Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

April 03, 2024

04/04/2024

Developing a vaccine for the zombie drug xylazine Scripps Research chemical biologists design an early proof-of-concept vaccine that could lead to the first effective treatment of xylazine overdose in people.

April 03, 2024

LA JOLLA, CA Xylazine is an FDA-approved sedative and pain reliever for use in animals, but it has severe adverse effects when used in humans. It is now illicitly being added to opioids, like fentanyl and heroin, as well as cocaine leading to a sharp rise in overdose deaths.

Now, Scripps Research chemical biologists have developed a vaccine to block the effects of xylazine's toxicity. The vaccine works by training the immune system to attack the drug, which is described in a new paper published in Chemical Communications on April 1, 2024.

We demonstrated that a vaccine can reverse the symptoms of a xylazine overdose in rodents, says study senior author Kim D. Janda, PhD, the Ely R. Callaway, Jr. Professor of Chemistry at Scripps Research. There is currently no remedy for xylazine poisoning other than supportive care, thus, we believe our research efforts and the data we have provided will pave the way for an effective treatment in humans.

The rapid increase in lethal drug overdoses attributed to xylazine combined with fentanyl prompted the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy to declare this combination an emerging threat to the United States. Xylazine intoxication presents similarly to opioid overdose, causing respiratory and central nervous system depression, and it can heighten the effects of opioids. However, naloxone typically administered to reverse the effects of opioids does not tackle the impact of xylazine, highlighting the need for effective measures to treat acute toxicity caused by xylazine.

Researchers suspect xylazine works by reducing blood flow to the brain, among other areas of the body. The drug also causes non-healing skin lesions and wounds, often located on the forearms and lower legs, that can require amputation in some cases giving it the nickname zombie drug.

Although no treatment currently exists, targeted vaccines may offer a solution. Vaccines nudge the immune system to create antibodies to fend off invaders. Antibodies can target viruses, bacteria and toxins. However, sometimes molecules are too small to initiate an immune response, as is the case with xylazine. So, to circumvent this problem, the researchers created a vaccine using a design principle that Janda pioneered, which relies on pairing the drug molecule (called a hapten) with a larger carrier molecule (a protein) and an adjuvant.

In this study, the scientists combined a xylazine hapten with multiple different protein types, to see which combination would create a robust immune response against xylazine. The team tested three vaccine formulations (termed TT, KLH and CRM197, based on the protein involved) to see which vaccine cocktail could help rodents after being challenged with xylazine. One of the three vaccines (TT) significantly increased movement in mice given xylazine after 10 minutes, while two of the three vaccines (TT and KLH) led to an improvement in breathing.

The scientists also examined how these vaccines would limit xylazine blood brain barrier, (BBB) permeation, a filtering mechanism that scrutinizes drug penetration. When xylazine was injected, it immediately crossed into the brain to bind with receptors. Antibodies typically cannot navigate the BBB; however, two of the three vaccines (TT and KLH) showed a strong ability to stop xylazine from reaching its receptors in the brain, limiting its detrimental effects.

A provisional patent has been filed on the research. In the future, his team will build off this work to create a bifunctional antibody that will reverse both fentanyl and xylazine's toxicity simultaneously, something that naloxone cannot do.

A monoclonal antibody treatment could be given in tandem with the vaccine to provide both immediate and long-term protection from both opioid substance use disorders as well as opioid-xylazine overdoses, says Janda. This strategy could make a significant impact on the opioid epidemic.

Evaluation of a Hapten Conjugate Vaccine Against the Zombie Drug' Xylazine was co-authored by Mingliang Lin, Lisa M. Eubanks, Bin Zhou, and Kim D. Janda, all of Scripps Research.

Funding for the study was provided by the Shadek family and Pearson Foundation.

Chemistry Janda, Kim
LINK: https://www.scripps.edu/news-and-events/press-room/2024/20240403-janda...
See more stories from scripps

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

06/09/2026

Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA World Cup 2026 in Germany with Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos

June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...

04/08/2026

Dalet Announces Commercial Availability of Dalia, Bringing Media-Aware Agentic AI to Enterprise Productions

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...

07/07/2026

Open call: Apply for the Media Innovation Europe Validation Booster

Applications are now open for the Validation Booster, a six-month acceleration programme supporting journalists, media organisations, content creators, media in...

