Amyloid failures continue to stack up with Roche prevention trial

The failure of Roche’s crenezumab to delay the onset of Alzheimer’s disease marks the second trial in which anti-amyloid therapies have been ineffective in presymptomatic patients. Given both studies enrolled an almost ideal patient population for seeing an effect, makers of next-generation agents have to hope their molecules are substantially better. 

The Genentech Inc. unit of Roche (SIX:ROG; OTCQX:RHHBY) said Thursday that anti-amyloid mAb crenezumab missed the primary and secondary endpoints in the Phase II API-ADAD trial, also known as the Columbia study, in presymptomatic participants with an autosomal dominant mutation that causes early onset Alzheimer’s disease. People with the PSEN1 E280A mutation typically develop symptoms in their mid 40s. API-ADAD enrolled 252 mutation carriers who are members of an extended family in Colombia; 94% of participants completed the study...