Chronic pain from damage to the nervous system is extremely debilitating and notoriously difficult to treat. The current drug of choice, gabapentin, has serious side effects and only works in two-thirds of patients. We have developed a drug, derived from sea snail venom, that exhibits ten times the activity of gabapentin. This proposal seeks to progress our drug to clinical trials and attract a commercial partner for its development into the market.
Development Of AD214 A Novel Anti-fibrotic Treatment For Advanced Age Related Macular Degeneration
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$687,994.00
Summary
Age related macular degeneration remains the leading cause of blindness in this and other industrialised countries. Although treatment is available for an advanced form of the disease, many do not respond, or lose significant amounts of vision with long term treatment. This proposal will provide critical data for commericalizing a novel therapy called an i-body (AD214), that reduces vision loss in this disease by blocking the formation of scarring with reduced need for injections.
Huntington’s disease is a devastating neurological disorder, with no drugs currently available to cure or treat the underlying cause. Our recent laboratory work on a drug called PBT2 was the foundation of a encouraging clinical trail for this disease. Here, we propose to investigate a drug called Zn(DTSM) for this disease, which has similar properties to PBT2, but we expect will have a greater effect.
Pain is a debilitating condition that affects the life of one in five Australians and has significant socioeconomic impact. Currently available pain killers often do not work, or have intolerable side effects including sedation and addiction. We have discovered a novel compound that avoids these side effects and provides effective analgesia as well as opioid-sparing effects in a number of relevant animal models. The aim of this project is to progress the compound towards clinical development.
Development Of A Take-home Rehabilitation Device That Improves Visual Stability And Balance In Patients With Peripheral Vestibular Injury
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$789,377.00
Summary
The balance system senses head motion via the balance organs, one in each inner ear, and stabilises vision during head movements. Without it, every time you walk, run, or drive on a bumpy road, the world appears to bounce. We have developed a device shown to reliably 'train up' the balance system. Our aim is to develop this device further for effective take-home rehabilitation.