MediciNova Announces Plans to Collaborate with UCLA Researchers in Grant-Funded Clinical Trial of MN-166 in Alcohol Use Disorder and Withdrawal

MediciNova a biopharmaceutical company traded on the NASDAQ Global Market (NASDAQ:MNOV) and the JASDAQ Market of the Tokyo Stock Exchange (Code Number: 4875), today announced that it plans to initiate a clinical trial of MN-166 (ibudilast) in alcohol dependence and withdrawal in collaboration with researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

As quoted in the press release:

The clinical trial is a collaborative effort between MediciNova, Inc., and Dr. Lara Ray, Professor, Department of Psychology and Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, Brain Research Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles and is funded by the Center for Study of Opioid Receptors and Drugs of Abuse (CSORDA; National Institute on Drug Abuse Grant P50-DA005010). The proposed clinical trial will evaluate MN-166 (ibudilast) as a potential treatment for individuals diagnosed with alcohol use disorder (AUD), and test whether MN-166 is more effective for those patients who experience withdrawal-related dysphoria than those who do not experience withdrawal. Previous findings showed that MN-166 was effective in blunting alcohol reward among participants with greater depressive symptoms, a hallmark symptom of prolonged alcohol withdrawal.

Lara Ray, PhD, Principal Investigator of the study, commented, “We are pleased to collaborate with MediciNova to continue our evaluation of MN-166 in the treatment of alcohol use disorder. The interplay between affect, withdrawal, and response to MN-166 in this population is an intriguing one.”

Click here to read the full press release.