The new Alzheimer’s drug

The new Alzheimer’s drug

Subject: Science and Technology

Section: Health

New clinical trial data released by Eli Lilly on Wednesday has provided the most promising results of any potential Alzheimer’s disease treatment yet.

Concept:

Alzheimer’s disease

• Alzheimer’s disease is a brain disorder that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills and, eventually, the ability to carry out the simplest tasks. 
• The disease is named after Dr. Alois Alzheimer
• It symptoms included memory loss, language problems, and unpredictable behavior.
• In brain found many abnormal clumps (now called amyloid plaques) and tangled bundles of fibers (now called neurofibrillary, or tau, tangles).
• These plaques and tangles in the brain are still considered some of the main features of Alzheimer’s disease.
• Another feature is the loss of connections between nerve cells (neurons) in the brain.
• This damage initially takes place in parts of the brain involved in memory, including the entorhinal cortex and hippocampus. It later affects areas in the cerebral cortex, such as those responsible for language, reasoning, and social behavior.

New Alzheimer’s drug:

• Donanemab is a biological drug in trial to treat early symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease.
• Donanemab was developed by the company Eli Lilly
• Donanemab, also known as N₃pG, is an antibody produced in mice that targets an abnormal protein, amyloid beta (Aβ).
• Whilst the cause of Alzheimer’s disease is still unknown, great advances in amyloid pathology have led to a relation between the quantity of Aβ peptides and the development of Alzheimer’s disease.
• Aβ peptides are deposited in the brain and when in excess will bind together to create a protein plaque. Donanemab targets this protein plaque, clearing the excess protein which causes a burden in the brain.

Two new drugs that got approval from US FDA:

• Two drugs that have received a lot of attention in recent weeks areaducanumab (marketed as Aduhelm) and
  • The drug Lecanemab, marketed as Leqembi,is the second such monoclonal antibody to receive approval from the regulator. (First one is Aducanemab.)
• Both drugs showed a substantial reduction in amyloid in the brain.But whether this reduction in amyloid resulted in a meaningful benefit in memory and thinking is less clear.
• Lecanemabresulted in a 27 per cent slower decline in memory and thinking ability.

Concerns:

Like lecanemab, donanemab carries a high risk of side effects — particularly a set of conditions called amyloid-related imaging abnormalities (ARIA) that can lead to seizures and bleeding in the brain.

Researchers think that by attacking amyloid plaques, the antibodies inadvertently weaken blood vessels in the brain.