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Writer's pictureJames Pearson

Dementia combo drug testing shows promise for Algorae Pharmaceuticals


Algorae Pharmaceuticals has released promising test results in its fight against dementia.

Algorae Pharmaceuticals (ASX: 1AI) has made a significant breakthrough in pre-clinical testing aimed at combating the effects of dementia after recording positive results in a new drug treatment combination.


The company says the promising results have come from combining the drug Donepezil, which has long been used in treatment for the disease that attacks a person’s cognitive functioning, with cannabidiol (CBD) – an active ingredient in cannabis that is derived from the hemp plant. While Donepezil has been shown to be able to partly protect a person’s cells from glutamate-induced toxicity, a factor found in dementia patients, the combination with CBD has taken the protection a significant step further.


Donepezil – an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor (AChE) – registered a 17 per cent improvement in increasing cell survival rates during the recent laboratory testing, while Algorae’s “AI-116” combination treatment recorded a 53 per cent mark. Reducing the glutamate toxicity is seen as significant as it has been proven as a key factor in the development and progression of dementia, as glutamate is the most abundant neurotransmitter in a person’s brain.


When RNA sequencing – a method used to produce a snapshot of gene expression in a person’s sample – was then added, AI-116’s potential was further highlighted as it identified unique gene variations linked to neurodegenerative disorders. In particular, the treatment was found to strongly influence the APOE gene, which is associated with Alzheimer’s disease, and others linked to various forms of dementia, Parkinson’s disease and the nervous system affliction known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.


To protect its AI-116 innovation, Algorae has filed for an international patent. Discussions with leading experts in dementia and neurological disorders are already underway, marking the beginning of clinical trial planning.


These promising results highlight the potential of our drug candidate when compared to existing dementia drugs in the market. The results also validate Algorae’s strategy to develop novel combination drug therapies to improve upon existing treatments, a strategy that we are pursuing with assistance of our artificial intelligence combination drug discovery platform to be launched in September.
Algorae Pharmaceuticals Chairman David Hainsworth

Donepezil, widely known as Aricept, has been the go-to weapon in the fight to combat Alzheimer’s since it was given United States Food and Drug Administration approval way back in 1996. It functions by enhancing acetylcholine levels in the brain, improving cognitive function.


It is understood that before its patent came off about a decade ago, it was recording some US$3 billion (AU$4.61 billion) in annual value. The market for AChE inhibitor drugs such as Donepezil is this year estimated at about $21 billion (AU$32.28 billion) due to the increasing number of Alzheimer’s cases.


They are lofty numbers that underscore the potential impact of AI-116.


With access to a huge data library, including the biggest supercomputer in the Southern Hemisphere, Algorae is aiming to use the power of AI to transform the speed, cost and time to delivery of drug discovery and development. At a time when AI has made the headlines for its potentially negative impacts on humanity – with fears of job displacement, privacy concerns or a lack of creativity, ethics and emotion – Algorae is looking solely at the ways it can benefit the health and wellness of society.


Using its proprietary AI-enabled “AlgoraeOS” platform, the system is able to predict and prioritise drug targets by analysing biological data, identifying disease-associated pathways and predicting the likelihood of a target being viable for therapy. The new platform is able to fast-track the process of finding and approving new treatments to support targeted methods by using existing drugs and products that can be combined and used to treat a wider range of diseases.


Algorae’s latest laboratory findings clearly highlight the significant broad-spectrum neuroprotective potential of AI-116. With the important step now under its belt, the company looks set to ruffle a few more feathers in the scientific community as it puts the grunt of AI into the discovery of further improvements of legacy drug treatments.


Management says it is now seeking Australian experts in dementia studies to partner it towards a series of clinical in-human trials for AI-116.


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