fenobam

Fenobam is a small molecule imidazole derivative developed by McNeil Laboratories in the late 1970s as a novel anxiolytic drug. It acts as a potent and selective negative allosteric modulator (NAM) and inverse agonist of the metabotropic glutamate receptor 5 (mGluR5). Fenobam was initially investigated for its anxiolytic effects, which are comparable to benzodiazepines, but it was never commercially marketed due to dose-limiting side effects such as amnesia and psychotomimetic symptoms. Later research identified its mechanism of action at mGluR5, leading to renewed interest in its potential for treating conditions such as fragile X syndrome, pain disorders, depression, anxiety, and addiction. Fenobam has shown promising results in preclinical models for analgesia without developing tolerance and has been studied in clinical trials for fragile X syndrome[1][2][3][4][5][7][8].

Other names

3-Fluoro-5-(5-((2-methylthiazol-4-yl)ethynyl)pyridin-2-yl)benzonitrile3-fluoro-5-[5-[2-(2-methyl-1,3-thiazol-4-yl)ethynyl]pyridin-2-yl]benzonitrile