The reviews posted by everyone above are as good as you can find, so I don't think I need to add much more. I do agree that we need to be positive, but cautious, about these results, no different than any other small phase two study.

That being said, I'm not as concerned as others about the relatively small difference, which was statistically significant, between the groups. Exenatide is believed to slow PD progression more so than reverse it. One year is not that much time in the normal progression of PD symptoms. Just think about how each of us vary from day to day. I don't think any of us would notice a two point UPDRS improvement or decline. I think the mild improvement in the test group compared to the mild deterioration in the placebo group is about all you could have hoped for over the course of one year. I also think that difference, along with the important DatScan results, is "indicative" of the drug effect being neuroprotective rather than just symptomatic. I would imagine that the Phase 3 trial, which will happen sometime in the future, will be longer term. It will probably be in the range of three years, like the design of the current ongoing Isradipine trial. Unfortunately, that's the time that is needed to see meaningful differences in progression compared to a placebo.


Gary