Clinical Development of AUT00206 for the treatment of schizophrenia

AUT00206 is a new drug that has been characterised in preclinical studies under an Early Stage Innovate UK award (Ref. 101443) due to complete in 2Q15. '206 acts on Kv3 channels that are implicated in brain circuits believed to be dysfunctional in schizophrenia. This pioneering proposal builds on the preclinical work to take ‘206 into the clinic, and conduct a first-in-human trial to explore safety as well as bio-markers of efficacy in patients with schizophrenia. The clinical project will also include an experimental ketamine-challenge, translating Early Stage preclinical work into humans. The programme will provide crucial data to aid progression of ‘206 into Phase II and enable Autifony to secure a high value partnering deal or further funding. Continued academic collaboration the Institute of Psychiatry, and Universities of Manchester and Newcastle will follow on from previous work on the ‘206 mechanism of action, critical to understanding the therapeutic potential of this new medicine.