Samidorphan was under development as a standalone medication for various indications but has been discontinued.[7]Buprenorphine/samidorphan for the treatment of major depressive disorder was rejected by the Food and Drug Administration due to insufficient evidence of effectiveness but remains in preregistration as of September 2021.[8] Development of baclofen/samidorphan has also been discontinued.[9]
However, it has attracted much more attention as part of the combination productALKS-5461 (buprenorphine/samidorphan), where samidorphan is combined with the mixed μ-opioid receptor (MOR) weak partial agonist and κ-opioid receptor (KOR) antagonist buprenorphine, as an antidepressant. Buprenorphine has shown antidepressant effects in some human studies, thought to be because of its antagonist effects at the KOR, but has not been further developed for this application because of its MOR agonist effects and consequent abuse potential. By combining buprenorphine with samidorphan to block the MOR agonist effects, the combination acts more like a selective KOR antagonist, and produces only antidepressant effects, without typical MOR effects such as euphoria or substance dependence being evident.[12][13]
^Hillemacher T, Heberlein A, Muschler MA, Bleich S, Frieling H (August 2011). "Opioid modulators for alcohol dependence". Expert Opinion on Investigational Drugs. 20 (8): 1073–1086. doi:10.1517/13543784.2011.592139. PMID21651459. S2CID43338618.
^Clinical trial number NCT01366001 for "ALK33BUP-101: Safety and Pharmacodynamic Effects of ALKS 33-BUP Administered Alone and When Co-administered With Cocaine" at ClinicalTrials.gov
^Correll CU, Newcomer JW, Silverman B, DiPetrillo L, Graham C, Jiang Y, et al. (December 2020). "Effects of Olanzapine Combined With Samidorphan on Weight Gain in Schizophrenia: A 24-Week Phase 3 Study". The American Journal of Psychiatry. 177 (12): 1168–1178. doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.2020.19121279. PMID32791894. S2CID221122225.
^Wentland MP, Lu Q, Lou R, Bu Y, Knapp BI, Bidlack, JM (April 2005). "Synthesis and opioid receptor binding properties of a highly potent 4-hydroxy analogue of naltrexone". Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry Letters. 15 (8): 2107–10. doi:10.1016/j.bmcl.2005.02.032. PMID15808478.
See also
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