German research points way to better anxiety drug

By Ben Hirschler

LONDON (Reuters) - German scientists believe they may have found a better anxiety drug that can counteract panic attacks without the side effects caused by existing treatments like Valium.

Anxiety drugs such as Valium work well but produce side-effects that include drowsiness, forgetfulness and clumsiness and, when taken over time, can induce dependency.

The new compound, XBD173, appears to avoid these problems by targeting a different biological "don't panic" button, making it a good potential candidate for use as a safe and fast-acting anxiety pill.

Researchers published details of their experimental drug in the journal Science on Thursday, including encouraging results from an initial Phase I clinical study, which was sponsored by Swiss drugmaker Novartis.

A company spokesman said XBD173 was no longer in clinical development at Novartis but had been given to co-development partner Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma.

"What is needed right now is a rapid-acting anxiolytic (anxiety drug) that is effective but lacks the side effects of benzodiazepines," lead researcher Rainer Rupprecht of Munich's Ludwig Maximilian University said in a telephone interview.

"This shows that there is a possibility."

Roche's drug Valium, known generically as diazepam, is the best known of the benzodiazepine class of drugs, which have dominated the anxiety treatment market since the 1960s.