Development of a New, Injectable COX-2 Analgesic to Reduce Opioid Use after Surgery

BioTech Annecto Montreal is pleased to announce a presentation given by Damon Smith, PhD, CEO at Altus Formulation Inc entitled:

Development of a New, Injectable COX-2 Analgesic to Reduce Opioid Use after Surgery

Postoperative pain affects over 80% of people undergoing surgery and is too frequently treated with prolonged doses of opioids. Such strategies can lead to dependence and addiction.

We are using SmartCelle nanotechnology to develop a new formulation of the highly insoluble COX-2 inhibitor celecoxib (Celebrex®). SmartCelle, by increasing the solubility of celecoxib many thousands of times allows, for the first time, intravenous administration of this non-opioid drug. Red blood cell binding by SmartCelle technology also appears to significantly increase celecoxib circulation time permitting >12hr activity from a single injection. Such approaches are expected to reduce significantly the need for opioid analgesics after surgery thereby greatly enhancing patient experience and reducing addiction potential. (http://altusformulation.com/)

Damon is a CEO and a founder member of the Altus team having worked for 10 years as Senior Vice President Research and Development at Labopharm Inc. Prior to joining Labopharm he spent time at Conjuchem, a Montreal start up, and prior to this was Executive Director of Development at Protherics, a UK based antibody development company listed on the London Stock Exchange.