Cerevance Publishes Positive Phase 2 Results of Solengepras for Parkinson’s in eClinicalMedicine

Cerevance, a biopharmaceutical company based in Boston, has released the complete results of its Phase 2 clinical trial for solengepras, a promising treatment for Parkinson's disease. This data has been published in the peer-reviewed journal eClinicalMedicine, under The Lancet Discovery Science Suite.

Solengepras is a unique, potentially groundbreaking, oral, once-daily medication that works as a GPR6 inverse agonist, not dependent on dopamine. This treatment showed substantial efficacy in reducing the "OFF" time experienced by Parkinson’s patients, a period when medication effects wane, and symptoms re-emerge. The trial illustrated that solengepras significantly decreased the average daily OFF time from baseline by 1.6 hours on Day 27, as measured through patient self-reported motor diaries, with the result achieving statistical significance (p<0.001).

The study reported that solengepras was generally well-tolerated by participants. The most frequently noted adverse events, occurring in more than 5% of subjects, were mild and transient headaches and nausea. Cerevance CEO Craig Thompson expressed enthusiasm about the findings, emphasizing that solengepras could provide a meaningful therapeutic option for Parkinson's patients, potentially improving both motor symptoms and overall quality of life.

Solengepras aims to offer a novel approach to Parkinson's treatment by targeting the GPR6 receptor rather than focusing on dopamine pathways. This method is intended to restore motor and non-motor functions without directly altering dopamine levels, which could reduce common side effects like dyskinesias and motor fluctuations associated with traditional dopaminergic therapies.

Parkinson's disease is a progressive neurodegenerative condition marked by motor symptoms such as tremor, rigidity, and bradykinesia, as well as non-motor symptoms including mood changes, apathy, and cognitive deficits. It is the fastest-growing neurological disorder worldwide, affecting over ten million people globally and about one million in the United States. Current treatments primarily rely on dopaminergic therapies, which tend to lose efficacy over time and can lead to significant side effects.

Cerevance's innovative platform, known as NETSseq (Nuclear Enriched Transcript Sort sequencing), allows them to identify therapeutic targets that are difficult to detect through conventional methods. This technology has enabled Cerevance to advance its drug development pipeline significantly. Their leading candidate, solengepras, is currently in Phase 3 development and holds the potential to become a first-in-class treatment for both motor and non-motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease.

Additionally, Cerevance is developing other promising candidates, including CVN766, an oral antagonist of the orexin 1 receptor intended for treating binge eating disorder and schizophrenia, and CVN293, an oral inhibitor targeting the KCNK13 channel, which may offer a novel approach to reducing neuroinflammation in neurodegenerative disorders such as frontotemporal dementia. Both candidates are poised for Phase 2 evaluation.

Cerevance's focus on cell type-specific therapies underscores their commitment to developing innovative treatments for neurodegenerative, psychiatric, and CNS-controlled metabolic disorders. Their targeted approach, leveraging cutting-edge technologies, aims to address significant unmet needs in these challenging therapeutic areas.