Lonza and NeuroSense Therapeutics Ltd. have formed a collaboration to investigate biological changes occurring in individuals with neurodegenerative diseases, including ALS. NeuroSense will have access to Lonza's advanced expertise and capabilities in extracellular vesicles (EVs) without any further commitments, allowing for rapid and on-demand utilization. Lonza will focus on developing, optimizing, and qualifying a method for measuring biomarkers from EVs, which will be integrated into the development of NeuroSense's lead ALS candidate, PrimeC.

Davide Zocco, Head of Exosomes Development at Lonza, expressed the company's commitment to enabling innovators to advance therapies, highlighting Lonza's investments in the exosome field over the past decade. Zocco emphasized Lonza's 'Dev-on-Demand' solution, which provides access to expert scientists and cutting-edge laboratories for development activities, positioning Lonza as the preferred partner for NeuroSense in identifying exosome-based biomarkers.

Alon Ben-Noon, CEO of NeuroSense, highlighted the potential impact of the collaboration on ALS and neurodegeneration research, emphasizing the importance of biomarkers in advancing early diagnosis, treatment, and regulatory pathways for neurodegenerative diseases. Ben-Noon noted that collaborating with Lonza allows NeuroSense to tap into top experts in exosome-based therapies research, further enhancing the development of PrimeC.

NeuroSense recently announced positive topline results from the six-month double-blind portion of its Phase 2b PARADIGM trial, demonstrating a statistically significant slowing of disease progression in ALS patients treated with PrimeC compared to placebo. Additional biomarker and efficacy endpoints are expected to be released in the first half of 2024.

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are small vesicles released by neurons containing various molecules such as proteins, nucleic acids, and metabolites. The identification and measurement of EVs and their cargo in easily accessible bodily fluids like plasma can aid in the discovery of new biomarkers for prognosis and therapy, providing insights into the physiological status of neurons in the brain.

ALS, an incurable neurodegenerative disease, leads to complete paralysis and death within 2-5 years of diagnosis. The disease imposes a significant economic burden, with over 5,000 new cases diagnosed annually in the U.S. alone. PrimeC, NeuroSense's lead drug candidate, is an extended-release oral formulation comprising a fixed-dose combination of two FDA-approved drugs: ciprofloxacin and celecoxib. It targets key mechanisms of ALS to potentially inhibit disease progression and has shown promising results in clinical trials, including meeting safety and tolerability endpoints and demonstrating a significant slowing of disease progression. PrimeC has received Orphan Drug Designation from the FDA and EMA.

 

Source: prnewswire.com

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