Claim: Biogen's secret campaign to bring its Alzheimer's drug back from the ashes.
Verdict: SUPPORTS

Retrieved passages:
title: Biogen
text: candidates for Alzheimer's disease, which have the potential to reduce Aβ plaques that form in the brains of patients, as well as to slow the formation of new plaques, potentially improving symptoms and suppressing disease progression. Biogen also has since 2015 an agreement with AGTC for the development of gene therapy for ophthalmologic diseases such as X-linked retinoschisis (XLRS) and X-linked Retinitis pigmentosa (XLRP), and up to three other genetic diseases. To this aim, Biogen paid AGTC $124 million, including an equity investment of $30 millions, and up to 1,1 billion in future milestones. Biogen Biogen Inc. (previously known as

title: Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation
text: Association of Independent Research Institutes. Its scientists focus on research in the areas of immunology, cardiovascular biology and diseases of aging. In 2000, Jordan J.N. Tang and colleagues created an inhibitor that, in vitro, stopped the enzyme thought to cause Alzheimer's disease. The biotechnology company CoMentis has since built on that discovery to create an experimental drug for the treatment of Alzheimer’s. In 2007, Tang uncovered a molecular mechanism that links an Alzheimer’s susceptibility gene (known as E4) to the process of disease onset. In OMRF’s free radical biology and aging research program, Robert A. Floyd leads a team of

title: Beta-secretase 1
text: the Amyloid hypothesis) may help slow or stop Alzheimers disease. Several companies are in the early stages of development and testing of this potential class of treatment. In March 2008 phase I results were reported for CoMentis Inc's candidate CTS-21166. In April 2012 Merck & Co., Inc reported phase I results for its candidate verubecestat (MK-8931). Merck began a Phase II/III trial of MK-8931 in December, 2012 estimated to be completed in July 2019. In February 2017, Merck halted its late-stage trial of verubecestat for mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease after it was reported as having "virtually no chance" of

title: Alzheimer's disease research
text: peptide. A gamma secretase inhibitor, semagacestat, failed to show any benefit to Alzheimer's disease patients in clinical trials. Tarenflurbil (MPC-7869, formerly R-flubiprofen) is a gamma secretase modulator sometimes called a selective amyloid beta 42 lowering agent. It is believed to reduce the production of the toxic amyloid beta in favor of shorter forms of the peptide. Negative results were announced regarding tarenflurbil in July 2008 and further development was canceled. , Amgen and Novartis had entered into a co-development agreement to progress the oral beta secretase inhibitor CNP520. PBT2 is an 8-hydroxy quinoline that removes copper and zinc from cerebrospinal

title: Biogen
text: MS, Alzheimer's disease, neuropathic pain, spinal muscular atrophy and lupus nephritis: Biogen also has several development agreements in place with Ionis Pharmaceuticals to collaborate to leverage antisense technology in advancing the treatment of neurological disorders. In February 2012, Biogen formalized a joint venture with Samsung, creating Samsung Bioepis. This joint venture brings Biogen's expertise and capabilities in protein engineering, cell line development, and recombinant biologics manufacturing to position the joint venture so Biogen can participate in the emerging market for biosimilars. In early 2014, Biogen entered into an agreement with Eisai, Inc., to jointly develop and commercialize two of their

title: Steven M. Paul
text: organize cooperation and funding from pharmaceutical companies in establishing the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative, a non-proprietary collaborative research effort to establish imaging biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease. In the early 2000s, Paul helped lead the company toward a new model of drug discovery and development that focused on getting proof of concept as early as possible in the research process, in order to avoid failures in Phase II clinical trials. As part of that effort he helped establish Lilly Chorus, an autonomous business unit that was created to design and execute studies that would allow drug candidates to "fail early" instead

title: Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation
text: Alzheimer’s have been shown to have some positive effect when tested in animals, most have not been tested in humans because of the high costs of even modest clinical trials. The ADDF’s Program to Accelerate Clinical Trials (PACT) works to accelerate this process, to date giving 32 clinical stage programs the chance to generate safety and “proof-of-concept” data. The PACT program also supports targeted approaches to prevention as well as clinical biomarker development. Through PACT, the ADDF is funding a number of “repurposing” clinical trials, whereby drugs developed for other indications (e.g., diabetes) are tested for their effectiveness in Alzheimer's

