Neurotrope Alzheimer's drug data fails to impress; shares plunge

[May 01, 2017] (Reuters) - Neurotrope Inc said on Monday the smaller dose of its experimental Alzheimer's drug met the main goal in a small mid-stage study, but shares tumbled 36 percent in premarket trading as investors were not impressed with the data.

In the Neurotrope trial, two doses of Bryostatin-1 were tested against a placebo, in addition to the standard treatment, in 147 patients with moderate-to-severe disease. A total of 113 patients completed the study.

Among those, 80 patients on the smaller 20 milligram (mg) dose of the drug achieved a statistically significant improvement in cognition on a scale used to measure severe dementia, the company said.

However, in about 90 patients who received the 20 mg dose but did not complete the study, Bryostatin-1 did not bring about a statistically significant improvement, the company added.

Neurotrope did not provide details about the performance of the higher 40 mg dose.

The drug is designed to address an underlying cause of the disease before the formation of amyloid protein, which turns into plaque in the brains of Alzheimer's patients.

Bryostatin-1, which comes from a marine source, aims to induce the growth of synapses in the brain and prevent cell death.

The drug was originally evaluated as a treatment for cancer. After it failed as an oncology treatment, Neurotrope inked a deal with the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to supply the expensive compound.

Neurotrope, which has now found a way to synthetically develop the drug, hopes to discuss a path forward with the U.S. health regulator, it said on Monday.

Existing treatments only soothe symptoms, and drug developers have suffered crushing disappointments in their efforts to find an effective way to reverse cognitive decline that affects more than 5 million Americans.

Researchers are now increasingly focusing on attacking the disease before symptoms take hold.

(Reporting by Natalie Grover in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty and Anil D'Silva)

[© 2017 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2017 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.