Schizophrenia Daily News Blog

Companies Collaborate on New PDE10 Drug for Schizophrenia

Belgium specialty pharmaceutical company with a focus on neurology and immunology, elbion NV, announced in a press release that it is collaborating with Wyeth Pharmaceuticals to develop a treatment for central nervous system (CNS) disorders, with an initial focus on schizophrenia, based on its phosphodiesterase 10 (PDE 10) program. Elbion and Wyeth pharmaceuticals hope that by inhibiting PDE 10, the function of neurons will improve.

PDE 10 is highly expressed in the neurons in the brain associated with neurological and psychiatric disorders including schizophrenia and psychosis. By inhibiting PDE10 activity it is thought that the function of neurons could be improved offering a new mechanism of action for the treatment of schizophrenia, an area of high unmet medical need, and also for other neurological conditions.

Elbion and Wyeth will develop new chemical entities for the inhibition of PDE10 drawing on elbion's tremendous expertise in developing new leads and compounds for PDE targets. Wyeth will be responsible for further clinical development of selected compounds. The research work supporting the collaboration will be carried out at elbion's R&D facility at Radebeul, Germany and also involve scientists at elbion's headquarters in Leuven.

Additional Reading:
Ocaperidone Drug Progress
New Drug for Psychotic Symptoms

Elbion Web Site