title: Neurodegeneration
text: mild-to-moderate disease. With CONCERT, the remaining Pfizer and Medivation Phase III trial for Dimebon (latrepirdine) in Alzheimer's disease failed in 2012, effectively ending the development in this indication. In another experiment using a rat model of Alzheimer's disease, it was demonstrated that systemic administration of hypothalamic proline-rich peptide (PRP)-1 offers neuroprotective effects and can prevent neurodegeneration in hippocampus amyloid-beta 25–35. This suggests that there could be therapeutic value to PRP-1. Protein degradation offers therapeutic options both in preventing the synthesis and degradation of irregular proteins. There is also interest in upregulating autophagy to help clear protein aggregates implicated in neurodegeneration.

title: Dimethyl fumarate
text: for MS, and in 2010 the Danish company Forward Pharma acquired Aditech's patents. Meanwhile, Biogen continued developing its oral formulation of DMF from Fumapharm under the code name BG-12; it was approved, under the trade name Tecfidera, for the treatment of adults with relapsing forms of MS in March 2013. Biogen priced the drug at $54,000 per year in the US. It was approved in Europe in 2014. In the UK NICE issued a guidance recommending the drug as cost-effective, but only if person does not have highly active or rapidly evolving severe relapsing–remitting multiple sclerosis and only if Biogen

title: Paul Aisen
text: the litigation was ongoing. He has been a strong proponent of the amyloid hypothesis and as of 2017 believed that earlier intervention with drugs against amyloid might show more efficacy than interventions when the disease process is well underway, and has helped initiate large trials to test ways to prevent Alzheimers. He has served as a consultant or advisor for pharmaceutical companies like Eli Lilly and Janssen, smaller biotech companies exploring alternative approaches to AD like Anavex, Proclara, CohBar, and Neurophage, as well as nonprofits like ACT-AD. He is a principle investigator in the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative. In November

title: Alzheimer's disease research
text: increasing insulin levels in the brain with minimal insulin increase in the rest of the body, might also be utilized. Preclinical studies show that insulin clears soluble beta-amyloid from the brain within minutes after a systemic injection in diabetic transgenic mice modeling AD. In July 2008, researchers announced positive results from methylthioninium chloride (MTC), (trade name: Rember) a drug that dissolved Tau polymers. Phase II results indicate that it is the first therapy that has success in modifying the course of disease in mild to moderate AD. Originally considered an enigmatic protein, the sigma-1 receptor has been identified as a

title: Rudolph E. Tanzi
text: the Cure Alzheimer's Fund Research Leadership Group and Director the Cure Alzheimer’s Fund Alzheimer’s Genome Project™. Dr. Tanzi and his team have used Alzheimer’s genes and human stem cells to create “Alzheimer’s-in-a-Dish” - a three-dimensional human stem cell-derived neural culture system that was the first to recapitulate both pathological hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease: plaques and tangles. This model has made drug screening for Alzheimer’s disease considerably faster and more effective. Using this system, Dr. Tanzi has developed several novel therapies for AD including gamma secretase modulators aimed at plaque pathology. These promising drugs are now heading into clinical trials in

title: Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation
text: Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation The Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation (ADDF) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1998 by co-chairmen Leonard A. Lauder and Ronald S. Lauder of the Estée Lauder Companies cosmetics family and led by Dr. Howard Fillit, a geriatrician and neuroscientist. The ADDF provides funding to scientists who are conducting promising, innovative Alzheimer's disease drug research worldwide. ADDF funds early-stage research and early-phase clinical trials that might otherwise go unfunded. By supporting research projects around the world, it seeks to increase the chances of finding treatments for Alzheimer's disease, related dementias and cognitive aging ADDF has invested nearly

