| Chinese Moss Extract Tested as Alzheimer's Drug
|
2006-06-11
HealthDay News SUNDAY,
June 11 (HealthDay News) -- Can a compound derived from the Chinese
club moss Huperzia serrata improve brain function in
Alzheimer's patients?
That's
a question U.S. researchers hope to answer as they recruit
participants for a new clinical trial on the compound, called
huperzine A, from 28 sites across the country.
The
Phase II clinical trial to determine the safety and efficacy of
huperzine A will enroll about 150 patients, age 55 and older, with
mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease. Huperzine A is a naturally
occurring cholinesterase inhibitor that's commonly used in China to
treat Alzheimer's.
Chinese
studies have suggested it is well tolerated and effective. However,
there have been no controlled clinical trials of huperzine A outside
of China.
"Based
on studies in China, huperzine A may be more effective and better
tolerated than currently prescribed drugs for Alzheimer's disease. In
addition, laboratory studies suggest that huperzine A may have unique
effects that could slow down the progression of the disease,"
Dr. Paul Aisen, leader of the new study and professor of neurology at
Georgetown University Medical Center's Memory Disorders Program, said
in a prepared statement.
"This
trial is essential to better understand the promise of huperzine A,"
Aisen said. "Though it is a rigorous placebo-controlled trial,
all participants do receive the active medication. The first portion
of the trial, lasting 16 weeks, includes a placebo arm, but all
participants have the opportunity to take active huperzine A for at
least eight months.
The
study, directed by Georgetown University researchers, is funded by
the U.S. National Institutes of Health and Neuro-Hitech
Pharmaceuticals Inc.
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