Research Finds a New Vaccine May Prevent Fentanyl Overdoses
This life-saving vaccine could prevent thousands of deaths each year.
Since 1999, more than 932,000 people have died from a drug overdose. And opioids are the leading cause of these overdose-related deaths.
Furthermore, according to the CDC, the opioid fentanyl was responsible for over 71,000 U.S. deaths in 2021. The U.S. is considered to be in a fentanyl epidemic—an estimated 175 Americans per day die from this opioid.
There may be some good news, though: Researchers from the University of Houston recently created a vaccine to block the effects of fentanyl. According to their research, the vaccine is able to stop the drug from reaching the brain without impacting other painkillers.
For the study, rats were vaccinated with three doses—one every three weeks—before fentanyl was released into their system. The vaccine works by activating T-cells in the immune system to produce antibodies that attach to fentanyl in the blood, stopping it from traveling through and damaging the body.
Related: After 16 Years Sober, Dax Shepard Reveals He Recently Relapsed With Painkillers
“This study adds critical new information to a growing body of research suggesting that vaccines may play an important role in the prevention and treatment of addiction in the future," says Dr. Patrick O'Connor, MD, MPH, MACP, an internal medicine and addiction medicine specialist at Yale Medicine."The study, which was done on rats, convincingly suggests that the experimental vaccine both stimulated antibodies against fentanyl and blocked some of the important effects of fentanyl in these animals,”
At this time researchers have only tested this shot on rats, but they hope to start human trials in 2023.
“While promising, a rigorous assessment of the impact of this type of vaccine in humans is needed before the potential short- and long-term benefits in people can be understood,” Dr. O’Connor explains. “I look forward to seeing this research proceed. In the meantime, other highly effective treatments for opioid use disorder including counseling therapies and medications are available now and need to be made accessible to all who need them.”
Sources
Pharmaceutics: “An Immunconjugate Vaccine Alters Distribution and Reduces the Antinociceptive, Behavioral and Physiological Effects of Fentanyl in Male and Female Rats”
Dr. Patrick O’Connor, MD, MPH, MACP, an internal medicine and addiction medicine specialist at Yale Medicine
