a key role in a number of neurological disorders. The medicine is also in development for Alzheimer’s disease.
Depression: Mood disorders – major depressive disorder, dysthymic disorder, and bipolar disorder – affect nearly 21 million American adults, or 9.5 percent of the U.S. population, according to the National Institute on Mental Health. One potential new class of antidepressant selectively stimulates neuronal activity in a specific area of the brain that plays a role in depression.
Schizophrenia: Schizophrenia affects some 2.4 million American adults, or 1.1 percent of the U.S. population, according to the National Institute on Mental Health. Symptoms of schizophrenia are typically divided into positive and negative because of their impact on diagnosis and treatment. Positive symptoms are those that appear to reflect an excess or distortion of normal functions, while negative symptoms are those that appear to reflect a diminished or loss of normal functions. One potential medicine in development has shown to relate to both the types of symptoms in animal studies. In addition, the medicine may also have a very low potential for side effects associated with some antipsychotic medicines.
Click here to read the press release.
Click here to read the Report.
* From Medicines in Development for Mental Illnesses, PhRMA, 2008
May 2008