Biogen Inc. is an American multinational biotechnology company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States specializing in the discovery, development, and delivery of therapies for the treatment of neurological diseases to patients worldwide. Biogen operates in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hungary, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, and Switzerland.
Elan Corporation plc was a major drugs firm based in Dublin, Ireland, which had major interests in the United States. It was listed on the New York Stock Exchange as ELN, the Irish Stock Exchange as ELN.I, and the London Stock Exchange as ELN.L. In 2013, the company merged with Perrigo to form Perrigo Company PLC.
Amyloid beta denotes peptides of 36–43 amino acids that are the main component of the amyloid plaques found in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease. The peptides derive from the amyloid-beta precursor protein (APP), which is cleaved by beta secretase and gamma secretase to yield Aβ in a cholesterol-dependent process and substrate presentation. Aβ molecules can aggregate to form flexible soluble oligomers which may exist in several forms. It is now believed that certain misfolded oligomers can induce other Aβ molecules to also take the misfolded oligomeric form, leading to a chain reaction akin to a prion infection. The oligomers are toxic to nerve cells. The other protein implicated in Alzheimer's disease, tau protein, also forms such prion-like misfolded oligomers, and there is some evidence that misfolded Aβ can induce tau to misfold.
Amyloid plaques are extracellular deposits of the amyloid beta (Aβ) protein mainly in the grey matter of the brain. Degenerative neuronal elements and an abundance of microglia and astrocytes can be associated with amyloid plaques. Some plaques occur in the brain as a result of aging, but large numbers of plaques and neurofibrillary tangles are characteristic features of Alzheimer's disease. The plaques are highly variable in shape and size; in tissue sections immunostained for Aβ, they comprise a log-normal size distribution curve, with an average plaque area of 400-450 square micrometers (µm²). The smallest plaques, which often consist of diffuse deposits of Aβ, are particularly numerous. Plaques form when Aβ misfolds and aggregates into oligomers and longer polymers, the latter of which are characteristic of amyloid.
Pittsburgh compound B (PiB) is a radioactive analog of thioflavin T, which can be used in positron emission tomography scans to image beta-amyloid plaques in neuronal tissue. Due to this property, Pittsburgh compound B may be used in investigational studies of Alzheimer's disease.
Beta-secretase 1, also known as beta-site amyloid precursor protein cleaving enzyme 1, beta-site APP cleaving enzyme 1 (BACE1), membrane-associated aspartic protease 2, memapsin-2, aspartyl protease 2, and ASP2, is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the BACE1 gene. Expression of BACE1 is observed mainly in neurons.
Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) have varied therapeutic uses. It is possible to create a mAb that binds specifically to almost any extracellular target, such as cell surface proteins and cytokines. They can be used to render their target ineffective, to induce a specific cell signal, to cause the immune system to attack specific cells, or to bring a drug to a specific cell type.
Latrepirdine is an antihistamine drug which has been used clinically in Russia since 1983.
scyllo-Inositol is one of the stereoisomers of inositol. It is also known as scyllitol, cocositol, quercinitol, and 1,3,5/2,4,6-hexahydroxycyclohexane. scyllo-Inositol is a naturally occurring plant sugar alcohol found most abundantly in the coconut palm.
Semagacestat (LY-450139) was a candidate drug for a causal therapy against Alzheimer's disease. It was originally developed by Eli Lilly and Elan, and clinical trials were conducted by Eli Lilly. Phase III trials included over 3000 patients, but in August 2010, a disappointing interim analysis, in which semagacestat performed worse than the placebo, led to the trials being stopped.
Solanezumab is a monoclonal antibody being investigated by Eli Lilly as a neuroprotector for patients with Alzheimer's disease. The drug originally attracted extensive media coverage proclaiming it a breakthrough, but it has failed to show promise in Phase III trials.
Crenezumab is a fully humanized monoclonal antibody against human 1-40 and 1-42 beta amyloid, which is being investigated as a treatment of Alzheimer's disease. Crenezumab is highly homologous to solanezumab, another monoclonal antibody targeting amyloid-β peptides. In June 2022, the US National Institutes of Health announced that the drug failed as a medication for early-onset Alzheimer's disease following the results of a decade-long clinical trial.
Rudolph Emile 'Rudy' Tanzi a professor of Neurology at Harvard University, vice-chair of neurology, director of the Genetics and Aging Research Unit, and co-director of the Henry and Allison McCance Center for Brain Health at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH).
Aducanumab, sold under the brand name Aduhelm, is a medication designed to treat Alzheimer's disease (AD). It is a monoclonal antibody that targets aggregated forms (plaque) of amyloid beta (Aβ) found in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease to reduce its buildup. It was developed by Biogen and Eisai. Aducanumab is given via intravenous infusion.
Florbetaben, a fluorine-18 (18F)-labeled stilbene derivative, trade name NeuraCeq, is a diagnostic radiotracer developed for routine clinical application to visualize β-amyloid plaques in the brain. It is indicated for Positron Emission Tomography (PET) imaging of β-amyloid neuritic plaque density in the brains of adult patients with cognitive impairment who are being evaluated for Alzheimer's disease (AD) and other causes of cognitive impairment. β-amyloid is a key neuropathological hallmark of AD, so markers of β-amyloid plaque accumulation in the brain are useful in distinguishing AD from other causes of dementia. The tracer successfully completed a global multicenter phase 0–III development program and obtained approval in Europe, US and South Korea in 2014.
Lecanemab, sold under the brand name Leqembi, is a monoclonal antibody medication used for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. Lecanemab is an amyloid beta-directed antibody. It is given via intravenous infusion. The most common side effects of lecanemab include headache, infusion-related reactions, and amyloid-related imaging abnormalities, a side effect known to occur with the class of antibodies targeting amyloid.
Phenserine is a synthetic drug which has been investigated as a medication to treat Alzheimer's disease (AD), as the drug exhibits neuroprotective and neurotrophic effects.
Donanemab is a biological drug in Phase III clinical trials to determine whether it slows the progression of early Alzheimer's disease. Donanemab has shown positive results in its first trials. Donanemab was developed by the Eli Lilly and Co. and is under clinical development as a possible treatment for Alzheimer's disease. There is currently no approved cure or disease-modifying treatment for Alzheimer's disease except for lecanemab.
Buntanetap is an orally-administered small molecule inhibitor of several neurotoxic proteins that is under investigation in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease, frontotemporal dementia, chronic traumatic encephalopathy and Parkinson's disease. It is the (+) enantiomer of phenserine, as the (-) enantiomer also has unwanted anticholinergic effects. It is currently in phase III trials for the treatment of Parkinson's.
Anti-amyloid drugs, also known as anti-amyloid antibodies (AAA), are a class of monoclonal antibodies developed to treat Alzheimer's disease. The first drug in the class to be developed, in the early 2000s, was bapineuzumab, but it did not show effectiveness in later-stage trials. The first drug to be FDA approved was aducanumab in 2021.
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