Beneficial compounds in the treatment of Alzheimer's

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Memory Pharmaceuticals Corp. (Nasdaq: MEMY) announced the dosing of the first subject in the single ascending dose (SAD) study of its Phase 1 clinical program of R4996/MEM 63908, a partial agonist of the nicotinic alpha-7 receptor. Compounds acting on this receptor could be beneficial in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease and schizophrenia, as well as other psychiatric and neurological disorders.

"We are excited to advance R4996/MEM 63908 into clinical studies and further explore the potential of nicotinic alpha-7 receptor agonists in multiple CNS indications," said Stephen Murray, M.D., Ph.D., Chief Medical Officer. "Together with our partner Roche, we have built a leading position in the development of nicotinic alpha-7 receptor agonists, and the advancement of R4996/MEM 63908 into the clinic reflects our continued progress with our Nicotinic Alpha-7 Agonist Program."

The randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study will evaluate the safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetics of ascending doses of R4996/MEM 63908 in healthy adult male volunteers. The study will be conducted in Montreal, Canada under a Clinical Trial Application that Memory Pharmaceuticals filed with Health Canada. As part of the Phase 1 clinical program for R4996/MEM 63908, the Company is planning to conduct a food interaction study in healthy adult male volunteers and a randomized, placebo- controlled single dose study in elderly male and female volunteers. The Company expects to complete the SAD study in the first quarter of 2008.

R4996/MEM 63908 is being developed as part of the Company's nicotinic alpha-7 receptor collaboration with Roche. Under the terms of the Company's agreement with Roche, the initiation of the Phase 1 trial for R4996/MEM 63908 triggers a $2.0 million milestone payment from Roche. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com

Buckwheat protein shows potential for cholesterol reduction
Proteins from tartary buckwheat and common buckwheat helped reduce cholesterol levels in rats on a high cholesterol diet by at least 25 per cent, report Japanese researchers.

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IGIV as a possible treatment for Alzheimer's

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Baxter International Inc. (NYSE: BAX) and The Alzheimer's Disease Cooperative Study (ADCS) group today announced the decision to pursue a multi-center U.S. Phase III study evaluating the role of Gammagard Liquid [Immune Globulin Intravenous (Human)] (IGIV), an intravenous immunoglobulin preparation, for the treatment of patients with mild to moderate alzheimer's disease. GAMMAGARD Liquid contains a broad spectrum of immunoglobulins (antibodies), and is indicated as an immunoglobulin replacement therapy in patients with primary immunodeficiency.

GAMMAGARD Liquid is processed from large pools of human plasma. IGIV has been used for almost three decades to treat primary immunodeficiency. IGIV is not currently approved for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease, and to date has not been established to be effective in this indication. The rationale for testing IGIV as a possible treatment for Alzheimer's is based on the presence of natural antibodies that are directed against several forms of beta amyloid. Beta amyloid is a protein found in plaques that accumulate in the brains of patients with Alzheimer's disease, and is considered to play a key role in the cognitive decline observed in these patients. Treatment with naturally occurring antibodies against beta amyloid contained in IGIV may result in clearance of beta amyloid from the brain and dissolution of plaques.

[Immune Globulin Intravenous (Human)] 10% GAMMAGARD LIQUID is indicated for the treatment of primary immunodeficiency disorders associated with defects in humoral immunity. These include but are not limited to congenital X-linked agammaglobulinemia, common variable immunodeficiency, Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome, and severe combined immunodeficiencies.

Omega-3 encapsulation in chitosan gets study boost
Chitosan plus maltodextrin could offer an interesting alternative for the encapsulation of omega-3 rich fish oils, suggests a new study that uses a novel ultrasonic technique to generate impressive results.

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IGIV as a possible treatment for Alzheimer's

.
Alzheimer's Donation
Donate Online Now
.

Baxter International Inc. (NYSE: BAX) and The Alzheimer's Disease Cooperative Study (ADCS) group today announced the decision to pursue a multi-center U.S. Phase III study evaluating the role of Gammagard Liquid [Immune Globulin Intravenous (Human)] (IGIV), an intravenous immunoglobulin preparation, for the treatment of patients with mild to moderate alzheimer's disease. GAMMAGARD Liquid contains a broad spectrum of immunoglobulins (antibodies), and is indicated as an immunoglobulin replacement therapy in patients with primary immunodeficiency.

