Rapastinel - an investigational NMDA-R modulator for major depressive disorder: evidence to date

ABSTRACTIntroduction: Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a debilitating disorder with increasing prevalence globally. Despite the development of novel treatments for MDD, many patients present with treatment resistant depression (TRD), identified by treatment non-response following one or more adequate trials of an antidepressant. Rapastinel may prove to be a viable treatment for TRD; it has the potential to produce a rapid antidepressant response without serious adverse events and improve functional symptoms.Areas covered: We review the efficacy of rapastinel via completed and on-going clinical trials. The online databases Pubmed, clinicaltrials.gov and clinicaltrialsregister.eu were searched for rapastinel (GLYX-13) treatment in subjects with MDD. Nine clinical trials were identified.Expert opinion: Rapastinel is a novel and potentially transformative treatment for individuals with TRD. There is a limited number of clinical studies so far, but this compound has the potential to provide rapid, reliable a...