Researchers at the University of Sheffield have created a new long-form botulinum neurotoxin that can relieve chronic pain without the risk of stroke or addiction. Results of the study published In the journal Life Science Alliance.
Chronic pain is extremely difficult to manage and the drugs currently available are addictive. In addition, over time, you need to increase the dose, as the drug ceases to help.
Botox is a promising tool for clinical use in the treatment of chronic pain, but modern Botox injections can paralyze muscles. The team modified Botox using elements of Clostridium botulinum and created a biopharmaceutical with novel properties without the undesirable effects described above. The scientists sort of split Botox into two separate parts, swapped it, and then put it back together in a long way.
The results of the study show that a single injection of the resulting substance provides long-term pain relief without adverse effects in mouse models.
“A single injection of a new blocker into the pain area has the potential to alleviate people’s pain for months. Our new study will be devoted to testing the effectiveness of the drug on humans,” the scientists said.