In news- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Biogen’s aducanumab, the first drug to target an underlying cause of Alzheimer’s disease.
About the drug-
- The drug is to be sold under the brand Aduhelm.
- It is the first new approval of an Alzheimer’s drug since 2003 and the only treatment designed to slow progression of Alzheimer’s disease.
- Aduhelm is designed to target amyloid beta, a protein that forms sticky deposits or plaques in the brains of patients with Alzheimer’s disease.
- Amyloid is thought to begin forming years before any signs of memory loss appear, thus making treatment as early as possible most likely to provide benefit.
- The drug was tested in patients in the earliest stages of Alzheimer’s but was not tested in people who had progressed to moderate dementia.
- Alzheimer’s is estimated to account for at least 60% of dementia, which involves declines in memory, reasoning or thinking skills and basic ability to function.
- Aduhelm is given as a monthly intravenous infusion.
Source: The Hindu
