Partners & Collaborations

INDUSTRY

Janssen Pharmaceuticals - The development of ADX71149 is part of a worldwide research collaboration and license agreement between Addex and Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. to discover, develop and commercialize a novel mGluR2 PAM medication for the treatment of epilepsy, anxiety, schizophrenia and other undisclosed indications. Under the terms of the agreement, Addex is eligible for up to a total of €112 million in milestone payments based on potential development and regulatory achievements. In addition, Addex is eligible for low double-digit royalties on sales of any mGluR2 PAM medication developed under the agreement.

Indivior PLC - Indivior PLC - Our partner, Indivior, has licensed worldwide rights to our GABAb PAM program and is responsible for all development, manufacture and commercialization for addiction. Under the agreement, we are responsible for executing a research program funded by Indivior to discover novel drug candidates. Indivior has the right to select GABAb PAM drug candidates from our research program. Addex have the right to select drug candidates for exclusive development in certain indications outside of addiction, including CMT1A, a rare disease indication.

ACADEMIA

We collaborate with leading researchers to advance the scientific field of neuroscience from top universities. These include:

Professor Ron Stoop - Addex is collaborating with Professor Ron Stoop of the Centre hospitalier universitaire vaudois to understand the function of mGluR4 and mGluR7 by assessing Addex compounds ADX88178 (mGluR4 PAM) and ADX71743 (mGluR7 NAM) using electrophysiological techniques.

Professor Ferdinando Nicoletti & Dr Giuseppe Battaglia - Neuromed– Addex is collaborating with the groups of Prof Nicoletti and Dr Battaglia to characterize & better understand the effects of allosteric modulators of metabotropic glutamate receptors

Professor Antonio Pisani - Department of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, University of Pavia, and Mondino Foundation, Pavia, Italy – Addex is collaborating with Professor Antonio Pisani to explore the use of dipraglurant to treat rare genetic forms of dystonia. The collaboration will evaluate the effects of chronic treatment with dipraglurant (ADX48621) in preclinical models of different genetic forms of dystonia, on rescuing some of the physiological and behavioral deficits observed in these.

Professor Jyoti Sengupta - Medical College of Wisconsin – Addex is collaborating with Professor Jyoti Sengupta of the Medical College of Wisconsin to evaluate the pharmacology of GABAb receptor positive allosteric modulators (PAMs), in preclinical models of visceral pain during urinary bladder inflammation.

Professor John Cryan - University College Cork- Addex is collaborating with Professor John Cryan of the University College Cork in Ireland to evaluate the pharmacology of ADX71743. The collaboration has demonstrated the efficacy of ADX71743, a negative allosteric modulator (NAM) of the metabotropic glutamate receptor subtype 7 (mGlu7 receptor), in a rat model of stress-sensitive visceral hypersensitivity, representing the first pharmacological study to implicate mGlu7 receptor in visceral pain processes.

Professor Michael Sereda - Max Planck Institute – Addex is collaborating with Professor Michael Sereda of the Max Planck Institute to evaluate the efficacy of Addex GABAb receptor positive allosteric modulators (PAMs), in a preclinical model of CMT1A, a rare peripheral neuropathy. Previously, the collaboration has demonstrated that ADX71441, a GABAb PAM, dose dependently reduced PMP-22 expression comparable to baclofen (a selective GABAb receptor agonist), in effect reducing the amount of hypo-myelinated axons and increased compound muscle action potentials in peripheral nerves when compared to vehicle treated CMT rats.

GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism - The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), a component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is collaborating with Addex to evaluate the pharmacology of positive and negative allosteric modulators in preclinical models of alcohol use disorder. The collaboration has evaluated ADX71441, a GABAb PAM, in a battery of preclinical models and demonstrated its potential as a treatment for alcohol use disorder.

National Institute on Drug Abuse - The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), a component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is collaborating with Addex to evaluate the pharmacology of positive and negative allosteric modulators in preclinical models of drug abuse and addiction, to study their potential as treatments for nicotine and cocaine addiction. Following studies with ADX71441, a GABAb PAM, the program has received a grant from the US National Institute for Drug Abuse ("NIDA") of USD 5.3 million to fund Phase 1 and a Phase 1b cocaine interaction study.

Innosuisse - The Swiss Innovation Agency (formerly CTI) supports science-based innovation projects carried out by companies, private or public institutions in cooperation with research partners. InnoSuisse has provided grants to help advance our understanding of the role of our drug candidates in neurodegenerative and psychiatric diseases. Addex projects have been awarded several grants supporting collaborations with the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois (CHUV), with the University of Geneva, and lately with the Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics (SIB). With the support of InnoSuisse, Addex is adding experimental data to its allosteric modulator programs that will help define new indications and/or characterize their potential for the treatment of neurodegenerative and psychiatric diseases.

Eurostars - Eurostars is the largest international funding programme for SMEs wishing to collaborate on R&D projects that create innovative products, processes or services for commercialization. Addex is leading an international consortium of partners aiming at identifying small-molecule negative allosteric modulators (NAMs) targeting the metabotropic glutamate receptor 7 (mGlu7) as a potential treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS

The Michael J Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research - The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research awarded a $ 1.8 Million grant to Addex to help fund continued human clinical testing of dipraglurant for the treatment of Parkinson's disease levodopa-induced dyskinesia (PD-LID). One-third of people with PD develop dyskinesia within four to six years of beginning levodopa treatment; this increases to approximately 90 percent after nine or more years. Patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) can live 10-20 years after diagnosis; however, PD-LID is a leading cause of disability in this growing patient population.

Dystonia Medical Research Foundation - The Dystonia Medical Research Foundation (DMRF) is collaborating with Addex to explore the use of dipraglurant to treat dystonia, the third most common movement disorder following essential tremor and Parkinson’s disease. Dipraglurant, a novel small molecule inhibitor of the metabotropic glutamate receptor 5, has shown promise in the treatment of levodopa-induced dyskinesia and dystonia in Parkinson’s disease. Dipraglurant has also been shown to normalize the effects of the TOR1A/DYT1 dystonia mutation in the brains of mice. The objective of the collaboration is to design a detailed development plan and regulatory path as well as identifying key option leaders and patients for a Phase 2 clinical trial.

Charcot Marie Tooth Association - The Charcot-Marie-Tooth Association (CMTA) is collaborating with Addex to evaluate the pharmacology GABAb receptor positive allosteric modulators (PAMs) in preclinical models of Charcot-Marie-Tooth 1A disorder (CMT1A), a rare hereditary motor and sensory demyelinating peripheral neuropathy.

Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics (SIB) - Addex is collaborating with SIB to apply computational approaches to identify new therapeutic indications for ADX10061, a potent and selective dopamine D1 receptor antagonist. Dopamine is a major neurotransmitter in the central nervous system and D1 receptors are believed to play an important role in the control of diverse aspects of brain function. SIB’s innovative approaches include artificial intelligence, deep learning techniques and molecular modelling which may have the potential to generate testable hypotheses for new therapeutic effects of ADX10061.