A prospective drug for schizophrenia failed to show efficacy in two Phase 2 trials leaving the developer, AbbVie Inc, without a molecule to challenge one of its biggest competitors in the field. The drug, emraclidine, is a small molecule positive allosteric modulator of the muscarinic M4 receptor designed to harness the psychosis in schizophrenia. Current antipsychotic drugs target a direct blockade of dopamine receptors which are overactive in schizophrenia.