GAMMAGARD Liquid is processed from large pools of human plasma. IGIV has been used for almost three decades to treat primary immunodeficiency. IGIV is not currently approved for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease, and to date has not been established to be effective in this indication. The rationale for testing IGIV as a possible treatment for Alzheimer's is based on the presence of natural antibodies that are directed against several forms of beta amyloid. Beta amyloid is a protein found in plaques that accumulate in the brains of patients with Alzheimer's disease, and is considered to play a key role in the cognitive decline observed in these patients. Treatment with naturally occurring antibodies against beta amyloid contained in IGIV may result in clearance of beta amyloid from the brain and dissolution of plaques.

[Immune Globulin Intravenous (Human)] 10% GAMMAGARD LIQUID is indicated for the treatment of primary immunodeficiency disorders associated with defects in humoral immunity. These include but are not limited to congenital X-linked agammaglobulinemia, common variable immunodeficiency, Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome, and severe combined immunodeficiencies.

Omega-3 encapsulation in chitosan gets study boost
Chitosan plus maltodextrin could offer an interesting alternative for the encapsulation of omega-3 rich fish oils, suggests a new study that uses a novel ultrasonic technique to generate impressive results.

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A novel therapeutic approach to Alzheimer disease

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A new gene therapy technique has been shown to reduce the amount of amyloid-beta protein (which forms the plaques found in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease) in the brains of mice. In a paper published this week in the open access medical journal PLoS Medicine Matthew Hemming, Dennis Selkoe and colleagues from Harvard Medical School generated a secreted form of neprilysin, a protease that can break down amyloid-beta protein, and used primary fibroblasts to introduce this soluble protease into the brains of mice who had advanced plaque deposition.

The pathologic hallmarks of Alzheimer disease are extracellular plaques of amyloid-beta protein and intraneuronal neurofibrillary tangles of tau protein, both of which accumulate in the regions of the brain that mediate memory and thought. Current treatments for Alzheimer disease affect only the symptoms. Ultimately it is to be hoped that it would be possible to develop disease-modifying interventions that would lower the production of amyloid-beta protein or enhance its clearance.

The authors found that on examination of the brains after implantation of modified fibroblasts there was significant reduction of amyloid-beta protein plaques at the site of engraftment, as well as in two sites distal to the implantation site. Although these results are encouraging and suggest that this technique might have potential for therapy, much further work would need to be done before it was clear whether it might work in humans. For example, it would need to be shown that the techniques used were safe in humans, and that in addition the clearance of the plaques actually improved the symptoms that the plaques cause. One approach that stems directly from this work is attempting to implant the neprilysin-secreting cells in a peripheral location (e.g., under the skin) to learn whether systemic elevation of secreted neprilysin (or another amyloid-beta-degrading protease) might adequately decrease plaques in the brain.

Donut company develops new zero trans oil
US-based Dunkin' Brands has developed a new oil in order to create trans-free fat bakery products without...

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Taking statins may help

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By comparing brain tissue of people who had taken statins with those who had not, US scientists have established for the first time that taking statins may help to stave off the telltale signs of Alzheimer's. Statins are taken by millions of Americans every day to lower cholesterol and reduce risk and symptoms of heart disease. They are a class of drugs known as HMG coenzyme A reductase inhibitors that includes rosuvastatin (Crestor), atorvastatin (Lipitor), simvastatin (Zocor), and lovastatin (Mevacor).

The most vulnerable regions of the brain include the amygdala, the hippocampus and surrounding regions, and neural pathways that transmit the catecholaminergic, seritonergic and cholinergic signals essential for memory, judgement, reasoning, and verbal fluency, among other cognitive skills.
ACT (Adult Changes in Thought) is a joint project of Group Health, a consumer-governed, nonprofit health care system based in Seattle, Washington, and the University of Washington. It is a prospective cohort study that began in 1994 and the participants are a random sample of Group Health members aged 65 and above who were not experiencing thinking problems when they enrolled.

The researchers looked for the definitive hallmarks of Alzheimer's: plaques and tangles in the brain. After controlling for a range of demographic and health variables such as age at death, gender, and strokes in the brain, Li and colleagues found there were significantly fewer plaques and tangles in the brains of people who had taken statins compared with those who had not.

Leader of the ACT study, and executive director of Group Health Center for Health Studies, Dr Eric Larson said: "These results are exciting, novel, and have important implications for prevention strategies." Larson said that the ACT programme is more rigorous than the average observational epidemiological study because it is based in a community population, it uses reliable automated pharmacy records, and the autopsies were performed on people who had dementia and on people who did not. The researchers hope that one day it may be possible to know precisely which patients will benefit from which type of statin for protecting against the onset of Alzheimer's.

Study extends understanding of phytosterol benefits
Phytosterol-enriched products may reduce apolipoprotein levels by up to four per cent, says a new study that highlights these markers as better than traditional risk factors.

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