addiction Archives - Sanford Burnham Prebys

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Institute News

Sanford Burnham Prebys event explores the science behind addiction

AuthorGreg Calhoun
Date

August 2, 2024

Nicholas Cosford, PhD, co-director of the Cancer Molecular Therapeutics Program, presents an overview of the many links between addiction and cancer.

Scientists and clinicians from three local research institutions converged July 31 to discuss new ways to treat multiple addictions at Sanford Burnham Prebys open house

The  NCI-designated Cancer Center at Sanford Burnham Prebys welcomed San Diego community members to the institute’s campus on July 31, 2024 for an open house focused on addiction research.  The Cancer Center team developed the event in partnership with scientists from Scripps Research and the University of California San Diego School of Medicine.

Ze’ev Ronai, PhD, director of the Sanford Burnham Prebys Cancer Center, formally opened the event and welcomed attendees before introducing David A. Brenner, MD, president and CEO of Sanford Burnham Prebys.

William Gerhart, chair of the Sanford Burnham Prebys board of trustees

William Gerhart, chair of the Sanford Burnham Prebys board of trustees, delivered welcoming remarks focused on the potential benefits to families of improving the treatment and prevention of addiction and addiction-associated cancers.

“As I have learned more about the research being presented here, I am impressed by just how much of a powerhouse we have on this mesa regarding both cancer and addiction science,” said Brenner.

William Gerhart, chair of the Sanford Burnham Prebys board of trustees; Nicholas Cosford, PhD, co-director of the Cancer Molecular Therapeutics Program; and Michael Jackson, PhD, senior vice president of Drug Discovery and Development at the Conrad Prebys Center for Chemical Genomics (Prebys Center), also provided opening remarks emphasizing the collaborative nature of the featured research as well as the potential benefits to families of improving the treatment and prevention of addiction and addiction-associated cancers.

Attendees had the opportunity to learn from and interact with the following scientists at stations featuring posters describing research underway at all three represented institutions:

In addition to his welcoming comments, Cosford also presented an overview of the many links between addiction and cancer.

  • Douglas Sheffler, PhD, is an associate professor in the Center for Therapeutics Discovery at Sanford Burnham Prebys. Sheffler discussed a drug discovery effort focused on treating nicotine addiction.
  • Benjamin Mckenna, PhD, is an assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at UC San Diego School of Medicine and staff psychologist at Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System. Mckenna presented on the same drug as Sheffler with an update on phase I clinical trial results regarding safety, optimal dosage and efficacy.
  • Steven Olson, PhD, executive director of Medicinal Chemistry at the Prebys Center, presented on work being conducted at the center in collaboration with Jackson. Olson described a drug being studied as an alternative to opioids that has shown promising benefits for reducing pain and addiction-related behavior.
  • Kokila Shankar, PhD, is a postdoctoral associate at Sanford Burnham Prebys working in the Cosford lab. Shankar detailed efforts to find new drugs to treat alcohol use disorder, which is estimated to cause approximately one of every 25 cancer diagnoses.
  • Bryan Cruz, PhD, is a postdoctoral fellow at Scripps Research working in the lab of Marisa Roberto, PhD, vice chair and Paul and Cleo Schimmel Endowed Chair in the Department of Molecular Medicine. Cruz discussed his research to uncover new ways of treating alcohol use disorder rooted in posttraumatic stress disorder, and thereby reduce cancer cases associated with excessive alcohol consumption.
  • Valentina Vozella, PhD, is a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Molecular Medicine at Scripps Research. She also is a member of the Roberto lab. Vozella presented on studies regarding the effect of social isolation on the development of alcohol use disorder during adolescence, as well as on potential methods of treatment and prevention.

Participants were able to tour the Prebys Center, which is the institute’s comprehensive center for drug discovery and chemical biology. Visitors were able to see how the center’s researchers can quickly test the potential effectiveness of hundreds of thousands of compounds to find new prospective treatments. Many scientists at Sanford Burnham Prebys partner with the Prebys Center to conduct drug discovery searches based on new research findings, including several of the event’s poster presenters.

The open house featured a reception with remarks from Robert Anthenelli, MD, a professor in the Department of Psychiatry at UC San Diego School of Medicine. Anthenelli’s research focuses on developing new or improved treatments for cancer-causing tobacco and alcohol use disorders. He shared insights he has gained as a physician-scientist working in this area over the past 30 years.

The reception also included concluding remarks from Helen Eckmann, EdD, an NCI-designated Cancer Center Community Advisory Board member. The board hosts the center’s open house events. Its members strive to bridge the gap between biomedical science and the people who need it most: patients and the families and friends who love and support them.

Institute News

The Science Behind Addiction

AuthorGreg Calhoun
Date

July 25, 2024

Science Behind Addiction graphic

Scientists and clinicians from three local research institutions converge July 31 to discuss new ways to treat multiple addictions at Sanford Burnham Prebys Open House

The NCI-designated Cancer Center at Sanford Burnham Prebys welcomes San Diego community members to the institute’s campus for an open house focused on addiction research.  The Cancer Center team developed the event in partnership with scientists from Scripps Research and the University of California San Diego School of Medicine.

The event will take place Wednesday, July 31, 2024, at 3:30 pm at 10901 N. Torrey Pines Road in La Jolla. More information and the online registration form are located on the institute’s website.

