Alterity Therapeutics announced that promising new data on the effect of ATH434 in a Parkinson?s disease primate model was presented at the Future of Parkinson?s Disease Conference 2023 that took place November 30 ? December 3, 2023 in Austin,TX, USA. The study compared daily oral doses of ATH434 (3 or 10 mg/kg) versus a vehicle (placebo) for 12-14 weeks after parkinsonian symptoms were evident.

Monkeys were assessed with the Parkinson Behavior Rating Scale (PBRS) before, during and after dosing. At Week 12, all evaluable ATH434-treated monkeys (n=5) had stable or improving PBRS scores from Baseline to Week 12 whereas two of three vehicle-treated monkeys did not demonstrate improvement or worsened, as expected from the progressive nature of the Parkinson model. The components of the PBRS scale indicate that ATH434 reduced motor impairment and improved general functions such as posture, balance, activity, and gait.

Favorable parkinsonian outcomes observed in each of the ATH434-treated monkeys were associated with lower iron in the right substantia nigra. In addition, monkeys with improved scores had higher right dorsal striatal synaptophysin, indicating functional recovery of nerve endings in this critical motor pathway.