Salvinorin A: A Mini Review of Physical and Chemical Properties Affecting Its Translation from Research to Clinical Applications in Humans

Abstract

Salvinorin A is a potent and selective agonist of kappa opioid receptors in the brain. Recent studies in several animal models have revealed that Salvinorin A has anti-addiction, anti-depression properties and exhibits pronounced neuroprotective effects against hypoxia/ischemia induced brain damage, and have raised interest in potential clinical applications in several acute pathologies involving oxygen deficiency in the brain. This review focuses on the chemical and physical properties of Salvinorin A and their impact on development of a rational formulation to enable its translation from a research compound to a novel therapeutic agent.

Figure 1

a) Molecular structure of Salvinorin A. b) Salvinorin A occupies the binding site in the kappa opioid receptor. The binding site prediction was carried out using DockingServer20 as previously described[21]. The coordinates of the crystal structure of the kappa receptor were obtained from the protein data bank (PDB) with access code of 4DJH[22]. The image was generated using PyMOL (Version 1.5.0.4, Schrodinger LLC, New York, NY).