Yale: Experimental cancer drug doesn't reduce cancerous tumors but may work for Alzheimer's disease

March 31--NEW HAVEN -- An experimental cancer drug hasn't worked as expected in reducing tumors but helps memory and may become a treatment for Alzheimer's disease, according to Yale School of Medicine researchers.

The drug was developed by Astra Zeneca and was used as part of a National Institutes of Health program to test drugs that fail in their intended uses on other diseases, according to a press release.

AZD05030, originally an anti-cancer drug, when used in mice, apparently blocks the damage caused by beta amyloid plaques, which are connected with Alzheimer's disease.

"With this treatment, cells under bombardment by beta amyloid plaques show restored synaptic connections and reduced inflammation, and the animal's memory, which was lost during the course of the disease, comes back," said Dr. Stephen M. Strittmatter, professor of neurology and senior author of the study.

Because of its success in mice, a clinical trial in humans has already been started, the release said.

"The speed with which this compound moved to human trials validates our New Therapeutic Uses program model and serves our mission to deliver more treatments to more patients more quickly," said Dr. Christopher P. Austin, director of NIH's National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences.

For more information on the clinical trials, go to https://clinicaltrials.gov and search for NCT02167256 and NCT01864655.

___

(c)2015 the New Haven Register (New Haven, Conn.)

Visit the New Haven Register (New Haven, Conn.) at www.nhregister.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC