Major Parkinson’s breakthrough as new pill offers hope of treating symptoms and has fewer side-effects

Major Parkinson’s breakthrough as new pill offers hope of treating symptoms and has fewer side-effects Trial found patients on solengepras had 37 minutes less ‘off’ time each day when dopamine drugs failed to work properly - Bookmark - CommentsGo to comments Become an Independent member to bookmark this article Already a member? Log in A new pill for Parkinson’s disease is raising hopes of a breakthrough in treatment after a trial suggested it reduced the symptoms that hit sufferers’ quality of life. The drug, called solengepras, cut the time when patients had “off” periods, when they felt unwell or stiff, slow or shaky. Patients also felt less sleepy and functioned better, the scientists said. Existing treatments for Parkinson’s work by increasing dopamine, which is reduced in the brains of sufferers, but those drugs may cause nausea, hallucinations and involuntary movements, usually of the limbs. Solengepras works differently, blocking a receptor called GPR6 that slows down movement. It was developed to reduce the risk of such side-effects. Cerevance, the US clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company that developed the new drug, said it offered great hope for future treatments. Parkinson's is the world’s fastest growing neurological condition. Around 166,000 people in the UK have been diagnosed with Parkinson’s, according to Parkinson's UK and 21,000 more have it without a formal diagnosis. More than 10 million people worldwide live with the disease. The randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial involved 341 people with Parkinson’s across the US, Europe, UK and Australia. They were randomly assigned to receive either 75mg or 150mg of solengepras or a placebo, once a day for 12 weeks. They continued to take their dopamine-based drugs. Both the patients taking solengepras and those taking the placebo improved over the trial, but the higher-dose solengepras group reported having nearly 37 minutes less “off” time each day, when their dopamine drugs were not working properly, than those on the placebo, and about an hour-and-a-half less “off” time than before the trial. They also had about 36 extra minutes a day of “on” time without dyskinesia – movement problems – compared with the placebo group. Activities such as dressing, eating and getting around were easier, as well. The drug appeared well tolerated, with no serious side effects, the researchers said, although some people reported headaches and urinary tract infections. Ceverance says it will discuss the results with the US Food and Drug Administration to determine the next steps, and the pill could potentially be prescribed to patients within three years. Doctors say motor – or movement - fluctuations are one of the hardest side-effects to control in Parkinson’s patients, but solengepras offers hope of doing so. Loss of smell, constipation and involuntary movements during sleep may all be early signs of the disease. Craig Thompson, chief executive of Cerevance, said the trial showed a consistent pattern of benefit across “off” time, “on” time, daily motor function, daytime alertness and quality of life. “As a potential first-in-class, non-dopaminergic therapy, solengepras gives us the opportunity to evaluate what a new mechanism may offer people with Parkinson’s.” Join our commenting forum Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies Comments