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news.Oxford BioMedica has been awarded a grant, initially of GBP350,000, from the UK Motor Neuron Disease Association to support preclinical evaluation of MoNuDin for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, the most common form of motor neuron disease.
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The grant will fund a key preclinical efficacy study and support preparations for clinical trials. The company is targeting the start of clinical development in 2006-07.
A previous preclinical study of MoNuDin showed that both onset and progression of disease was slowed and that life expectancy was extended by 30%, representing one of the most effective therapies reported in the field to date.
Commenting on the grant from the Motor Neuron Disease (MND) Association, Oxford BioMedica’s chief executive, professor Alan Kingsman said: “We are very pleased to have received sponsorship from another leading charity. This grant from the MND Association provides further endorsement of MoNuDin’s potential as a treatment of ALS, for which there is currently no effective therapy.”
Oxford BioMedica has previously secured financial support for MoNuDin from the US ALS Association. The MND Association and other US and UK charitable organisations are considering further sponsorship that could fund initial clinical trials of MoNuDin in ALS patients.
ALS causes adult-onset, progressive motor neuron degeneration in the brain and spinal cord, resulting in paralysis and death three to five years after onset in most patients. There is currently no known cure for motor neuron disease, a condition that affects approximately 100,000 people in Europe and the USA.