A new antibody drug developed by Roche has shown it can clear amyloid from the brain more efficiently than existing treatments while causing far fewer dangerous side effects. The findings on Trontinemab were presented at a major conference in London this month. Researchers say the drug could offer a safer option for people with early-stage Alzheimer’s disease.
The pharmaceutical company Roche designed Trontinemab to clear beta-amyloid clumps from the brain by binding to an iron-transport receptor. This approach allows the drug to cross the blood-brain barrier more effectively than Lecanemab and Donanemab, the two approved antibody treatments.
In results shared at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference in London on 14 July, less than 5 per cent of participants developed amyloid-related imaging abnormalities. Existing drugs cause these changes in 20 to 40 per cent of patients, sometimes leading to bleeds or seizures.
Last year Roche reported that around 90 per cent of people with mild cognitive impairment reached normal amyloid levels within six months of monthly Trontinemab doses. The company is now planning larger trials to test whether the drug slows cognitive decline or prevents Alzheimer’s in at-risk individuals.
