Development for the Alzheimer’s treatment stopped after clinical tests

Pfizer and Johnson and Johnson have announced that they are ending development of the intravenous Alzheimer’s drug bapineuzumab after it failed in two clinical trials. The drug, which was developed by Dublin based firm Elan and licensed the drug to Johnson and Johnson back in 2009, is a monoclonal antibody to the amyloid plaques thought to cause Alzheimer’s disease. However, it failed to improve cognitive or functional performance in patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s.

This result also casts doubt on whether Eli Lilly’s solanezumab, which is also an antibody based drug, will suceed. The results of Eli Lilly’s latest trials of the the drug are expected in September.

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