Oral presentation to highlight preclinical data demonstrating robust antiepileptic activity for darigabat in drug-resistant focal epilepsy

Poster presentations to include further evidence of tavapadon’s consistent pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic profile

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., March 31, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cerevel Therapeutics (Nasdaq: CERE), a company dedicated to unraveling the mysteries of the brain to treat neuroscience diseases, announced an upcoming oral presentation and three poster presentations at the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) Annual Meeting, which will take place in Seattle April 2-7, 2022 and virtually April 24-26, 2022. The presentations highlight continued progress across the Company’s broad, diverse pipeline of novel neuroscience drug candidates.

“The collective data we are presenting at AAN 2022 represent the tremendous progress we are making with our differentiated pipeline of neuroscience drug candidates. We are particularly encouraged by the preclinical data our team is sharing, demonstrating the robust antiepileptic activity of darigabat in a model of drug-resistant focal seizures, as it further supports our belief in darigabat’s potential as a transformative medication for millions of epilepsy patients,” said Raymond Sanchez, M.D., chief medical officer of Cerevel. “We are proud of our progress and remain focused on bringing more selective treatments to those who are living with vexing neuroscience diseases.”

Data Highlights:

Darigabat: Darigabat is an α2/3/5-selective GABAA receptor positive allosteric modulator (PAM) currently under development for anxiety and epilepsy.

In an oral presentation, Cerevel will discuss preclinical data for darigabat that demonstrates robust antiepileptic activity in a model of drug-resistant focal seizures. Treatment with darigabat resulted in a dose-dependent reduction in spontaneous and recurrent hippocampal paroxysmal discharges (an objective biomarker of focal seizures), demonstrating comparable antiepileptic activity to diazepam at doses of 3 and 10 mg/kg.

In a separate poster presentation, Cerevel will review a study describing the successful implementation of novel data capture measures used during the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure data integrity in the ongoing Phase 2 trial of darigabat in patients with focal epilepsy.

Tavapadon: Tavapadon is a highly selective D1/D5 partial agonist currently in Phase 3 trials for the treatment of both early- and late-stage Parkinson’s disease.

Cerevel will present data demonstrating consistent clinical pharmacology across a wide range of doses of tavapadon in several Phase 1 clinical trials, supporting its potential as a promising next-generation treatment for Parkinson’s disease.

Cerevel will also present a study characterizing medication utilization among Parkinson’s disease patients prescribed levodopa or dopamine agonist treatments. The results show that levodopa treatment occurs more consistently than dopamine agonist treatment, as patients prescribed dopamine agonists had relatively high treatment modification and discontinuation rates and low medication adherence.

Presentation Details:

Oral Presentation:
Title: Pronounced Antiepileptic Activity of Darigabat, a Subtype-Selective GABAA Receptor Positive Allosteric Modulator, in the Mesial Temporal Lobe Model of Drug-Resistant Focal Epilepsy
Session: S13: Epilepsy/Clinical Neurophysiology (EEG): Antiseizure Medications
Presenting Author: Rachel Gurrell, Ph.D., Senior Program Director; Head of Translational Medicine and Biomarkers
Date & Time: April 4, 2022 at 1:12 p.m. PT

Poster Presentations:
Title: Ensuring the Continuity of Data Collection in a Focal Epilepsy Clinical Trial During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Session: P2: Epilepsy/Clinical Neurophysiology (EEG): COVID 19 and Others 1
Presenting Author Lilly Frohlich, Senior Manager, Clinical Operations
Date & Time: April 2, 2022 from 11:45 a.m.12:45 p.m. PT

Title: Levodopa and Dopamine Agonist Medication Utilization among Patients with Parkinson's Disease Enrolled in Commercial and Medicare Advantage Part D Health Plans
Session: P7: Movement Disorders: PD Therapeutics 1
Presenting Author: Steve Arcona, Director, Global Value & Access
Date & Time: April 4, 2022 from 8 – 9 a.m. PT

Title: Pharmacokinetics, Pharmacodynamics, and Safety of the Highly Selective Dopamine D1/D5 Agonist Tavapadon: Summary of Phase 1 Clinical Studies
Session: P10: Movement Disorders: Trials 2
Presenting Author: Gina Pastino, Senior Director, Clinical Pharmacology
Date & Time: April 5, 2022 from 8 – 9 a.m. PT

About Cerevel Therapeutics
Cerevel Therapeutics is dedicated to unraveling the mysteries of the brain to treat neuroscience diseases. The company is tackling diseases with a targeted approach to neuroscience that combines expertise in neurocircuitry with a focus on receptor selectivity. Cerevel Therapeutics has a diversified pipeline comprising six clinical-stage investigational therapies and several pre-clinical compounds with the potential to treat a range of neuroscience diseases, including Parkinson’s, epilepsy, schizophrenia, and dementia-related apathy. Headquartered in Cambridge, Mass., Cerevel Therapeutics is advancing its current research and development programs while exploring new modalities through internal research efforts, external collaborations, or potential acquisitions. For more information, visit www.cerevel.com.

Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that are based on management’s beliefs and assumptions and on information currently available to management. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by the following words: “may,” “will,” “could,” “would,” “should,” “expect,” “intend,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “predict,” “project,” “potential,” “continue,” “ongoing” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology, although not all forward-looking statements contain these words. These statements involve risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, levels of activity, performance, or achievements to be materially different from the information expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Although we believe that we have a reasonable basis for each forward-looking statement contained in this press release, we caution you that these statements are based on a combination of facts and factors currently known by us and our projections of the future, about which we cannot be certain. Forward-looking statements in this press release include, but are not limited to, statements about our upcoming conference participation, the potential attributes and benefits of our product candidates and the format, timing and outcome of our product development activities and clinical trials. We cannot assure you that the forward-looking statements in this press release will prove to be accurate. Furthermore, if the forward-looking statements prove to be inaccurate, the inaccuracy may be material. Actual performance and results may differ materially from those projected or suggested in the forward-looking statements due to various risks and uncertainties, including, among others: clinical trial results may not be favorable; uncertainties inherent in the product development process (including with respect to the timing of results and whether such results will be predictive of future results); the impact of COVID-19 on the timing, progress and results of ongoing or planned clinical trials; other impacts of COVID-19, including operational disruptions or delays or to our ability to raise additional capital; whether and when, if at all, our product candidates will receive approval from the FDA or other regulatory authorities, and for which, if any, indications; competition from other biotechnology companies; uncertainties regarding intellectual property protection; and other risks identified in our SEC filings, including those under the heading “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 1, 2022 and our subsequent SEC filings. In light of the significant uncertainties in these forward-looking statements, you should not regard these statements as a representation or warranty by us or any other person that we will achieve our objectives and plans in any specified time frame, or at all. The forward-looking statements in this press release represent our views as of the date of this press release. We anticipate that subsequent events and developments will cause our views to change. However, while we may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we have no current intention of doing so except to the extent required by applicable law. You should, therefore, not rely on these forward-looking statements as representing our views as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release.

Media Contact:
Anna Robinson
Cerevel Therapeutics
anna.robinson@cerevel.com

Investor Contact:
Matthew Calistri
Cerevel Therapeutics
matthew.calistri@cerevel.com


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Source: Cerevel Therapeutics

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