Elan chases a holy grail of Alzheimer’s treatment: Prevention

Posted under Alzheimer's, bapineuzumab, beta amyloid, Blog, Cambridge University, Companies, Diagnostics, Drug Discovery, Elan, Funding, Medical Devices, Medical Supply, Pharmaceuticals, R&D, Startups, Universities, Videos by rmcbride

After struggles to develop an effective remedy for Alzheimer's disease, Elan's ($ELN) support of research at Cambridge University could unlock targets for a drug that offers a preventive treatment for the memory-stealing disease and other illnesses involving misfolding proteins in the brain. 

While the findings are very early-stage, an investigator from Cambridge University has used nuclear resonance imaging and computer modeling to capture the misdeeds of a protein known as beta amyloid, which forms into clumps in the brains of Alzheimer's patients. And the research could yield targets and lead to drugs that act on the proteins at the point at which they are about to turn bad and form into clumps associated with the disease, according to a Bloomberg report.

Michele Vedruscolo, the Cambridge University biophysicist working with Elan, published her findings in Science. The study shows the minute steps in the process of protein malformation with unique detail, shining new light on potential openings for drugs to intercede before the plaques form. In concept, a drug that could prevent the hallmark plaques associated with Alzheimer's would be akin to the benefits of statins such as Pfizer's ($PFE) Lipitor, which acts on an enzyme linked with formation of heart attack-associated cholesterol. What's more, the imaging technique used in Vedruscolo's study could detail the activity of another bad-acting proteinsin Alzheimer's called tau, Bloomberg reporter Elizabeth Lopatto told me via Twitter.

"This is potentially a game changer for drug discovery," Dale Schenk, Elan's chief scientist, wrote in an email to Bloomberg. "We look forward in the future to applying the principles described in this work to other proteins."

Of course, this could all amount to nothing for patients. Theories about ways to combat Alzheimer's have often failed to hold true in clinical trials, as Elan and other companies such as Eli Lilly ($LLY) have learned with earlier programs that fell short. Yet with a dearth of effective drugs against the disease, which affects more than 5 million people in the U.S. alone, any drug with a relatively clean safety profile and a modicum of efficacy could bring incredible riches to its developers.  

Ireland-based Elan has a sizable stake in Alzheimer's drug development. After selling most of its rights to an antibody against the disease to a Johnson & Johnson ($JNJ) unit, Elan retains a quarter of the rights to the potential blockbuster known as bapineuzumab, which J&J and partner Pfizer have in late-stage development. The Phase III data on the program are expected later this year, with the fate of the drug having potential multibillion-dollar implications for its owners.

- read the Bloomberg article

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Elan CEO puts retirement party on hold as Alzheimer’s PhIII looms

Posted under bapineuzumab, Blog, Companies, Diagnostics, Elan, Funding, Kelly Martin, Medical Devices, Medical Supply, Pfizer, Pharmaceuticals, Startups, Universities, Videos by John Carroll

Kelly Martin is hanging on to his executive suite at Elan ($ELN) for a few more months. Instead of bowing out May 1 under a longstanding exit plan, Martin has agreed to keep the title and the responsibility for the ultimate outcome of the big Phase III program for the Alzheimer's drug bapineuzumab. That data package arrives mid-year, and the changeup in the transition schedule illustrates just how big the stakes are for all involved.

Johnson & Johnson ($JNJ) and Pfizer ($PFE) took over the driver's seat on bapineuzumab some time ago, but the recently restructured neuroscience biotech retains a hefty 25% stake in the venture. A win in Phase III would set the stage for a new CEO to come in with some mega-blockbuster income to look forward to. A failure, widely considered far more likely in the uncertain world of Alzheimer's and neuroscience in general, would make the job a turnaround deal, forcing some tough decisions.

"The implications of the upcoming completion of the bapineuzumab Phase III pivotal trials, which operationally are run by Janssen Alzheimer Immunotherapy and Pfizer, is potentially of transformational significance for Elan," the company said in a statement today. And while the board has been chatting with a "number of exceptionally high caliber candidates," the selection process is now on hold.

Jefferies' Corey Davis once told Bloomberg that bapineuzumab is Elan's lottery ticket. A winning ticket would make the CEO's job a prize catch in the industry. But the phrase "potentially of transformational significance" is a two-edged sword in biotech. That's also likely to be a consideration at Eli Lilly, which is nearing its own day of reckoning with crucial Phase III data on its Alzheimer's candidate.

- here's the press release

Special Report: Bapineuzumab - 15 top blockbuster contenders

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J&J backs potential pain drugs derived from spider venom

Posted under Amylin pharmaceuticals, Blog, Companies, Diagnostics, Elan, Funding, Medical Devices, Medical Supply, Pharmaceuticals, Startups, Universities, Videos by Ryan McBride

One industry watcher called it "SpideRx." Johnson & Johnson ($JNJ) has struck a deal with Australia's Queensland University to research spider venom peptides as remedies for chronic pain--a multibillion dollar headache for healthcare systems and a blockbuster market for drugmakers.

The yearlong project involves scientists from Queensland, J&J's Corporate Office of Science and Technology and members of the Big Pharma's Janssen unit, according to Queensland's release. And the groups plan to dig deeper into whether peptides from spider toxins could be developed into inhibitors of ion channel pathways involved in continuous pain. Queensland didn't reveal financial details of the pact.

Drugmakers have been hungry to advance non-addictive treatments for chronic pain, as well as therapies that can hit the molecular drivers of pain without needlessly numbing other tissues. For many years researchers have probed the animal kingdom for painkillers and drugs for other diseases such as cancer and diabetes with some wins. Take Elan's sea snail-derived pain blocker Prialt and Amylin's ($AMLN) diabetes drug Byetta, which is a synthetic version of a substance found in a venomous lizard called the Gila monster. Arachnids might hold a future anti-pain drug for New Brunswick, NJ-based J&J.

"Discoveries like this pass through many developmental stages before they become market-ready therapeutic products, so combining the resources and expertise of Australian researchers and [J&J] means potential pain drug candidates for clinical trials are likely to be identified much sooner," David Henderson, managing director of Queensland's commercialization group UniQuest, said in a statement.

The potential payday, of course, could be huge if the work yields a marketed drug. There are about 1.5 billion sufferers of chronic pain globally and costs stemming from chronic aches are more than $500 billion annually in the U.S., according to the release.

- here's the release
- check out Bloomberg's article