Motor neurone drug optimism



Phytopharm, the Godmanchester drugs company creating new treatments from plants, says early stage clinical trials on its drug to treat motor neurone disease have proved a success.

Myogane was tested on healthy volunteers and has proved safe. It is also easy to swallow, a major plus, as motor neurone disease suffers have difficulty swallowing.

About 350,000 patients worldwide suffer from ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease and a prevalent form of MND. Fifty per cent die within 18 months of diagnosis, and health authorities around the world recognise that there is a high unmet need for new treatment.

Dr Brian Dickie, R&D director with the MND Association, said: "There is an urgent need for new therapeutic approaches to MND. Potential treatments such as Myogane that can readily access the central nervous system offer the potential to alter disease progression.

"Clinical trials are now needed in patients to validate this new approach."

Phytopharm hit the headlines earlier this summer when it announced significant progress with Cogane, its new treatment for Parkinson's disease sufferers which, it is hoped, will reverse the condition.


http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/busi...dbb3983d5e.lpf