Prana pleased with PBT2 in AD; more indications possible

Australia's Prana Biotechnology has issued a press release stressing that its PBT2 Alzheimer's disease clinical trial continues to be on target with trial results expected to be announced in the first quarter of 2008. Company chief executive Geoffrey Kempler said: "as we previously disclosed, we have completed the dosing of all patients as scheduled without any safety or tolerability issues identified by the independent Data Safety Monitoring Board or the clinical investigators. We are encouraged by the way the trial has proceeded to date and that the drug appears well tolerated. With results imminent, and given a positive outcome, we are planning to progress PBT2 into a larger clinical trial in 2008."

Mr Kempler said: "a positive safety and tolerability outcome with PBT2 in the current trial will allow us to test PBT2 in a second disease indication, such as Huntington's disease, for which we have very promising preclinical data," he noted.