title: Judes Poirier
text: Parkinson's disease. He then moved to the Alzheimer’s Disease Research Consortium of Southern California which is based at the Andrus Gerontology Centre, in Los Angeles. It is in California that he discovered the important role of apolipoprotein E, a cholesterol transporter that acts as a powerful modulator of brain reinnervation and a key player in Alzheimer's disease pathophysiology. In 1989, McGill University and the Douglas Institute recruited him back to Montréal to establish a research program specialized in the molecular biology of neurodegenerative diseases. Dr. Poirier has made some key contributions to the advancement of scientific research on Alzheimer's and

title: Élan
text: devaluation resulting in a share price slump of over 90%. Since then the company has regained its growth path under the reign of a new American CEO Kelly Martin. In July 2010, Élan was fined $203m for its marketing of epilepsy drugs. In February 2013 Élan decided to dispose of the rights to sell Tysabri to Biogen Idec for $3.25 billion. In neurology, Élan is focused on building upon its research and experience in the area of neuropathologies such as Alzheimer’s disease, where the company’s efforts include programs focused on small molecule inhibitors of beta secretase and gamma secretase, enzymes

title: Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation
text: invested close to $65 million to fund nearly 450 Alzheimer’s drug discovery programs and clinical trials in academic centers and biotechnology companies in 18 countries. From 2000 to 2004, the ADDF provided seed funding for Amyvid™, the first FDA-approved diagnostic test for Alzheimer's disease. The ADDF’s preclinical program funds research focused on translating existing knowledge about the underlying causes of Alzheimer's disease into drug discovery. Areas of research include: neuroprotection, tau-related therapies, ApoE, therapies, mitochondria function and inflammation. In 2013, 69 percent of the ADDF’s drug portfolio was focused on preclinical drug discovery. Though more than 300 potential treatments for

title: Biogen
text: million, gaining Syntonix's lead product for hemophilia B as well as the technology for developing inhalable treatments. In February 2013, Bloomberg broke the news that Biogen was planning the pay Elan $3.25 billion for the full rights to Tysabri, used to treat multiple sclerosis. In January 2015 the company announced it will acquire Convergence Pharmaceuticals for up to $675 million, with the acquisition aiming to accelerate the development of Convergence's pipeline, in-particular CNV1014802 – a Phase II small molecule sodium channel blocking candidate. In October 2015 the company announced it will lay off 11% of its workforce, effective immediately. In

title: Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation
text: disease. Because these drugs have already passed significant safety tests, the risk of failure is reduced and, if pharmaceuticals are found to be effective in Alzheimer’s patients, they can be brought more rapidly to market. The ADDF partners with family foundations, government, non-profit organization, the pharmaceutical industry and corporate organizations to leverage collective funding power. The ADDF hosts, sponsors and attends a number of scientific conferences, including the International Conference on Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery and the Drug Discovery for Neurodegeneration Conference. The ADDF also organizes advisory panels focused on key issues surrounding drug discovery and development for Alzheimer’s. The ADDF’s

title: Boehringer Ingelheim
text: a new BACE program for Alzheimer's. The company sold the rights to Faldaprevir, a HCV protease inhibitor to Trek Therapeutics. In July 2016 the company sold the commercialisation rights to BI 655066, to AbbVie for $595 million upfront as well as undisclosed milestone payments and royalties. BI 655066 is a drug in late-stage testing for psoriasis, and in earlier testing for Crohn's disease, psoriatic arthritis and asthma. In September of the same year the company announced it would acquire ViraTherapeutics for €210 million ($230 million), a developer of oncolytic virus therapies, dependant on the success of Phase I trials. In

title: Eva Vertes
text: Eva Vertes Eva Vertes George (born 1985) is a Canadian Alzheimer's and cancer researcher and a resident physician in pathology at the University of Florida College of Medicine, where she earned an M.D. degree after attending Princeton University as an undergraduate. She was recognized for her research when she was still a teenager. At 17, she discovered properties of a chemical compound, (RPI-069) which stopped the brain cells of fruit flies from dying. This is considered a step towards curing Alzheimer's. She won first prize at BASEF and the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair in Kentucky, and then finished