STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Nov. 15, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- Two weeks of local administration of sNN0031, a compound under development for Parkinson's disease, normalized movement and restored dopamine balance in a rat model of the disease. Improvements continued after the treatment was concluded. Movements were almost completely normalized after 5 weeks and remained so for the entire follow-up period of 10 weeks. A rapid increase in the number of stem cells and the formation of new neurons were also seen.
The result of the preclinical study was presented today at the international meeting of the Society for Neuroscience in Washington D.C. in the USA.
"The ability of sNN0031 to restore movement in an animal model of Parkinson's disease is important as it seems to act by a novel mechanism -- increasing stem cell-derived neurons. It may therefore represent a fundamentally new approach to treat Parkinson's disease," said Anders Haegerstrand, one of the researchers and CSO at the Swedish biotech company NeuroNova which is developing sNN0031. "The common approach of preventing the death of neurons has so far been unsuccessful in clinical trials. We are hopeful about the potential of sNN0031 in treating patients with Parkinson's disease."
The substance sNN0031 is an active ingredient in a drug approved for use in humans, but not for brain disease and in a form not suitable for this type of treatment.
The study was selected among approximately 17,000 abstracts by the Society for Neuroscience for a press conference to highlight the most important research findings. With at least 30,000 attendees, the Society's annual meeting is the world's largest and most influential yearly gathering of neuroscientists.
The preclinical study used a well-established rat model in which the number of dopamine producing neurons is reduced to mimic Parkinson's disease. The abstract "Pharmacological Activation of Endogenous Stem Cells by sNN0031 as a Therapeutic Strategy in Parkinson's Disease" may be viewed at http://sfn.scholarone.com/.
For more information please contact: Anders Haegerstrand, CSO, NeuroNova AB Tel: +46 (0) 70 575 50 37 Email: anders.haegerstrand@neuronova.com
Ulf Ljungberg, CEO, NeuroNova AB Tel: +46 (0) 70 546 63 30 Email: ulf.ljungberg@neuronova.com
NeuroNova is engaged in the discovery and development of drugs for the treatment of CNS diseases. NeuroNova's technology platform is used for identifying, testing and developing substances that stimulate neurogenesis, the formation of new neurons. NeuroNova has three compounds in late preclinical development, two for Parkinson's disease and one for an undisclosed neurodegenerative orphan disease. www.neuronova.com.
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