Genentech, AC Immune seek safer mAbs for CNS diseases

In a study published Thursday in Cell Reports, researchers at the Genentech Inc. unit of Roche (SIX:ROG; OTCQX:RHHBY) and AC Immune S.A. (Lausanne, Switzerland) developed a strategy that could make therapeutic antibodies safer for treating Alzheimer's disease and other neuroinflammatory conditions.

Gai Ayalon, a scientist in Genentech's neuroscience department, told BioCentury the study was prompted by the all-too-common occurrence of vasogenic edema in clinical trials of anti-beta amyloid antibodies to treat Alzheimer's disease. He said the field has long suspected those incidences were "microglial-driven events occurring because of the presence of the antibody." Microglia are phagocytic immune cells in the brain. ...