Neuroscience: Unlocking the Secrets of the Brain
Abbott has been studying the central nervous system, which includes the brain and spinal cord, since the 1920s when we began our work in anesthetics. Before long, that work extended to finding more effective treatments for people with seizure disorders.
Today, Abbott's robust neuroscience program is
focused on the discovery and development of new therapies for a spectrum of
neurological disorders, including Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia and
attention-deficit disorders, among others.
Helping Patients Now
Depakote® ER is a well established treatment of complex partial seizures, and simple and complex absence seizures in adults and children 10 years of age and older with epilepsy. Depakote ER is approved for the treatment of acute manic or mixed episodes associated with bipolar disorder, with or without psychotic features. Depakote and Depakote ER are also approved for the prevention of migraine headaches in adults.
Pioneering Neuroscience Research
Abbott has a number of promising research programs across neuroscience discovery and development, many of which are focused on novel disease targets.
Our efforts are focused on central nervous system disorders such as schizophrenia, Alzheimer's disease, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and pain management. Many patients who suffer from these conditions don't respond to existing therapies, and those who do frequently deal with a number of side effects. Our scientists are attempting to advance innovative approaches to improve treatments, using our expertise in both small molecules and biologics to increase our chances of success.
Neuronal Nicotinic Receptors (NNRs)
The chemistry of nicotine, may hold clues for new ways to treat attention deficit disorder, Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia and depression, as well as pain Abbott pioneered this area, as the first company to begin looking for drugs that target neuronal nicotinic receptors (NNRs) in the 1990s. Since then, our scientists have published more than 100 scientific articles on NNR research and have advanced several compounds into clinical studies for cognitive disorders such as Alzheimer's disease, ADHD and schizophrenia, as well as pain.
Untangling the Secrets of Alzheimer's disease
More than 11 million people worldwide suffer from Alzheimer's disease, and that number is expected to grow substantially in the next 15 years as the population ages. It is estimated that 50 percent of people who reach the age of 85 will develop Alzheimer's disease. Current treatment options target only the symptoms of the disease, not the underlying cause of the disease, which we are just now beginning to understand.
Alzheimer's disease is characterized by two main hallmarks – amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles. There is abundant evidence to implicate the amyloid-beta peptide, found in amyloid plaques, as a causal factor to Alzheimer's disease. As a result, research has focused on preventing formation of these plaques, believing the plaques themselves were toxic.
However, new data has shown a poor correlation between amyloid plaques and dementia in Alzheimer's patients. Some studies have shown that memory loss and cognitive function were already impaired in patients with Alzheimer's disease before the plaques started forming. In addition, plaques have been found in the brains of people without Alzheimer's. As a result of these discoveries, Alzheimer's disease research has become more specific, focusing on the soluble species of the amyloid-beta peptide.
Recently, Abbott scientists made a discovery that is helping direct our research efforts in a new, exciting way. Our scientists have generated a new species of beta-amyloid in vitro and shown that this "globulomer" form of amyloid is present in the brains of Alzheimer's patients. Additionally, we have shown that globulomers selectively bind to specific neurons in the brain and inhibit long-term potentiation in the hippocampus, one of the key regions of the brain involved in learning and memory.
The identification of this unique globulomer species provides the opportunity to generate selective antibodies directed against globulomers. Such antibodies have the potential to address the underlying disease pathology, not just the symptoms.
Targeting the Cognitive Deficits of Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a disease that affects approximately one percent of the population. It is estimated that 20 percent of schizophrenic patients will attempt suicide and 10 percent of schizophrenia patients will commit suicide. More than 50 percent of patients are unable to maintain employment. There is also a significant incidence of co-morbid symptoms. For example, 50 percent of patients with schizophrenia have substance abuse problems.
Currently available treatments for patients primarily address the "positive" symptoms, which include hallucinations and delusions. What remains to be better treated are the “negative” symptoms, such as lack of motivation, and the cognitive deficits of attention, memory, and executive function, such as organizational skills and multitasking ability.
Current schizophrenia treatments interact with the dopamine D2 and D3 receptors, but interaction with the D2 receptors can lead to unwanted side effects. Abbott scientists are focused on developing antagonists of the dopamine D3 receptor, which we believe will have the potential to treat the spectrum of symptoms – positive, negative and cognitive – without the side effects of current treatments.
For important product information, please access:
- Depakote ER (Divalproex Sodium)
How NNRs WorkIn the central nervous system, nicotine acts much like the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, reacting with specific nerve receptors to regulate pain, mood, thought, and other responses. Abbott was the first company to begin looking for drugs that safely target neuronal nicotinic receptors (NNRs), replacing nicotine—a chemical proven harmful to the body—with investigational compounds. Ideally, the compounds will react with the NNRs to quiet overexcited nerves and rebalance neurotransmitters systems involved in both addiction and neurological disease.Learn more about our NNRs research. |
Abbott Neuroscience History1923 – Abbott develops Butyn, a local anesthetic, marking Abbott’s official entrance into the anesthesia market.1930 – Nembutal, a sedative - hypnotic agent and one of Abbott's best-known and longest-lived products, is introduced. 1936 – Drs. Ernest Volwiler and Donalee Tabern discover sodium pentothal, an inhalation anesthetic. For this discovery, they are inducted into the U.S. Inventor’s Hall of Fame in 1986. 1978 – Abbott introduces Depakene for the treatment of epilepsy of absence seizures. 1983 – Abbott introduces Depakote for the treatment of absence seizures. The gastric irritation experienced by some Depakene patients is relieved when they switch to Depakote. 1995 – Depakote earns FDA approval for the treatment of acute mania associated with bipolar disorder. It becomes the first effective, approved medicine since lithium for patients experiencing acute mania with bipolar disorder. 1996 – Depakote is approved by the FDA for a third indication: the prevention of migraine headaches. 1997 – Depacon, an intravenous formula, is introduced as an alternative for patients who cannot use oral medications and suffer complex partial or absence seizures. 2000 – Abbott introduces Depakote ER, an extended-release capsule. It is the first such tablet approved for the prevention of migraine headaches. 2002 – FDA approves Depakote ER for the treatment of complex and partial seizures and complex absence seizures in epilepsy. 2003 – FDA approves Depakote ER for the treatment of complex partial seizures in isolation or in association with other types of seizures and simple and complex absence seizures in children, ages 10 and above, with epilepsy. 2005 – FDA approves Depakote ER for the treatment of acute manic or mixed episodes associated with bipolar disorder, with or without psychotic features. |
