Roche to advance PD candidate prasinezumab into Phase III

Swiss pharma giant Roche (ROG: SIX) announced today its decision to proceed with Phase III development of prasinezumab, an investigational anti-alpha-synuclein antibody, in early-stage Parkinson’s disease (PD).

This decision is informed by data from the Phase IIb PADOVA study and ongoing open-label extensions (OLEs) of PADOVA and Phase II PASADENA studies.

"We are encouraged by the efficacy signals observed across the two phase II trials and their open-label extensions, combined with the favourable safety and tolerability profile of prasinezumab," said Dr Levi Garraway, chief medical officer and head of global product development at Roche. "We also recognise the substantial need for new treatment options, and the totality of data suggest that prasinezumab may have the potential to become the first disease-modifying treatment for people with Parkinson’s disease," he noted.