Enabling Novel Treatments for Nervous System Disorders by Improving Methods for Traversing the Bloodâ¬"Brain Barrier

by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Health and Medicine Division, Board on Health Sciences Policy, Forum on Neuroscience and Nervous System Disorders

2018 · National Academies Press

Despite substantial advances in developing treatments for the serious illnesses that affect people worldwide, there remains a tremendous unmet need in the treatment of complex neurologic diseases, including neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders. Chief among the challenges that have hindered the development of therapeutics for central nervous system (CNS) disorders is the bloodâ€"brain barrier (BBB). The Forum on Neuroscience and Nervous System Disorders of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine convened a workshop to explore the challenges associated with the BBB that have thus far stymied development of CNS drugs, examine new technologies that could address these challenges, and highlight potential opportunities for moving the field forward. This publication summarizes the presentations and discussions from the workshop.

Harnessing Mobile Devices for Nervous System Disorders

by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Health and Medicine Division, Board on Health Sciences Policy, Forum on Neuroscience and Nervous System Disorders

2019 · National Academies Press

The critical importance of using mobile technology is clear to anyone in the health professions, particularly those who treat people with central nervous system (CNS) disorders. To explore current developments and opportunities for using mobile technology to advance research and treatment of CNS disorders, the National Academies' Forum on Neuroscience and Nervous System Disorders hosted a workshop in June 5â€"6, 2018. This publication summarizes the presentations and discussions at the workshop.

Improving and Accelerating Therapeutic Development for Nervous System Disorders

by Institute of Medicine, Board on Health Sciences Policy, Forum on Neuroscience and Nervous System Disorders

2014 · National Academies Press

Improving and Accelerating Therapeutic Development for Nervous System Disorders is the summary of a workshop convened by the IOM Forum on Neuroscience and Nervous System Disorders to examine opportunities to accelerate early phases of drug development for nervous system drug discovery. Workshop participants discussed challenges in neuroscience research for enabling faster entry of potential treatments into first-in-human trials, explored how new and emerging tools and technologies may improve the efficiency of research, and considered mechanisms to facilitate a more effective and efficient development pipeline. There are several challenges to the current drug development pipeline for nervous system disorders. The fundamental etiology and pathophysiology of many nervous system disorders are unknown and the brain is inaccessible to study, making it difficult to develop accurate models. Patient heterogeneity is high, disease pathology can occur years to decades before becoming clinically apparent, and diagnostic and treatment biomarkers are lacking. In addition, the lack of validated targets, limitations related to the predictive validity of animal models - the extent to which the model predicts clinical efficacy - and regulatory barriers can also impede translation and drug development for nervous system disorders. Improving and Accelerating Therapeutic Development for Nervous System Disorders identifies avenues for moving directly from cellular models to human trials, minimizing the need for animal models to test efficacy, and discusses the potential benefits and risks of such an approach. This report is a timely discussion of opportunities to improve early drug development with a focus toward preclinical trials.