Phytopharm looks for licensing partner for Alzheimer drug
pharmafile | May 24, 2006 | News story | Research and Development |
Specialist pharma company Phytopharm says it is confident of finding a partner to develop and market one of its lead products, which could be a breakthrough in Alzheimer's disease.
Pre-clinical studies suggest Cogane could actually reverse the effects of Alzheimer's disease, but the company's latest phase II trials have been inconclusive.
The trials showed the drug was safe, but patients taking the treatment showed no better outcomes than those taking a placebo.
The company says the Alzheimer's patients in the placebo group did not show the deterioration in cognitive function that would normally be expected, thereby possibly concealing any possible benefits of the new drug.
Prof David Smith, OPTIMA project leader and emeritus professor of pharmacology, Oxford University, said longer term trials would now be launched.
"This study confirms that Cogane has a good clinical safety profile," he said. "Since the placebo group did not show any evidence of deterioration during the 12-week treatment period, a short-term clinical study, such as this, is unlikely to detect a significant treatment effect when attempting to evaluate a disease-modifying agent."
Despite the lack of strong data from this trial, Phytopharm is currently in talks with a number of companies, and says it expects to announce a partner by next year.
Phytopharm chief executive Dr Richard Dixey commented: "A number of people have signed confidential data agreements and Phytopharm is expecting to sign up a large pharmaceutical company early next year, which will give the amount of investment needed to take Cogane to market."
Pre-clinical work with Cogane showed it to be neuroprotective against betya-amyloid and glutamate damage which contributes to Alzheimer's disease.
Cogane works by restoring levels of proteins that are altered in the ageing brain, returning them to levels observed in the young and could even help neural connections in the brain to grow back.
In pre-clinical trials, the drug reversed the decrease of neuronal growth factors as well as reversing neuronal degeneration shown in the ageing brain. If replicated in sufferers, these results could prove a massive breakthrough in treating Alzheimer's.
Cogane is one of Phytopharm's synthetic pharmaceutical molecules, but the company is best known for its products based on plant research.
Its most well-known drug in development is an obesity treatment based on Hoodiagordonii, a rare cactus native to the Kalahari Desert.
Unilever, the global foods giant, has bought exclusive worldwide rights to an appetite-suppressing compound extracted from the Hoodia gordonii plant, which has been developed by Phytopharm.
Unilever says the first new hoodia products are expected to reach the market in the next three years and may be marketed under the SlimFast brand or incorporated in other Unilever brands.
Phytopharm will receive initial payments of around 6.5 million from Unilever, out of a potential total of 21 million as well as royalties once the products go on sale.
