Neuroene Therapeutics Receives NIH SBIR Award for Novel Antiseizure Drug with Potential for Public Health Emergency Response
Neuroene Therapeutics has been awarded a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The award supports Neuroene’s ongoing research and development of a novel class of well-tolerated compounds protects and ameliorates mitochondrial and neurological diseases.
Neuroene’s lead antiseizure drug (ASD) candidate has demonstrated broad-spectrum antiseizure activity in several animal models of pharmacoresistant seizures and Parkinson’s disease, showcasing its potential both as a fast-acting rescue agent and long-term chronic therapeutic. Intriguingly, the compound’s stability offers significant advantages for long-term storage and stockpiling in case of public health emergencies or bio-incidents.
“This SBIR award marks another significant milestone for Neuroene Therapeutics as we race towards the clinic,” said Drs. Sherine Chan and James Chou, co-founders of Neuroene Therapeutics. “This is another validation that our portfolio of small molecule therapeutics are broad-spectrum, fast, and effective and gives us confidence that we can deliver treatments for drug-resistant seizures which is a global problem and the treatment of Parkinson’s disease which are symptoms of organophosphate (OP) and nerve agent exposures.”
The grant will fund further investigation into Neuroene’s ASD candidate’s potential as a treatment against OP exposure, a major health security concern. Current treatments for OP exposure have considerable side effects or require very narrow administration windows. In contrast, Neuroene’s candidate has demonstrated excellent tolerability and protects against mitochondrial dysfunction, a primary toxicity of OP exposure, that complements current standard of care beyond acute rescue.
Neuroene Therapeutics remains committed to solving the greatest challenges facing patients with mitochondrial and neurological diseases and have been generously supported by the NIH, National Institute on Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID), and is part of BLUE KNIGHT™, a joint initiative between the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) and Johnson and Johnson Innovation – JLABS.
About Neuroene Therapeutics
Neuroene Therapeutics is a biotech company committed to discovering, developing, and commercializing innovative therapeutics for hard-to-treat neurological disorders. Neuroene’s research and development efforts extend to pharmacoresistant seizures, Parkinson’s disease, and potential responses to public health emergencies or bio-incidents.