clinical trials

ATA188, Atara Biotherapeutics’ investigative T-cell immunotherapy, is safe, well tolerated, and able to ease disability and improve exercise capacity in patients with progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to one-year data from a Phase 1 trial and its long-term extension study. Findings also showed that, after…

Zeposia (ozanimod) oral capsules continue to safely and effectively prevent relapses and disability progression in people with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to three-year data from a Phase 3 extension clinical trial. “Gaining insight into long-term therapeutic outcomes can enable clinicians to identify the most appropriate…

MMJ International Holdings, in collaboration with a a specialty pharmaceutical solutions company, has begun manufacturing gelatin capsule medicines based on compounds found in cannabis, The company will investigate these in clinical trials as potential treatments for multiple sclerosis (MS) and Huntington’s disease. “As MMJ…

Aubagio (teriflunomide), taken as a 14 mg tablet once a day, shows long-term safety and efficacy in patients with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to results of the Phase 3 TOWER extension study. Treatment was generally well tolerated by the 751 patients using Aubagio for a median…

Novartis‘ ofatumumab outperformed Aubagio (teriflunomide) at lowering the frequency of relapses and preventing disability progression among people with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), a study based on clinical trial data reports. The study, “Ofatumumab versus Teriflunomide in Multiple Sclerosis,” was published in…

Donepezil — an approved treatment for Alzheimer’s disease — eased cognitive impairment, depression, and improved other quality-of-life measures in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients with mild to moderate disability, according to results of a single-site clinical trial. The study, “Effect of Donepezil on Cognitive Impairment, Quality of Life, and Depression…

Immunic Therapeutics‘s IMU-838, a selective immune system modulator, can safely lower the number of brain lesions in people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), top-line Phase 2 clinical trial data suggest. Findings show the trial met its primary goal with statistical significance — a reduction in active lesions (gadolinium…

The pro-inflammatory signaling protein interleukin (IL)-17A, which is associated with nerve damage in multiple sclerosis (MS), also has an opposing, and crucial, anti-inflammatory role in cells, a study reports.  These findings may explain why therapies that lower IL-17A levels have failed…

Low doses of the anesthetic ketamine could help treat fatigue in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to results from a small Phase 1/2 clinical trial. Trial findings were published in the study, “Pilot randomized active-placebo-controlled trial of low-dose ketamine for the treatment of…

To speed research and work on more personalized treatments for serious diseases, Roche and its subsidiary Genentech announced a partnership with PicnicHealth to access its collection of real-world data. Eligible adults with MS in the United States are also being invited to join a multiyear study assembling such…

The Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada and its partner, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), have invested CA$1.5 million to open a clinical trial that will investigate the potential of two cannabis derivatives — cannabidiol (CBD) and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) — in treating spasticity (muscle stiffness) and other…

GeNeuro announced that a first multiple sclerosis (MS) patient has enrolled in its Phase 2 trial assessing the safety and effectiveness of temelimab in people whose disease is progressing in the absence of relapses. This trial, taking place at the Karolinska Institutet’s Academic Specialist Center (ASC), in Stockholm, had been postponed to reduce…

A first person has enrolled in Sanofi’s Phase 3 trial evaluating SAR442168, an oral BTK inhibitor intended to treat relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), Sanofi’s partner, Principia Biopharma, announced. “We are delighted that Sanofi has initiated … [this] trial in patients with relapsing MS,” Roy Hardiman, chief…

Adamas Pharmaceuticals has decided to stop further clinical development of ADS-5102 (amantadine), intended to help people with multiple sclerosis (MS) who have difficulties with walking. The decision came after the company reviewed findings from a comprehensive analysis of…

Atara Biotherapeutics has enrolled a first patient in a clinical trial testing ATA188, its off-the-shelf T-cell immunotherapy for people with progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). The Phase 1b trial (NCT03283826) follows promising safety and tolerability results from its open-label Phase 1a part, including a…

Mapi Pharma, supported by an additional $20 million investment from its partner Mylan, will continue a Phase 3 trial assessing the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of GA Depot, its long-acting, once-a-month injectable formulation of glatiramer acetate. The study (NCT04121221), which opened in October 2019,…

ERT, which specializes in clinical trial data collection, announced it has acquired APDM Wearable Technologies (APDM), a provider of wearables and digital biomarkers, to improve the accuracy of key efficacy measures used in clinical studies of multiple sclerosis (MS), Parkinson’s, and other movement disorders. A…

An international committee of multiple sclerosis (MS) experts further clarified how guidelines, updated in 2013, should be used to classify this disease’s different states, and stressed the importance of measuring these states in a timely and consistent manner. The group’s statement, “The 2013 clinical course descriptors…

Andrographolide, an herbal compound with anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective properties, is able to slow brain atrophy and progression of disability in people with non-active progressive multiple sclerosis (PMS), according to results from a Phase 1/2 clinical trial. The study, “Efficacy of andrographolide in not active progressive…

A clinical trial testing Midamor (amiloride), Prozac (fluoxetine), and riluzole in people with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS) failed to find a treatment benefit for any of the…

Atara Biotherapeutics‘ cell-based therapy ATA188 is safe and well-tolerated in people with progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), and induces a sustained reduction in disability in a dose-dependent manner, findings from the first part of a Phase 1 clinical trial show. ATA188 had an…

Note: This story was updated May 27, 2020, to note a change in the protocol of the EVOLUTION trials, which are now comparing evobrutinib with Aubagio, rather than Avonex, along with updated NCT numbers. The investigational oral medication evobrutinib leads to a sustained reduction in relapse rates…

MMJ International Holdings announced that it has been given clearance to ship its cannabis-based products to the U.S. for use in future clinical trials of potential cannabis-based treatment for multiple sclerosis (MS) and Huntington’s disease. The process was facilitated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), which worked alongside…

NurOwn, believed to have neuroprotective and repairing effects, may also be able to curb the damaging immune responses that contribute to multiple sclerosis (MS) progression, a recent study found. This newly identified potential may extend the benefits of this cell-based therapy, its researchers believe. The findings were to be presented…

The investigational anti-CD20 antibody ublituximab effectively depletes B-cells in people with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), reducing the appearance of brain lesions and the risk of relapses, a study into clinical trial results suggests. Findings further suggest that the…

The investigational, oral BTK inhibitor SAR442168 can limit the number of new inflammatory brain lesions in people with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), results from a Phase 2b clinical trial show. “The results of this study give hope that SAR442168 may become an important…

People with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS) who began treatment with Mayzent early and continued its use for years are less likely to experience disability progression than those starting the medication later in their disease course, five-year data from the EXPAND study suggest. Data from this same Phase 3…

With the development of a cell line that produces significant amounts of Immutep‘s treatment candidate, IMP761, the company is preparing to advance its antibody into clinical testing for autoimmune conditions, including multiple sclerosis (MS). Immutep also reports that is adapting its manufacturing operations to comply with…

Sanofi will host an online science session to present results of a Phase 2b clinical trial testing the safety and efficacy of its investigational, oral BTK inhibitor SAR442168 in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). The virtual session, owing to the cancellation of the American Academy…

The MIST Phase 2 clinical trial, supporting the potential of hematopoietic (blood cell-producing) stem cell transplant (HSCT) to significantly slow disability progression in highly active relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) patients, has received a Distinguished Clinical Research Achievement Award from the Clinical Research (CR) Forum. Five years after the transplant, most…