07/07/2026

HAND Issues Persistent Digital IDs to 50 Top 2026 MLB Draft Prospects

The Universal Talent Identifier (HAND) has issued HAND IDs to 50 top prospects ahead of the 2026 MLB Draft, including consensus top-ranked players Roch Cholowsk...

07/07/2026

Cisco and McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Team Extend Technology Partnership

Cisco and the McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Team have announced an extension of their partnership, expanding the scope from networking and communications to incl...

07/07/2026

LucidLink Announces Enhanced Integration with Adobe Frame.io

LucidLink has announced a workflow integration with Adobe Frame.io that gives production teams unified access to Frame.io projects alongside supporting producti...

07/07/2026

Chyron Appoints Ahmed Magd as Middle East Sales Director

Chyron has announced the appointment of Ahmed Magd as Sales Director for the Middle East. Magd joins from previous senior commercial roles at Riedel Communicati...

07/07/2026

Leader Electronics T&M Equipment Used in Live Broadcast of Pope Leo XIVs Visit to Sagrada Famlia

Leader Electronics of Europe has announced that its PHABRIX Qx rasterizer and Le...

07/07/2026

eCLUTCH Secures EMEA and MENA Broadcast Rights for Esports World Cup 2026

eCLUTCH has announced it has acquired broadcast rights to the Esports World Cup 2026 for EMEA and MENA, covering the Middle East, Africa, the Balkans, Sweden, a...

07/07/2026

Riedel and ARRI Support Cinematic Live Production at Eurovision Song Contest 2026

Riedel Communications and ARRI supported ORF's host broadcast of the Eurovis...

07/07/2026

ARRI Releases ALEXA 35 Live Xtreme With High-Frame-Rate SDI Output for Live Production

ARRI has announced the ALEXA 35 Live Xtreme, a camera that adds high frame rate ...

07/07/2026

IBC 2026: LiveU To Exhibit With LU900Q, Sony Integration, EcoSystem Expansion

LiveU will exhibit at IBC 2026 (Stand 7.C24), showcasing the LU900Q Intelligent Production Unit, expanded Sony collaboration, and additions to its open IP-video...

07/07/2026

Peacock Advances Spanish-Language World Cup Streaming With Visin de Campo, Dolby Vision, Real-Time Highlights

Telemundo's coverage is packaged with Multiview, Catch Up with Key Plays, in...

07/07/2026

Australian Rugby League Commission Secures $5.3 Billion Media Rights Deal with Foxtel, Nine, and Sky NZ

The Australian Rugby League Commission (ARLC) has announced a seven-year media r...

07/07/2026

BYUtv Partners With Big 12 for Football Media Days Production

Produced onsite at The Star in Frisco, TX, live coverage of the two-day event airs on ESPN platforms The season for Football Media Days is here, and the Big 12...

07/07/2026

Rogers To Become 100% Owner of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment

Rogers Communications Inc. has announced an agreement to acquire the remaining 25% ownership stake in Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE) from Kilmer Spo...

07/07/2026

Mobile TV Groups Nick Garvin on Success of MTVG Production Platform at New Mountain Media Center

End-to-end broadcast solution includes fleet of mobile units, Cloud Control, and...

07/07/2026

SVG Executive Perspectives 2026: Industry Leaders Discuss Biz and Tech Trends for the Year Ahead

Sports-production-tech experts sound off on the state of the industry...

07/07/2026

Mix Buddy instrument mixer from Heritage Audio

New mixer aimed squarely at instrument-level sources Heritage Audio have clearly been busy recently, as alongside their all-new Tubestrip, they've also ...

07/07/2026

Heritage Audio unveil the Tubestrip

New channel strip combines popular hardware designs The latest arrival to the Heritage Audio line-up brings together a selection of their praised hardware d...

07/07/2026

Clear-Com Powers Ross Production Services Mobile Productions

eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......

07/07/2026

New Nielsen data shows Kiwis' wellbeing is shaped by fitness, finance and mental health

New Kessler 10 data now available in Nielsen CMI gives brands a deeper view of h...

07/07/2026

Vitamin brands boost ad spend by 27% as 11.8 million Australians turn to supplements

New Nielsen Ad Intel and CMV data reveals rising competition in Australia's ...

