Development of disease‐modifying therapies against Alzheimer's disease

Abstract

To successfully develop disease‐modifying therapies (DMT) against Alzheimer's disease (AD), it is important to target the mild stage of the disease, before the pathological changes progress and dementia symptoms are fully manifested. To this end, the AD Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI), a large‐scale observational study, was initiated in the U.S. with the goal of development of DMT that are effective in the early stages of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) by utilizing imaging and biomarkers. In Japan, J‐ADNI enrolled and followed up 537 patients, mainly with MCI, and established a platform for evaluation including amyloid PET, and demonstrated a high similarity in the clinical course of amyloid‐positive MCI (prodromal AD) in Japan and the U.S. In 2023, the anti‐Aβ antibody lecanemab successfully completed a Phase III clinical trial for early AD (prodromal AD + mild AD dementia) and was granted regulatory approval and made available both in the US and Japan. Also, phase III trial of donanemab was completed successful. The J‐TRC study was initiated in Japan as a “trial ready cohort (TRC)” consisting of participants who met the eligibility criteria for participation in preclinical and prodromal AD trials. Based on such a platform, the development of DMT for AD will progress more rapidly in the future.