Researchers claim to have created a vaccination that can prevent fentanyl’s side effects, calling it a “game-changer” in the fight against opiate addiction. In a statement released by the University of Houston, researchers say that the “breakthrough discovery” inhibits the medication’s capacity to enter the brain, hence reducing the “high” caused by the drug.
The principal author of the study, Dr. Colin Haile, told NewsNation, “We are really pleased with our progress.” It has taken approximately six years to do this. Fentanyl is a potent and lethal synthetic opioid that is 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine, and it has contributed to the spread of the opioid epidemic in the United States.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 150 individuals die daily from synthetic opioid overdoses such as fentanyl. In 2021, the substance will be responsible for two-thirds of the 107,000 overdose deaths in the United States.
According to the Narcotic Enforcement Administration, fentanyl is the most lethal drug in the United States. Researchers laud the new vaccination as an effective relapse prevention agent that, theoretically, would make it simpler for people to stop using opioids.
“Our vaccination is capable of producing anti-fentanyl antibodies that attach to ingested fentanyl and block it from entering the brain, allowing it to be excreted via the kidneys. Thus, the individual will not experience the euphoric effects and might “go back on the wagon” to sobriety, according to Haile’s university statement.
The vaccination would have to be administered before to exposure to fentanyl. “The vaccination technology is a totally distinct approach in that we are given a vaccine against a chemical,” Haile explained. “This substance is fentanyl.” As opposed to, for example, receiving a vaccine against the pathogen, such as a virus or bacteria. “It is very different.”
Researchers laud the new vaccination as an effective relapse prevention agent that, theoretically, would make it simpler for people to stop using opioids. “Our vaccination is capable of producing anti-fentanyl antibodies that attach to ingested fentanyl and block it from entering the brain, allowing it to be excreted via the kidneys. Thus, the individual will not experience the euphoric effects and might “go back on the wagon” to sobriety, according to Haile’s university statement.
The vaccination would have to be administered before to exposure to fentanyl. “The vaccination technology is a totally distinct approach in that we are given a vaccine against a chemical,” Haile explained. “This substance is fentanyl.” As opposed to, for example, receiving a vaccine against the pathogen, such as a virus or bacteria. “It is very different.”
According to research published in the journal Pharmaceutics, around 80% of drug-dependent individual’s relapse. According to researchers, laboratory studies on rats and mice produced highly encouraging findings, with the animals developing anti-fentanyl antibodies that neutralize the drug’s effects.
Haile stated, “We’ve utilized various behavioral models and industry standards.” In each testing, the vaccine has functioned exceptionally well. Currently, the vaccine is only being tested on animals, but experts are confident that the same results will be observed when human trials commence in the coming weeks.
According to a statement from the university, the team aims to begin manufacturing a clinical-grade vaccine in the next months, with clinical trials on humans to follow shortly.
“We are thrilled to be moving forward with vaccine production,” Haile said. The next stage, once we have clinical-grade material, is to do toxicological testing for the FDA. Researchers also reported that the vaccine “did not generate any adverse side effects” in inoculated lab rats. Efforts to develop a vaccination against drug addiction are not novel. 1974 saw the publication of the first peer-reviewed study on the issue, which appeared in Nature.
According to experts, immunizations offer longer-lasting benefits than currently accessible drugs. According to experts, methadone, buprenorphine, and naltrexone are the current treatments for opioid use disorder (OUD). However, they also have drawbacks.
According to a report from the National Institute of Health, current treatments for opioid abuse are ineffective and expensive. They must be taken daily and may necessitate consultation with a specialist physician. Methadone is an addictive substance.
Therese A. Kosten, professor of psychology and principal author of the study, stated, “Fentanyl usage and overdose present a unique treatment problem that is not well handled by existing medications.”
Kosten described the vaccine as a “game-changer.” Dr. Haile informed NewsNation that he would employ the word “hope.” He stated, “I would call it hope.” “And you know, ‘game changer’ as well, mainly because the medications we currently utilize do not address the opioid crisis. In actuality, the opioid pandemic is worsening. Therefore, a different treatment method is required.”
According to a statement from the university, the team aims to begin manufacturing a clinical-grade vaccine in the next months, with clinical trials on humans to follow shortly. “We are thrilled to be moving forward with vaccine production,” Haile said. The next stage, once we have clinical-grade material, is to do toxicological testing for the FDA.
Researchers also reported that the vaccine “did not generate any adverse side effects” in inoculated lab rats. Efforts to develop a vaccination against drug addiction are not novel. 1974 saw the publication of the first peer-reviewed study on the issue, which appeared in Nature.
According to experts, immunizations offer longer-lasting benefits than currently accessible drugs. According to experts, methadone, buprenorphine, and naltrexone are the current treatments for opioid use disorder (OUD). However, they also have drawbacks.
According to a report from the National Institute of Health, current treatments for opioid abuse are ineffective and expensive. They must be taken daily and may necessitate a consultation with a specialist physician. Methadone is an addictive substance.
Therese A. Kosten, professor of psychology and principal author of the study, stated, “Fentanyl usage and overdose present a unique treatment problem that is not well handled by existing medications.” Kosten described the vaccine as a “game-changer.”
Fentanyl was initially designed as a legitimate medicine to alleviate severe pain caused by diseases such as cancer. In recent years, Mexican drug traffickers have created the majority of illegal fentanyl found in the United States, sneaking it inside automobiles or strapping it to border-crossing pedestrians.
The DEA reports seizing over 50 million counterfeit pills and 10,000 pounds of fentanyl powder in 2022 alone. Because it is frequently mixed with cocaine, methamphetamine, and even other opiates, illicit fentanyl represents a particularly serious hazard.
Haile added illicitly produced ADHD and anti-anxiety drugs to the list. These counterfeit medications laced with fentanyl increase the number of overdoses among persons who do not normally use opioids, according to researchers.
“People are being unintentionally exposed to fentanyl, and sadly, they are overdosing and dying,” Haile added. The objective would be to utilize the vaccination as a preventative strategy in the event that persons are unintentionally exposed, or for those who may come into significant contact with the substance.
Last year, the University of Washington created a new research center dedicated to the development of medications for substance use problems. As part of its attempts to improve access to the life-saving medicine naloxone, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration stated that it might approve over-the-counter nasal sprays that prevent overdose.
Officials are hopeful that it will assist in ending the fentanyl epidemic. According to them, a solution to the escalating problem cannot come fast enough. According to the DEA, nitazines, a synthetic opioid developed in the 1950s that is up to forty times more potent than fentanyl, are reentering the hands of Americans.
As the availability of netzines increases, the number of netzine-related deaths increases, hence increasing the public health response to the nation’s rising addiction epidemic.
