Cerevance Ltd. reported that its add-on pill, solengepras, helped people with Parkinson's keep symptoms at bay longer each day. After 12 weeks, average daily "off-time" - when other meds wear off and symptoms resurface - fell by roughly 37 minutes compared with placebo.
Solengepras does not rebuild the neurons that Parkinson's damages. Instead, it targets a different route than today's dopamine-replacement and dopamine-mimicking drugs by acting on a central nervous system receptor known as GPR6. The most common side effects in the study were headaches and urinary tract infections, with insomnia also reported.
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According to managing partner Kate Bingham, SV Health Investors - which characterizes itself as the primary backer of privately held Cerevance while withholding the size of its position - said the findings point to a potential new category of treatments that operate outside the dopamine pathway. SV partner and Cerevance board member Laurence Barker said the firm hopes the compound can reach patients as soon as possible. Cerevance said it intends to meet the Food and Drug Administration to review the data.
Chief Executive Officer Craig Thompson said getting the medicine introduced in Europe is trickier because there is a large gap between Parkinson's treatment prices in the US and other markets. He also pointed to the Trump Administration's most-favored nations policy, which calls for companies to set US launch prices for new drugs at levels seen in other wealthy countries. For your wallet, that means the science can be ready before the business model is, and where a therapy debuts often comes down to pricing rules as much as clinical data.
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