pozanicline

Pozanicline is a small molecule drug developed by Abbott (now AbbVie) that acts as a selective partial agonist of neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, primarily targeting the α4β2 subtype and to a lesser extent the α6β2 subtype, with negligible activity at α7 and α3β4 subtypes[1][2][6]. It was investigated for its nootropic and neuroprotective effects, particularly in cognitive enhancement and neuroprotection. Pozanicline was studied for the treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorders, anxiety disorders, and dementia[1][2][3][4][5]. While early pilot studies showed some efficacy in ADHD, larger clinical trials were negative or inconclusive; all development programs have since been discontinued[3][4]. Pozanicline’s selectivity for specific nicotinic receptor subtypes aimed to provide therapeutic benefits with fewer side effects compared to other drugs in this class[1][6].

Other names

2-methyl-3-(2-(S)-pyrrolidinylmethoxy)pyridine dihydrochloride