Researchers searched present medication, in search of potential therapies for the core signs of autism spectrum dysfunction. The most promising one they discovered is named loperamide, higher recognized by the model title Imodium, which is usually used for diarrhea.
Study is the primary to make use of protein interplay networks to check whether or not present medication may deal with autism, discovering potential in a typical antidiarrheal drug.
There are presently no efficient therapies for the core signs of autism spectrum dysfunction (ASD), equivalent to difficulties with socializing and speaking. A brand new research makes use of a computer-based protein interplay community to establish whether or not present medication may present a brand new therapy method. The researchers found {that a} frequent anti-diarrheal drug might have potential in treating the social difficulties related to ASD.
Can you educate an outdated drug new methods? Drug therapies for the core signs of autism spectrum dysfunction (ASD) will not be presently out there. However, may an present drug present a brand new therapy, even when it beforehand had no affiliation with ASD? This was the query requested by a brand new research that was revealed on September 12 within the journal Frontiers in Pharmacology. The researchers used a pc mannequin that encompasses proteins concerned in ASD and the way in which they work together.
They recognized potential candidates to deal with ASD by how completely different medication affected proteins within the system. A generally used antidiarrheal drug known as loperamide was probably the most promising candidate, and the researchers have an fascinating speculation about the way it may match to deal with ASD signs. Some of the commonest signs of ASD contain difficulties with social interplay and communication.
“There are no medications currently approved for the treatment of social communication deficits, the main symptom in ASD,” stated Dr. Elise Koch. She is the lead creator of the research and a Postdoctoral Fellow on the Institute of Clinical Medicine on the University of Oslo. “However, most adults and about half of children and adolescents with ASD are treated with antipsychotic drugs, which have serious side effects or lack efficacy in ASD.”
Repurposing drugs as new treatments
In an effort to find a new way to treat ASD, the researchers turned to drug repurposing. This involves exploring existing drugs as potential treatments for a different condition. There are many benefits to this approach, as there is often extensive knowledge about existing drugs in terms of their safety, side effects, and the biological molecules that they interact with inside the body.
Loperamide is a medicine to treat short-term diarrhea or irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). It is more commonly known by the brand name Imodium, and is available over-the-counter (nonprescription). It is on the World Health Organization’s List of Essential Medicines.
To identify new treatments for ASD, the scientists used a computer-based protein interaction network. Such networks encompass proteins and the complex interactions between them. It is important to account for this complexity when studying biological systems, as affecting one protein can often have knock-on effects elsewhere.
The investigators constructed a protein interaction network that included proteins associated with ASD. By investigating existing drugs and their interaction with proteins in the network, the team identified several candidates that counteract the biological process underlying ASD.
The most promising drug is called loperamide, which is commonly used for diarrhea. Although it might seem strange that an anti-diarrheal drug could treat core ASD symptoms, the scientists have developed a hypothesis about how it may work.
From an upset gastrointestinal system to ASD
Loperamide binds to and activates a protein called the μ-opioid receptor, which is normally affected by opioid drugs, such as morphine. Along with the effects that you would normally expect from an opioid drug, such as pain relief, the μ-opioid receptor also affects social behavior.
In previous studies, genetically engineered mice that lack the μ-opioid receptor demonstrated social deficits similar to those seen in ASD. Interestingly, drugs that activate the μ-opioid receptor helped to restore social behaviors.
These results in mice highlight the tantalizing possibility that loperamide, or other drugs that target the μ-opioid receptor, may represent a new way to treat the social symptoms present in ASD. However, further work is required to test this hypothesis. In any case, the current study demonstrates the power of assuming that old drugs may indeed learn new tricks.
Reference: “Drug repurposing candidates to treat core symptoms in autism spectrum disorder” by Elise Koch and Ditte Demontis, 12 September 2022, Frontiers in Pharmacology.
DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2022.995439
