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Del.icio.usShares of Prana Biotechnology Ltd. (Nasdaq: PRAN) touched a daily high of $2.31 per share, up more than 34 percent from Friday’s closing price, after it was announced that The Journal Of Neurochemistry has published an update on the mechanism of action of PBT2 in the treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease.
The study explains how PBT2 is able to restore cognition in AD sufferers through repair of affected Alzheimer’s brains. The findings further explain the rapid improvement in cognition previously reported in transgenic Alzheimer’s mice and in patients in a Phase IIa clinical trial with PBT2. These new results further explain how PBT2 can achieve rapid improvements in cognition: by liberation of copper and zinc trapped in amyloid deposits and returning those essential metals to neurons, where they are needed for normal function.
The Australia-based Prana Biotechnology Ltd. also recently received a “very positive reaction” from international patient groups and researchers at this week’s World Congress on Huntington’s Disease in Melbourne, according to a September 15 press release.
Huntington’s disease is a disorder passed down through families in which nerve cells in certain parts of the brain waste away, or degenerate.
“Prana and our collaborators at major research institutions have been conducting extensive research into neurodegenerative diseases for more than a decade, including our efforts to learn more about Huntington’s,” said Prana’s Executive Chairman, Geoffrey Kempler in the September 15 press release. “Since we decided to conduct a Phase IIa trial of our experimental drug PBT2 in Huntington’s patients, the Huntington’s community has been very quick to support our research program.”
Prana Biotechnology Ltd. engages in the research and development of therapeutic drugs for neurological diseases in Australia. The company primarily focuses on the Alzheimers, Parkinsons, and Huntingtons diseases, as well as various age-related degenerative disorders. Its development stage product line includes PBT2, a phase IIb clinical product intended for the Alzheimers disease; and PBT2, a phase IIa clinical product for the Huntingtons disease.