Development of a Kv3 Positive Modulator for the treatment of Schizophrenia

The Autifony-Newcastle-Manchester consortium will develop a new treatment for schizophrenia that targets a novel brain potassium channel, Kv3, that is intimately linked to the emerging understanding of the pathology of the disorder. This first-in-class treatment has the potential to address significant unmet patient need for schizophrenia, a serious psychiatric illness that has seen diminishing investment in research in recent years, despite the huge social and economic burden that it imposes in the UK and across the world. Patients with schizophrenia have a poor quality of life and poor prognosis due to debilitating cognitive and negative symptoms that make work and relationships difficult to sustain. This new drug will treat these symptoms, providing significant improvement over existing medicines and with a lower burden of side effects. Autifony's drug development will be backed up by three leading UK academic groups in the field.