DATA GRAPHICS | Product Development
OXR2 agonists show efficacy beyond narcolepsy type 1
With Phase II data from Alkermes and Centessa, OXR2 utility broadens. Centessa’s ORX750 appears the stronger of the two in NT2.
November 17, 2025 9:56 PM UTC
The case for OXR2 agonism in narcolepsy type 1 comes directly from the causal biology: patients lose the brain cells that produce the neuropeptide orexin. But early clinical findings from other sleep disorders suggest OXR2 agonism may also be useful in sleep disorders where orexin neurons remain intact.
At least three members of the OXR2 agonist class have recently shown efficacy signals in clinical trials treating narcolepsy type 1 (NT1): oveporexton from Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. (Tokyo:4502; NYSE:TAK), alixorexton from Alkermes plc (NASDAQ:ALKS) and ORX750 from Centessa Pharmaceuticals plc (NASDAQ:CNTA)...