A new animal based compound has been found to be successful in slowing down the progress of Alzheimer's disease in 7 different tests on animals, and is soon to be the subject of clinical trials on humans.
The research has been carried out exclusively by scientists at Bioiberica, the Spanish biotech company renowned worldwide for the production of heparin (the most widely anticoagulant) and chondroitin sulfate (a drug for osteoarthritis).
The compound, isolated from the brains of pigs, which has yet to be tested on humans, draws on a new mechanism of action based on neuroprotection.
“We have just registered the patent and the next step now is to trial this promising compound in human subjects. We are planning to begin clinical trials in Alzheimer patients in the last quarter of this year”, explained Daniel Martínez, head of Research & Development at the Human Health Division of Bioiberica, and the person responsible for the project.
If human trials prove successful, the company's ultimate goal is to launch a medical food that, if consumed regularly, will help prevent memory loss in patients with early stage Alzheimer's disease.
“We think approaching the disease from the perspective of nutrition is a promising strategy as numerous epidemiological studies suggest that Alzheimer's patients have special nutritional needs”, added Martínez.
It is hoped that the planned clinical trials of this new compound on human subjects will provide a long awaited, and much needed breakthrough in the hunt for a treatment that can slow down, or even prevent, memory loss in patients with Alzheimer's disease.
Bioiberica specialize in the extraction of biomolecules of high therapeutic value from tissues of animal origin. José Escaich, CEO of Bioiberica commented,
“This project responds to our innovation strategy of continuously developing new compounds that may be able to be applied in science. In this case, we also feel particularly proud because this research was conducted 100% by the company and it is the result of the positive work carried out from the personal strengths of our team”.
View source article on businesswire.com (29/06/15) :
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20150629005547/en/Bioiberica-Trial-Compound-Human-Subjects-Prevents-Memory#.VZJ9tflViko
