AstraZeneca and Lilly commence new Alzheimer’s drug trial

AstraZeneca and Lilly have announced the commencement of a new phase II/III study of AZD3293, a new treatment for early Alzheimer's disease.

The first patient has been enrolled for AMARANTH,  which will evaluate the safety and efficacy of the drug – also known as LY3314814 – compared with placebo. The trial has been launched as part of a collaboration between AstraZeneca and Lilly announced earlier this year.

AZD3293 is an oral beta secretase cleaving enzyme (BACE) inhibitor that has been shown in earlier studies to reduce levels of amyloid-beta in the cerebrospinal fluid of Alzheimer's patients and healthy volunteers.

Since the progression of Alzheimer's disease is characterised by the accumulation of amyloid plaque in the brain, it is thought that this could be a promising approach to treating the disease.

Samantha Budd, vice-president and head of translational science at AstraZeneca's neuroscience innovative medicines unit, said: "There is a critical need to develop new medicines that can change the course of Alzheimer's disease. We believe that BACE inhibitors have the potential to target one of the key drivers of this devastating disease."

This comes after the company last week announced positive data from a phase III trial of brodalumab, a moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis drug developed in collaboration with Amgen.