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BioXcel Therapeutics Announces Grant by U.S. Department of Defense to Evaluate BXCL501 in Patients Suffering from PTSD
Grant will support clinical studies in patients with post-traumatic stress disorder related to alcohol and substance abuse NEW HAVEN, Conn., Dec. 07, 2020
About this update from Bioxcel Therapeutics, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"Grant will support clinical studies in patients with post-traumatic stress disorder related to alcohol and substance abuse\nNEW HAVEN, Conn., Dec. 07, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- BioXcel Therapeutics, Inc. (“BTI” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq: BTAI), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company utilizing artificial intelligence to identify improved therapies in neuroscience and immuno-oncology, today announced that it will be collaborating with the VA Connecticut Healthcare System and the Yale University Medical School on a grant awarded from the U.S. Department of Defense’s (“DOD”) Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (“CDMRP”) to evaluate BXCL501 in patients suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (“PTSD”) related to alcohol and substance abuse disorder (“ASUD”). BXCL501 is the Company’s proprietary, orally dissolving thin film formulation of dexmedetomidine (“Dex”) in late stage development for the treatment of agitation and opioid withdrawal symptoms. The funding will be used for studies of patients diagnosed with PTSD related to ASUD and will be the first time the Company is investigating BXCL501 as a potential chronic treatment. Following an initial safety assessment that is being funded by the U.S. Department of Defense, a follow-on assessment study is anticipated that will include an evaluation of patients self-administering BXCL501 daily at-home over a 28 day period. Principal investigators will be Ismene Petrakis, M.D., Chief of Psychiatry Services at VA Connecticut Healthcare System and Professor of Psychiatry at Yale University School of Medicine, as well as John Krystal, M.D., Director of the Clinical Neuroscience Division of the National Center for PTSD of the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Robert L. McNeil, Jr. Professor of Translational Research, Chair of the Yale Department of Psychiatry. “We’re pleased that the DOD has recognized the potential of BXCL501 to improve care for men and women suffering from PTSD related to alcohol and substance abuse,” commented Frank Yocca, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer of BTI. “For the first time, we will be exploring BXCL501 as a daily treatment to address a chronic disorder. We believe that this product candidate, when used chronically, has the potential to reduce and alleviate the frequent hyperarousal symptoms that individuals with PTSD can experience on a...