Vectura Signs Agreement with Incannex to Advance TBI Treatment

Inhalation contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO), Vectura, has signed a pre-clinical development agreement with Australian cannabinoid medicines development company, Incannex Healthcare, according to a June 22, 2021 press release.

The agreement is pertaining to the pre-clinical development of IHL-216A, which is Incannex’s proprietary inhaled drug product for the treatment of traumatic brain injury (TBI). Under the terms of the agreement, formulation screening studies, manufacturing process optimization studies and stability assessments, and the manufacture of a laboratory-scale batch of IHL-216A to support toxicological studies will all be performed by Vectura.

IHL-216A, a combination drug that combines cannabidiol (CBD) with isoflurane, has been designed for administration shortly after head trauma to reduce secondary brain injuries. The combination of the drugs has been found by Incannex to act synergistically to reduce neuronal damage, neuroinflammation, and behavioral deficits that result from TBI.

Through a partnership between Incannex and the Monash Trauma Group at Monash University’s Department of Neuroscience in Australia, the protective effect of IHL-216A in sports concussion will be evaluated in vivo. Further development and progression of the IHL-216A will be performed by Vectura in parallel to the in-vivo experiments.

“The in-vivo study we have developed offers the opportunity to accelerate this program through to clinical development, and we look forward to working with Vectura, leveraging its wealth of experience in developing inhaled drugs, to progress this treatment to the next stage,” said Mark Bleackley, Incannex’s chief scientific officer, in the press release.

“The risks associated with head injuries in sport are becoming more widely recognized, and this project is at the forefront of research to not only make sports safer, but reduce the morbidity and mortality rates of people suffering serious head traumas,” added Mark Bridgewater, Vectura’s chief commercial officer, in the press release. “There are currently no pharmaceutical agents approved for the treatment of TBI, and we look forward to working with Incannex to develop a truly innovative and potentially life-saving drug.”

Source: Vectura