A $773,000 grant from the Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Fund will help Kalamazoo-based
Metabolic Solutions Development Co. as it seeks a new treatment for Alzheimer's disease.
The company is ready to conduct a pilot Phase 2a trial of a pioneer compound currently known as MSDC-0160 to treat diseases related to altered mitochondrial function.
Company officials say the compound modulates mitochondrial metabolism. Some evidence suggests the loss of mitochondrial function and the decline of brain glucose metabolism could be a contributing cause of Alzheimer's disease.
The study funded by the Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation will help determine whether the compound affects the use of glucose in specific regions of the brain and if large scale clinical trials in patients with mild Alzheimer's is feasible.
The upcoming trial will involve patients 55 to 85 who have been diagnosed with mild Alzheimer's disease. Up to 50 patients will be given either a placebo or 150 milligrams of MSDC-0160 for 90 days. The effects on the brain and the safety of the compound will be measured.
Trials come after research previously demonstrated positive effects of MSDC-0160 in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease.
MSDC is a drug discovery and development company working to develop new therapies for metabolic diseases associated with altered mitochondrial function, especially insulin resistance and Type 2 diabetes.
MSDC was founded in 2006 by former Upjohn Co. researchers Jerry Colca and Rolf Kletzien.
Writer: Kathy Jennings
Source: Tyler Lecceadone,
MSDC
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