Another Alzheimer's drug candidate flops due to lack of efficacy

The protocol 017, also known as the EPOCH study, a Phase II/III study evaluating verubecestat, an investigational small molecule inhibitor of the beta-site amyloid precursor protein cleaving enzyme 1 (BACE1), in people with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer’s disease (AD) has been halted, adding to the string of high profile failures in the treatment of this disorder.

US pharma giant Merck & Co (NYSE: MRK) is stopping the study following the recommendation of the external Data Monitoring Committee (eDMC), which assessed overall benefit/risk during a recent interim safety analysis, and determined that there was “virtually no chance of finding a positive clinical effect.”

Merck’s shares were down 1.72% to $64.53 in after-hours trading on Tuesday following the announcement.