Attendees will meet scientists working to better understand the science behind addiction. Here’s a sneak peek of presenters and topics:

  • Douglas Sheffler, PhD, is an associate professor in the Center for Therapeutics Discovery at Sanford Burnham Prebys. Sheffler will discuss a drug discovery effort focused on treating nicotine addiction.
  • Benjamin Mckenna, PhD, is an assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at UC San Diego School of Medicine and staff psychologist at Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System. Mckenna will present on the same drug as Sheffler with an update on phase I clinical trial results regarding safety, optimal dosage and efficacy.
  • Michael Jackson, PhD, is senior vice president of Drug Discovery and Development at the Sanford Burnham Prebys Conrad Prebys Center for Chemical Genomics and co-director of the Cancer Molecular Therapeutics Program in the institute’s NCI-Designated Cancer Center. Jackson will talk about a drug being studied as an alternative to opioids that has shown promising benefits for reducing pain and addiction-related behavior.
  • Kokila Shankar, PhD, is a postdoctoral associate at Sanford Burnham Prebys working in the lab of Nicholas Cosford, PhD, co-director of the NCI-Designated Cancer Center’s Cancer Molecular Therapeutics Program. Shankar will detail efforts to find new drugs to treat alcohol use disorder, which is estimated to cause approximately one of every 25 cancer diagnoses.
  • Bryan Cruz, PhD, is a postdoctoral fellow at Scripps Research working in the lab of Marisa Roberto, PhD, vice chair and Paul and Cleo Schimmel Endowed Chair in the Department of Molecular Medicine. Cruz will discuss his research to uncover new ways of treating alcohol use disorder rooted in posttraumatic stress disorder, and thereby reduce cancer cases associated with excessive alcohol consumption.
  • Valentina Vozella, PhD, is a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Molecular Medicine at Scripps Research. She also is a member of the Roberto lab. Vozella will present on studies regarding the effect of social isolation on the development of alcohol use disorder during adolescence, as well as on potential methods of treatment and prevention.
  • Robert Anthenelli, MD, is a professor in the Department of Psychiatry at UC San Diego School of Medicine. Anthenelli’s research focuses on developing new or improved treatments for cancer-causing tobacco and alcohol use disorders. He will share some of his insights as a physician-scientist working in this area over the past 30 years.

In addition to poster presentations from speakers, guests will have the opportunity to talk with  scientists, clinicians and research advocates during an informal evening reception.

The NCI-designated Cancer Center open house events are hosted by the center’s Community Advisory Board. Its members strive to bridge the gap between biomedical science and the people who need it most: patients and the families and friends who love and support them.

Institute News

Sanford Burnham Prebys drug enters Phase 1 study for the treatment of tobacco use disorder

AuthorSusan Gammon
Date

August 26, 2021

Senior doctor breaking a cigarette

A drug discovered in the lab of Nicholas Cosford, PhD, professor and deputy director of the NCI-designated Cancer Center at Sanford Burnham Prebys, has entered a Phase 1 clinical study.

The compound, SBP-9330, targets a neuronal signaling pathway underlying addictive behaviors and would be a first-in-class oral therapeutic to help people quit smoking. 

The study is being funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) through a grant awarded to Sanford Burnham Prebys, the Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, School of Medicine, and Camino Pharma, LLC, who will oversee activities related to the Phase 1 study.  

“Smoking continues to be the leading cause of preventable death in the US. Nearly 70% of adult smokers try to quit smoking, but only succeed less than 30% of the time, and often relapse after quitting,” says Cosford, who is also co-founder of Camino Pharma. “It has been 15 years since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last approved a therapeutic for this indication. We hope that SBP-9330 ultimately becomes a viable therapeutic option for smokers to quit for good.”

As a novel selective positive allosteric modulator of the metabotropic glutamate receptor 2 (mGlu2), SBP-9330 is designed to reduce levels of glutamate, a neurotransmitter linked to addiction and relapse behavior. Preclinical studies of SBP-9330, supported by a previous NIDA grant awarded to the same three institutions, demonstrated that the drug candidate reduces nicotine self-administration in animal models and is safe and well tolerated in preclinical safety and toxicology studies.

“We are excited to initiate the first-in-human study of SBP-9330 and are grateful for the investment the NIDA has made in the treatment of tobacco use disorder,” says Gonul Velicelebi, PhD, CEO and co-founder of Camino Pharma. “In the future, we also hope to broaden the indication of SBP-9330 to other types of addiction, such as cocaine, opioid, or methamphetamine use disorders. This is supported by preclinical data in other models of substance abuse as well as the mechanism of action of SBP-9330.”

The randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, single-ascending and multiple-ascending dose study is being conducted at a single site in the United States under an Investigational New Drug (IND) application recently allowed by the FDA and will enroll up to 80 healthy volunteers through multiple cohorts. The goal of the study is to determine the safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetic profile of SBP-9330 in humans and to determine a safe dose range for further clinical development SBP-9330 for the treatment of people with tobacco use disorder. 

“We are excited about collaborating in the development of SBP-9330 to treat tobacco use disorder. Each year in the United States, roughly half a million people die from tobacco-related diseases. It is critical to have more therapeutic options if we want to reduce the number of deaths and illnesses related to smoking,” says Robert Anthenelli, MD, UC San Diego professor of psychiatry and one of the co-principal investigators on the NIDA project.

Dr. Cosford has an equity interest in Camino Pharma, LLC. Dr. Cosford’s relationship with Camino Pharma, LLC has been reviewed and approved by Sanford Burnham Prebys in accordance with its conflict-of-interest policies.