Pharmaceuticals Search Engine [selected websites]

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation Supports Madera Biosciences with a Grant to Advance Novel Drug Candidates for Alzheimer's Disease

Madera Biosciences
Aug. 24, 2011 -- The Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation (ADDF) announced that it has awarded a grant of $294,000 to Madera Biosciences, Inc. to develop small molecule drugs designed to clear accumulated beta-amyloid from the brain and thus halt or reverse the progression of Alzheimer's disease.

Madera has identified a series of proprietary compounds that increase the expression of apolipoprotein E (apoE), which has been shown to mediate beta-amyloid clearance from the brain and prevent its accumulation into the plaques that are characteristic of Alzheimer's disease. ApoE is a lipid binding protein that circulates in the blood and the brain and remains the single greatest genetic risk factor for Alzheimer's disease. Increasing the release of apoE from brain cells has actually been shown to decrease beta-amyloid plaques and improve cognitive function in animal models.

Madera's novel, drug-like compounds help to facilitate the release of apoE, aid the beta-amyloid clearance process and are hypothesized to improve symptoms, slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease and potentially reverse the course of the disease. The ADDF's grant will fund Madera's program to optimize these compounds for proof-of-concept testing... Madera Biosciences' News -