OUR SCIENCE
A new drug development paradigm
Patients need rapid-acting, precise, and effective pharmacotherapies to relieve anxiety. Traditional pharmaceutical drug discovery is unable to deal with the complexity of the underlying neurological structures. This has resulted in a lack of better treatments for decades. Cannex Scientific is changing that through our new drug discovery paradigm.
Science of the anxious brain
Anxiety results from a dysregulation of the neurological system responsible for emotions, the limbic system.
The amygdala is the site that responds to external factors creating positive and negative emotions. Interaction of the amygdala with the hippocampus leads to formation of memory of emotional events and their retrieval. The prefrontal cortex provides context to the emotional reactions by allowing the individual to attenuate the stress response if a challenge is not acutely harmful. Anxiety disorders often result from insufficient modulation of the perceived threat.
We are targeting the prefrontal cortex to restore proper balance within the limbic system and relieve anxiety. Our organoid model of the prefrontal cortex enables us to screen compound libraries to identify drug candidates which are then verified in a novel behavioral test paradigm.
We test therapeutically validated compounds in our proprietary screening system that combines the efficiency of in vitro organoid models with the validation of in vivo behavioral models.
The result? Reducing the typical drug discovery process by several years and bringing drugs to market that target the whole pathway of a disease.
The efficiency of in vitro organoid screening
Organoids, artificially grown mini-organs for in vitro study, have been one of the biggest scientific advancements in the last ten years.
We test individual compounds and their combinations in brain organoids for anti-anxiety effects. An integrated real-time non-invasive EEG system continuously monitors for neuropathogenesis dynamics.
With dozens of individual compounds and thousands of possible combinations, this rapid screening technology is the perfect tool for multi-target drug development.
Demonstration of anti-anxiety effects in behavioral models
The most efficacious compound combinations progress to our validated in vivo behavior model for proof of efficacy.
This novel behavioral screen allows for the stratification of anxiety states from low to high and efficacy-testing of compounds following successful in vitro screening. The combination of the organoid and this mouse model allows for both an acceleration of the development process and more precise outcomes.
Rapid and efficient path from lab to market
Our science allows us to exploit both known and completely novel neurological mechanisms to achieve breakthrough therapeutic outcomes.
We’ve secured our world-class research and development partnerships with strong IP protection.
Cannex Scientific is blazing the trail toward a new drug development paradigm.
