51�ԹϺ���

The Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation (ADDF) today announced a new investment to develop a first-of-its-kind Biomarker Observatory that will provide a comprehensive overview of the Alzheimer's biomarkers pipeline, including blood tests, brain scans, digital devices, and other tools that can help diagnose and monitor the disease. These efforts will be led by renowned clinical trialist Jeffrey Cummings, MD, ScD, Joy Chambers-Grundy Professor of Brain Science at the School of Integrated Health Sciences at University of Nevada, Las Vegas with Co-Principal Investigator Feixiong Cheng, PhD, from the Laboratory of Network Medicine at Cleveland Clinic. This Observatory will fill a critical gap by creating the first thorough overview of the biomarker pipeline, serving as a key resource to catalyze progress in drug development.

Over the past two years, Eisai and Biogen’s Leqembi and Eli Lilly’s Kisunla, both anti-amyloid antibodies, made history as the first real options to slow cognitive decline associated with Alzheimer’s disease. For years, amyloid plaques and tau tangles have been a primary target of Alzheimer’s disease research and drug development, but while affecting these proteins may yield some benefit, the illness continues to progress. Today, multiple therapeutics are in Phase III trials with other targets, suggesting that within the next few years it may become possible to treat Alzheimer’s via multiple pathways.

AXS-05, a novel NMDA receptor antagonist that already has approval for major depressive disorder, shows significant benefit in the treatment of agitation that is associated with Alzheimer’s disease, according to research presented at the 2024 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference (AAIC).

The FDA has granted both Fast Track and Regenerative Medicine Advanced Therapeutic (RMAT) Designations to Longeveron's Lomecel-B investigational allogeneic medicinal signaling cell (MSC) therapy for the potential treatment of patients with Alzheimer disease (AD).1,2.

For Dr. Jeffrey Cummings, a brain health researcher and professor at 51�ԹϺ���, this is an exciting time in the fight against Alzheimer’s disease. Federal health advisers in May voted to back an Alzheimer’s drug from Eli Lilly and Co. that can slow the progression of cognitive decline and memory problems. On Tuesday morning the drug — donanemab — gained final approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, making it the second Alzheimer’s drug that slows cognitive decline cleared for use in the United States.

Two new assessments of clinical trials pointed to the need for more investment in Alzheimer's disease treatments. At the 2024 American Geriatrics Societyopens in a new tab or window (AGS) scientific meeting, researchers evaluated Alzheimer's trials funded by the National Institute on Aging (NIA) over a 20-year period. Another analysis, published in Alzheimer's and Dementia: Translational Research and Clinical Interventionsopens in a new tab or window, provided a comprehensive look at active trials in the Alzheimer's drug pipeline.

Considering current developments in Alzheimer’s drugs, a US expert has predicted that the industry should “be prepared for more complex biological therapies that require intravenous infusion and vigilant monitoring for side effects; more like cancer therapies,” according to Dr Jeffrey Cummings, Alzheimer’s clinician-scientist and research professor at the School of Integrated Health Sciences, University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

The world of Alzheimer's treatments is at an inflection point as more potential drugs make their way out of clinical trials. On the heels of newly FDA-approved drugs Aduhelm (aducanumab) in 2021 and Leqembi (lecanemab) in 2023, a 51�ԹϺ��� researcher says that 2024 is a "learning year" for Alzheimer's drug development.