Researchers Design Safer Drug Candidate for Chronic Pain and Pruritus
A team from the Hefei Institute of Materials Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), along with collaborators from the Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica of CAS, developed a KOR biased agonist with high efficacy and reduced side effects through structure-based rational design.
Difelikefalin is a kappa opioid receptor (KOR) peptide agonist for the treatment of chronic pruritus. However, as a balanced agonist that activates both G protein and β-arrestin signaling pathways, it is associated with side effects linked to β-arrestin signaling.In a study published in Nature Communications, a team from the Hefei Institute of Materials Science of the Chinese Academy of Scien...
Jun 08, 2026
