A novel and safe antidepressant “Orcinoside” is expected to be available in domestic market, announced Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (KIZ, CAS) on May 5, 2011.

The “Orcinoside”, rated as Class 1 natural antidepressant drug, has recently been approved by the State Food and Drug Administration to undergo clinical trials that involve 3 stages before entering the market. It was co-developed by KIZ and Kunming Institute of Botany, CAS (KIB). 

Depression is a common mental disorder and the leading cause of disability worldwide. By the year 2020, depression is projected to reach 2nd place of the ranking of global burden of disease. Currently, there are an estimated 26 million Chinese people are living with major depressive disorder, accounting for 3%-5% of the total population. Lots of antidepressant drugs have been developed, most of which are far from satisfaction.

The research team headed by researcher CHEN Jijun from KIB and researcher XU Lin from KIZ made a study of natural active molecules screening from a series of traditional Chinese medicines and found that the molecular compound “Orcinoside” demonstrated remarkable antidepressant nature. So far, they have completed the preparation of Orcinoside capsules. Compared to existing antidepressants, “Orcinoside” is safer and less prone to generate toxic and side-effect, enjoying a great prospect in the treatment for depression.

The research has received supports from National Natural foundation of China and State Intellectual Property Office of China.