LA JOLLA — Dr. Kim D. Janda is working on a vaccine that could change how the country fights the fentanyl crisis. For more than three decades, Janda has been a leading figure in chemical biology and immunopharmacology at the Scripps Research Institute.
His lab’s focus: training the immune system to attack drugs of abuse, not just viruses.
A Vaccine That Trains the Body
The fentanyl vaccine candidate works through a mechanism called a hapten-based vaccine. Janda’s team designs a small molecule — a hapten — that mimics part of the fentanyl structure. When attached to a larger carrier protein and injected, it prompts the immune system to produce antibodies that bind to fentanyl in the bloodstream.
The goal is straightforward: if a person who has been vaccinated uses fentanyl, the antibodies neutralize the drug before it can reach the brain and produce a high. That, Janda hopes, could prevent relapse in individuals who have undergone detoxification.
His team published the study describing this candidate on November 14, 2022, in the Journal of the American Chemical Society. Co-authors on the paper included Dr. Lisa M. Eubanks and Dr. Cody J.
Wenthur. The work is funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Previous Work and Setbacks
This is not Janda’s first attempt at an addiction vaccine. His lab previously developed a nicotine vaccine that reached Phase II clinical trials. That candidate showed promise in early testing but did not proceed to market.
The fentanyl vaccine is still in preclinical stages. Janda has said that further animal testing and human clinical trials are expected to take several years.
There is no timeline yet for when the vaccine might reach patients. But the stakes are high. Fentanyl is now the leading cause of death for Americans aged 18 to 45, according to federal data.
A vaccine that could block its effects would be a new kind of tool — one that works inside the body, not through counseling or medication alone.
Part of a Broader Plan
Janda has stated that the vaccine is not intended as a standalone solution. He envisions it as part of a comprehensive treatment plan for opioid use disorder — something that could be given to patients who have already gone through detoxification, to help keep them from returning to use. The science is still years from the clinic.
But on the ground in La Jolla, the work continues. Consult your doctor for medical advice.
Sources
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