Nov 27 2017
Nerve growth factor signals through receptors of the tropomyosin-related kinase (Trk) family, and research in animals has shown that inhibitors of Trks A, B, and C can reduce pain. Now a new study in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology (http://bpspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/hub/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1365-2125/) provides the first demonstration of pain relief in humans using a Trk inhibitor.
The inhibitor was compared with pregabalin, ibuprofen, and placebo, in randomized, double blind, cross-over study with 20 participants.
"One striking aspect of this study is the use of a pain challenge model to assess this novel Trk mechanism. By determining the effect of a single dose of the drug in healthy subjects, we were able to provide an early demonstration of analgesia without the need to run a large patient study," said lead author Dr. Peter Loudon, of Pfizer WRD, in the UK. "Furthermore, the use of a range of different pain challenge models has provided some information on the quality of effect, which may help predict the best patient population for future studies."
Source: http://newsroom.wiley.com/press-release/british-journal-clinical-pharmacology/new-pain-treatment-tested-humans
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