Strong Ph II data on Prana's PBT2

Delegates at the 2008 International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease, in Chicago, USA, heard strong mid-stage data on PBT2, developed by Australia's Prana Biotechnology. 250mg of the metal-protein attenuating compound demonstrated a statistically-significant reduction of cerebrospinal fluid Ab-42 after 12 weeks of treatment compared with placebo (p=0.006), a dose-dependent effect (p=0.023).

In the 78-patient trial, PBT2 250mg demonstrated statistically-significant improvements in both the Trail Making Test Part B and the Category Fluency Test (components of the Neuropsychological Test Battery related to executive function) compared with placebo (p=0.009 and p=0.041, respectively). However, unlike another recent amyloid-targeting drug, Wyeth/Elan's bapinezumab (Marketletter August 4), PBT2 had no effect on the AD Assessment Scale-Cognitive Subscale.