University of Otago research, which could eventually boost recovery from strokes, has taken a "huge step forward" through the support of a giant Swiss-based pharmaceutical company, researchers say.
Otago University representatives have signed a contract with Swiss-based firm Roche Pharmaceuticals, and the firm was expected to complete the deal's formalities in a matter of days, researcher Dr Andrew Clarkson said.
"It's a huge step forward in moving it [the potential drug treatment] . . . to the clinic," he said in an interview.
Dr Clarkson, an award-winning research fellow in the Otago departments of psychology and anatomy and structural biology, has been undertaking research that aims to boost recovery from strokes by restoring contact with "silent brain cells".
Some brain cells are killed in strokes, but recent research suggests that some nearby cells previously thought to have also been killed are, in fact, merely "silent".
These cells could potentially be reactivated, helping boost functional recovery.
Physical therapy is often used after strokes, with patients embarking on a "long, hard process" in order to regain some normal limb function.
In a recent study involving mice, published in Nature, Dr Clarkson and colleagues at the University of California found that a drug compound, part of a class of drugs known as "extrasynaptic GABA inverse agonists", could unlock paralysed limbs, with an extra 50% of gross limb motor mobility gained.
But initially, available forms of the drug had needed some further development work to avoid known side effects in the kidneys.
Gaining the backing of the Swiss firm was highly significant, and the firm would be making available for testing a compound which avoided the side effects, researchers said.
Over the next 18 months, Otago researchers would press ahead with further animal-based studies, helping to pave the way for future clinical trials in humans.
Previous clinical trialling of the latest compound, undertaken for other medical applications, meant that more advanced clinical trials could eventually be undertaken much earlier than with a completely new drug, he said.
