Alzheimer’s: A New Direction for Algernon
Algernon Pharmaceuticals is entering the Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) diagnostic and treatment market and plans to establish Alzheimer’s screening, diagnostic, treatment, and patient care clinics in North America dedicated to helping address this growing affliction. This initiative expands on the Company’s current neurological research programs.
Algernon plans to establish both company-owned clinics and sell individual franchise licenses, allowing for rapid expansion throughout Canada, Florida, and Los Angeles, as well as in 5 strategic cities in other American states. With a focus on the U.S. initially, the first medical clinic location will be established in Florida.
AD is a chronic neurodegenerative disease that destroys brain cells, resulting in the steady decline over years of a person’s thinking ability, and memory. The most common cause of dementia, AD begins with the appearance of a buildup of proteins in the brain in the form of amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, the key defining features of the presence of the disease.
It is estimated that nearly 7 million Americans and 750,000 Canadians are living with AD. By the year 2050, these numbers are projected to rise to 13 million and 1.7 million, respectively. AD remains the fifth leading cause of death among people 65 years of age and older and the number of individuals developing early AD has recently tripled among those 30 to 64 years of age.
Recent Developments and FDA Approvals
Algernon is moving into this space because there have been some major developments in the AD healthcare segment recently. The FDA approved two new AD antibody treatment therapies developed by Eli Lilly (Kinsula) and Eisai and Biogen (Legembi) - which are covered by U.S. Medicare and Medicaid - that for the first time can clear amyloid plaque from the brain and help slow down the progression of the disease.
The FDA has also approved the new ultracompact Positrigo NeuroLF brain PET scanner which can confirm amyloid plaque buildup, a prerequisite established by the FDA prior to the administration of the new AD drugs. Confirmation can also be provided through a spinal tap, which is a highly invasive procedure that Algernon believes patients would not opt for if they had ready access to a painless, non-invasive PET brain scanner at a clinic in their communities. PET brain scans to confirm the presence of amyloid plaque are also covered by U.S. Medicare and Medicaid.
The new Positrigo NeuroLF brain PET scanner - which is incorporated into a comfortable, dental-styled, clinical chair that can perform the same brain scanning functions of traditional PET scanners in hospitals - will be featured in Algernon’s AD clinics to perform high-resolution brain PET imaging with radiotracers indicated for detecting/confirming amyloid plaques and related biomarkers associated with AD, as a prelude to drug therapy administration.
Prior to the recent development of having approved AD therapies available, there has not been any urgent clinical need to provide widespread genetic screening to patients or to conduct the now available blood tests that correlate with the presence of plaque in the brain.
This paradigm has now shifted and Algernon plans to make a major contribution in the provision of AD healthcare in what has historically been a dramatically under resourced area of medicine through the establishment of its new medical clinics.
While this initiative represents a new business channel for Algernon intended to deliver near term cash flow and enhance valuation, the Company will continue to maintain and advance its current drug development research programs, including its active companion work on restoring brain function following stroke and traumatic brain injury through its subsidiary Algernon NeuroScience.
Algernon Acquisition Drives Entry Into Ad Market
