Research & Development
Precision Pharmacology for Specific Brain Circuits
Therapeutics designed to correct pathological signaling where it originates, not across the whole brain.
Proprietary cell-based assays. We’ve built cell-based systems that measure the function of specific TARP-associated AMPA receptor complexes, including mechanism-resolved electrophysiology. These assays let us screen in physiologically relevant contexts and distinguish effects at the receptor populations that matter from effects across glutamate signaling generally. They also generate proprietary quantitative pharmacology data that we use to train predictive models.
NeuroVectrix. NeuroVectrix is our in-house computational discovery platform. It unifies generative chemistry, structure–activity analysis, and predictive modeling, and its Discovery Autopilot runs iterative design-and-evaluate cycles across compound libraries, returning prioritized candidates for synthesis and testing. Scientists set the objectives and validate the results experimentally. NeuroVectrix is built for CNS drug discovery broadly: our AMPA/TARP programs are its first application.
Our system is built to learn, not just to rank. Each NeuroVectrix cycle returns compounds prioritized for lead optimization alongside compounds chosen to resolve open SAR questions, so each round of synthesis advances the lead series and sharpens the models behind it. Cycles that would take a medicinal chemistry team months can run in hours.
Targeting Glutamate Receptors with Circuit-Level Precision
Disease biology is molecularly and anatomically specific. Brain disorders involve dysfunction in particular molecular systems and particular circuits, and that specificity is something drug design can exploit.
Ionotropic glutamate receptors, including AMPA receptors, are central to excitatory neurotransmission and the regulation of neural circuit activity. When their function becomes dysregulated, it can disrupt circuit balance and drive a wide range of neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders. However, existing approaches to modulating glutamate signaling often lack regional specificity, leading to broad effects across the brain and limiting both efficacy and tolerability.
Our discovery platform pairs proprietary experimental systems with computational design in a single closed loop. Neither half works alone. Measurement without design is slow; design without measurement is unvalidated.
A Platform Built on Proprietary Biology and Computation
To address this challenge, we leverage the unique biology of transmembrane AMPA receptor regulatory proteins (TARPs). TARPs co-localize with AMPA receptors and play a critical role in governing their function, trafficking, and localization. Importantly, their distinct expression patterns across brain regions and neural circuits provide a powerful mechanism for achieving spatial precision in drug design.
By targeting TARP-associated AMPA receptor complexes, we direct therapeutic activity to disease-relevant circuits. This approach can unlock novel binding sites inaccessible to conventional approaches. This enables a new class of precision neuromedicines designed to modulate dysfunctional circuits and restore healthy activity and plasticity—potentially improving efficacy while reducing off-target effects.
Programs
We are building a pipeline of first-in-class, regionally selective AMPA receptor modulators.
Our programs address disorders driven by circuit-level dysfunction, where existing therapies fall short for lack of specificity. By targeting TARP-defined receptor populations, we aim to deliver differentiated therapeutics with improved efficacy and reduced side effects.
NL-101: PTSD. Our lead program selectively modulates GluA1-containing AMPA receptors associated with TARPγ4, targeting pathological signaling in amygdala fear circuitry. NL-101 is a non-hallucinogenic small molecule, designed for precision and clinical scalability.
Additional programs are in discovery, establishing a scalable path toward clinical development.