Befiradol (also known as NLX-112) was initially developed by Pierre Fabre as a selective serotonin-1A receptor agonist for the treatment of cancer pain and neuropathic pain. However, these trials were discontinued. In 2013, the development and commercialization rights were licensed to Neurolixis. Neurolixis studied befiradol in Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients that exhibit dyskinesia. Dyskinesia is a side effect that appears after several years of action Levodopa, a drug that remains the gold standard treatment for PD. In 2019, FDA gave a positive response to Neurolixis’s befiradol to be tested in Phase 2 clinical in Parkinson's disease patients suffering from debilitating levodopa-induced dyskinesia.

Phenserine, a derivative of physostigmine, was first described as an inhibitor of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and was shown to improve cognition in various experimental paradigms in rodents and dogs. It was clinically tested for Alzheimer's disease, with moderate success in initial Phase II studies. Phenserine is also unique because of differing actions of its enantiomers: (-)-phenserine is the active enantiomer for inhibition of AChE, whereas ( )-phenserine (Posiphen®) has weak activity as an AChE inhibitor and can be dosed much higher. Posiphen® is a small, hydrophobic, orally available molecule that enters the brain readily. It is the only drug ever described that inhibits more than one neurotoxic aggregating protein. Posiphen® inhibits synthesis of amyloid precursor protein (APP), tau and α-Synuclein. mRNA translation of neurotoxic aggregating proteins is up-regulated by iron (Fe) and down-regulated by iron regulatory protein-1 (IRP1). Posiphen® interferes with this second step of the common cascade of the aggregating proteins. It enhances the binding and/or activity of IRP1 to the iron response element (IRE) stem loop in the 5’UTR of the mRNAs of neurotoxic aggregating proteins, therefore specifically lowering their synthesis. By potentiating the IRE/IRP1 complex, Posiphen® lowers the level of free mRNA to be translated by the ribosome. Posiphen® is in development for the treatment neurodegenerative diseases.

Fluorocyclopentenylcytosine (RX-3117) is a novel small molecule nucleoside compound that is incorporated into DNA or RNA of cancer cells and inhibits both DNA and RNA synthesis which induces apoptotic cell death of tumor cells. Fluorocyclopentenylcytosine also mediates the down-regulation of DNA methyltransferase 1 (DNMT1), an enzyme responsible for the methylation of cytosine residues on newly synthesized DNA and also a target for anticancer therapies. Preclinical studies have shown Fluorocyclopentenylcytosine to be effective in both inhibiting the growth of various human cancer xenograft models, including colon, lung, renal and pancreas, as well as overcoming chemotherapeutic drug resistance. Fluorocyclopentenylcytosine has demonstrated a broad spectrum anti-tumor activity against 50 different human cancer cell lines and efficacy in 12 different mouse xenograft models. The efficacy in the mouse xenograft models was superior to that of gemcitabine. In addition, in human cancer cell lines made resistant to the anti-tumor effects of gemcitabine, Fluorocyclopentenylcytosine still retains its full anti-tumor activity. In August 2012, Rexahn reported the completion of an exploratory Phase I clinical trial of Fluorocyclopentenylcytosine in cancer patients conducted in Europe, to investigate the oral bioavailability, safety and tolerability of the compound. In this study, oral administration of Fluorocyclopentenylcytosine demonstrated an oral bioavailability of 34-58% and a plasma half-life (T1/2) of 14 hours. In addition, Fluorocyclopentenylcytosine was safe and well tolerated in all subjects throughout the dose range tested. Fluorocyclopentenylcytosine is in phase I/II clinical trials by Rexahn for the treatment of bladder cancer and pancreatic cancer. This compound was granted Orphan Drug Designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of patients with pancreatic cancer in September 2014.

Pexiganan is a 22-amino-acid synthetic cationic peptide. It is an analog of magainin 2, which is a host defense peptide isolated from frog skin. The drug is thought to act by disturbing the permeability of the cell membrane or cell wall. Pexiganan exhibited in vitro broad-spectrum antibacterial activity when it was tested against 3,109 clinical isolates of gram-positive and gram-negative, anaerobic and aerobic bacteria. It is currently in phase 3 clinical trials as a topical antimicrobial agent for the treatment of mild infections associated with diabetic foot ulcers. In vitro data for pexiganan acetate suggest that the drug does have hemolytic activity at concentrations relevant for antibacterial activity. In association with tigecycline, pexiganan administration could overcome antibiotic resistance and increase the effectiveness of treatment against P. aeruginosa sepsis.