- Pain experts to discuss kappa opioid receptor agonists as alternative to standard mu opioid agonists
SHELTON, Conn., May 04, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cara Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq:CARA), a biotechnology company focused on developing and commercializing new chemical entities designed to alleviate pain and pruritus by selectively targeting peripheral kappa opioid receptors, today announced that it is sponsoring a Town Hall Talk titled "Moving Beyond Mu with Kappa Opioid Receptor Agonists: Leaving the Baggage Behind" in two sessions at the American Pain Society's 35th Annual Scientific Meeting, to be held May 11-14, 2016 in Austin, Texas.
Leading experts will discuss the clinical progress of a new class of analgesics, the kappa opioid receptor agonist (KORA), and share acute and chronic pain management data from multiple studies of oral and I.V. formulations of CR845, Cara's first-in-class peripherally selective kappa opioid agonist with potential to be the only Schedule V or non-scheduled opioid for acute and chronic pain.
The Town Hall Talk details are as follows:
Dates and times: Thursday, May 12 from 3:55 - 4:25 p.m. and Friday, May 13 from 12:10 - 12:40 p.m. CT
Location: Austin Convention Center, the Experience Exchange, Learning Lounge
Moderator: Joseph Stauffer, D.O., M.B.A., Chief Medical Officer, Cara Therapeutics; Assistant Professor, Department of Anesthesiology & Critical Care Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Faculty: Jeffrey A. Gudin, M.D., Director of Pain and Palliative Care, Englewood Hospital and Medical Center; Clinical Instructor of Anesthesiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
For more information on the American Pain Society's 35th Annual Scientific Meeting, visit http://americanpainsociety.org/annual-meeting/2016/overview.
About CR845
CR845 is a peripherally acting kappa opioid receptor agonist currently in development for the treatment of acute and chronic pain and pruritus. In multiple randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 2 trials in patients undergoing laparoscopic hysterectomy or bunionectomy procedures, I.V. CR845 treatment resulted in statistically significant reductions in both pain intensity and opioid-related side effects. In a human abuse liability trial, I.V. CR845 demonstrated statistically significant reductions in “drug liking,” “feeling high,” “overall liking,” and “take drug again” scores in comparison to I.V. pentazocine, a Schedule IV analgesic. In more than 635 subjects dosed to date, I.V. CR845 was found to be well tolerated, without incurring the dysphoric and psychotomimetic side effects that have been reported with centrally acting (CNS-active) kappa opioid receptor agonists.
An oral formulation of CR845 has also been evaluated in a Phase 2a study in osteoarthritis patients and was shown to be well tolerated with twice a day dosing for two weeks.
About Cara Therapeutics
Cara Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing and commercializing new chemical entities designed to alleviate pain and pruritus by selectively targeting peripheral kappa opioid receptors. Cara is developing a novel and proprietary class of product candidates that target the body's peripheral nervous system and have demonstrated initial efficacy in patients with moderate-to-severe pain without inducing many of the undesirable side effects typically associated with currently available pain therapeutics.