Pyrrolidine, also known as tetrahydropyrrole, is a saturated five-membered heterocyclic ring, which is miscible with water. Pyrrolidine exists in many alkaloids and drug molecules, such as kappa opioids, antagonists of dopamine D4 receptors, and HIV reverse transcriptase inhibitors.
When the ends of the chains are joined together into a ring, cyclic compounds result; such substances often are referred to as carbocyclic or alicyclic compounds. Substitution of one or more of the ring carbon atoms in the molecules of a carbocyclic compound with a heteroatom gives a heterocyclic compound.
Johnson & Johnson pivotal study of Seltorexant shows statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in depressive symptoms and sleep disturbance outcomes. Seltorexant meets all primary and secondary endpoints in the pivotal Phase 3 MDD3001 clinical trial of adult and elderly patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) with insomnia symptoms.
Orexin signaling pathways are found to be associated with depression and anxiety. Orexin neurons receive and transmit signals throughout the central nervous system (CNS) that are modulated by their specific receptors (OX1R, OX2R). Seltorexant is an investigational first-in-class selective antagonist of ORX2 receptor. It is developed as an adjunctive therapy for MDD and for the treatment of insomnia disorder.