An updated patent review of small molecule KCNT1 inhibitors (2022-2024)

Gain-of-function mutations in KCNT1 channels has been associated with severe childhood epilepsies. KCNT1 channels are sodium activated potassium channels in the CNS involved in neuronal excitability. Substantial efforts have been made by several groups to discover novel small molecule KCNT1 inhibitors to validate this approach as a therapeutic strategy for the treatment of KCNT1-related epilepsies.

This review focuses on 10 published international patent applications from Praxis Precision Medicine that disclose novel small molecule KCNT1 inhibitors for the treatment of KCNT1-related neurological disorders. Features of compounds that contribute to KCNT1 inhibition and published in applications between 2022 and 2024 are discussed. Applications were identified and obtained through the online database, Patentscope, provided by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) using the search term 'KCNT1 inhibitors.'

Tremendous progress has been made toward the discovery of small molecule inhibitors of KCNT1 channels; however, much work remains to reach a viable therapeutic. Areas of work that will be critically important include further in vivo studies for efficacy, safety, and development of PK/PD relationships. Studies to better understand the binding of known ligands and determine the structural features that govern modulation of the channel are also much needed.