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news.Neuro-Hitech Pharmaceuticals has signed a development agreement with privately held company Xel Herbaceuticals to develop a transdermal patch to treat Alzheimer's disease.
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The therapeutic agent is huperzine A, a molecule being developed by Neuro-Hitech which is currently undergoing US phase II clinical testing as an orally administered treatment for mild-to-moderate Alzheimer’s disease.
“Delivery of any Alzheimer’s treatment by way of a transdermal patch is clearly preferable to other methods of drug delivery. What makes huperzine A especially promising is its low therapeutic dose and low molecular weight, which make it ideal for transdermal delivery. Some other agents require higher dosages and are large molecules making them inappropriate for transdermal delivery,” commented Dinesh Patel, chairman of the board and founder of Xel and past founder of transdermal patch pioneer TheraTech currently a unit of Watson Pharmaceuticals.
Neuro-Hitech expects to complete the current phase II trials of huperzine A by the end of 2006 with data expected to be available in early 2007. If the compound confirms expectations of safety and efficacy, the company will move in into phase III testing.