07/07/2026

DAS Disputes Wiegels 3.0 EAS Limitations

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

07/07/2026

LiveU to Showcase Q Era Innovations at 2026 IBC Show

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

07/07/2026

LucidLink Unifies Adobe Frame.io, Enterprise Storage

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

07/07/2026

ARRI Introduces ALEXA 35 Live Xtreme Camera

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

07/07/2026

Riedel and ARRI Bring Cinematic Live Production to the Eu...

Riedel Communications and ARRI played a key role in one of the most technically ambitious Eurovision Song Contest productions to date. For the first time in the...

07/07/2026

Berklee Valencia Honors Eric Whitacre at the 2026 Commencement Ceremony

Berklee Valencia Honors Eric Whitacre at the 2026 Commencement Ceremony The Grammy-winning composer was celebrated alongside this years cohort of masters degr...

07/07/2026

Disagreements Abound Over the Adequacy of C-Band Replacements

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

07/07/2026

Cameras Become More Connected to Production Workflows

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

07/07/2026

NFL on TV: Time to Move the Regulatory Goal Posts?

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

07/07/2026

Building a Future-Ready Facility for Tomorrow's Broadcasters

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

07/07/2026

Rewriting the Control Room: How Broadcasters Are Going Remote

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

07/07/2026

Fincons Group appoints Andrea Fravega as Global BU Media...

The appointment will drive growth and innovation across the Media Business Unit Fincons Group, a leading IT business consultancy and systems integrator company...

07/07/2026

Big Blue Marble debuts next-gen ultra low latency MoQ str...

International broadcast and streaming expert Big Blue Marble has announced a multi-month Proof of Concept (PoC) for Media over QUIC (MoQ) during a major interna...

07/07/2026

Leader provides Test and Measurement for global broadcast...

Test & measurement innovator, Leader Electronics of Europe, is proud to announce that two of its leading products, the PHABRIX Qx rasterizer and LeaderPhabrix L...

07/07/2026

Clear-Com Powers Ross Production Services Mobile Producti...

Clear-Com announced that Ross Production Services (RPS), a leading provider of mobile production solutions for live events and broadcasts, has standardized on ...

07/07/2026

Q Era Innovations Take Center Stage for LiveU at IBC2026

LiveU redefined live newsgathering with the invention of cellular bonding. At IBC2026, Stand 7.C24, the company will show how that foundation is evolving into t...

07/07/2026

Camera to Cloud Meets Camera to Timeline LucidLink Unifi...

LucidLink, a leader in cloud-based file services for content creators, today announced an enhanced workflow integration between LucidLink and Adobe Frame.io tha...

07/07/2026

Comcast's Sky to Acquire ITV Media and Entertainment

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

07/07/2026

Digital Alert Systems Details ATSC 3.0 EAS Capabilities to FCC

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

07/07/2026

New appointments to Screen Australia board

New appointments to Screen Australia board 7 July 2026 The Albanese Labor Government has made new appointments to the Screen Australia board. Dr Tania Chamber...

07/07/2026

The right team. The right time.' How The Killings at Parrish Station stuck to their creative guns.

The right team. The right time.' How The Killings at Parrish Station stuck t...

07/07/2026

Toby Regbo, Harry Gilby and Jessica Barden lead cast for The Cadburys - the true story of the Cadbury family - with filming now underway in Birmingham

UKTV commission with BritBox and Sony Pictures Television and inspired by Deborah Cadbury's book, Chocolate Wars The six-part series is produced by Fable P...

07/07/2026

Record audiences tune into the ICC Womens T20 World Cup 2026 on Sky Sports

Tuesday 7 July 2026 Record audiences tune into the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026 on Sky Sports The ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026 was the most watche...

07/07/2026

Official trailer released for Fightland, a revenge drama from executive producer Curtis 50 Cent Jackson coming August to Sky and NOW

Tuesday 7 July 2026 Official trailer released for Fightland, a revenge drama fr...

07/07/2026

Riedel and ARRI Bring Cinematic Live Production to the Eurovision Song Contest

Wuppertal July 7, 2026 Riedel and ARRI Bring Cinematic Live Production to the Eurovision Song ContestRiedel Communications and ARRI played a key role in one o...