A Phase II study to evaluate the safety and efficacy of prasinezumab in early Parkinson’s disease (PASADENA): rationale, design and baseline data
Authors: Pagano Gennaro , Boess Frank G , Taylor Kirsten I , Ricci Benedicte , Mollenhauer Brit , Poewe Werner , Boulay Anne , Anzures-Cabrera Judith , Vogt Annamarie , Marchesi Maddalena , Post Anke , Nikolcheva Tania , Kinney Gene G , Zago Wagner M , Ness Daniel K , Svoboda Hanno , Britschgi Markus , Ostrowitzki Susanne , Simuni Tanya , Marek Kenneth , Koller Martin , Sevigny Jeff , Doody Rachelle , Fontoura Paulo , Umbricht Daniel , Bonni Azad ,   PASADENA Investigators,   Prasinezumab Study Group
Published: April 2021

Background

Currently available treatments for Parkinson’s disease (PD) do not slow clinical progression nor target alpha-synuclein, the main pathology associated with the disease.

Objective

The study objective was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of prasinezumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody that binds aggregated alpha-synuclein, in individuals with early PD. The study rationale, design, and baseline characteristics of enrolled subjects are presented here.

Methods

The PASADENA study is a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled treatment study. Individuals with early PD, recruited across the US and Europe, received monthly intravenous doses of prasinezumab (1500 mg or 4500 mg) or placebo for a 52-week period (Part 1), followed by a 52-week extension (Part 2) in which all participants received active treatment. Key inclusion criteria were: aged 40–80 years; Hoehn & Yahr (H&Y) Stage I or II; time from diagnosis ≤2 years; having bradykinesia plus one other cardinal sign of PD (e.g. resting tremor, rigidity); DAT-SPECT imaging consistent with PD; and either treatment naïve or on a stable monoamine oxidase B (MAO-B) inhibitor dose. Study design assumptions for sample size and study duration were built using a patient cohort from the Parkinson’s Progression Marker Initiative (PPMI). In this report, baseline characteristics are compared between the treatment-naïve and MAO-B inhibitor-treated PASADENA cohorts and between the PASADENA and PPMI populations.

Results

Of the 443 patients screened, 316 were enrolled into the PASADENA study between June 2017 and November 2018, with an average age of 59.9 years and 67.4% being male. The mean time from diagnosis at baseline was 10.11 months, with 75.3% in H&Y Stage II. Baseline motor and non-motor symptoms (assessed using Movement Disorder Society – Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale [MDS-UPDRS]) were similar in severity between the MAO-B inhibitor-treated and treatment-naïve PASADENA cohorts (MDS-UPDRS Total score [standard deviation (SD)]; 30.21 [11.96], 32.10 [13.20], respectively). The overall PASADENA population (63.6% treatment naïve and 36.4% on MAO-B inhibitor) also showed a similar severity in MDS-UPDRS scores (e.g. MDS-UPDRS Total score [SD]; 31.41 [12.78], 32.63 [13.04], respectively) to the PPMI cohort (all treatment naïve).

Conclusions

The PASADENA study population is suitable to investigate the potential of prasinezumab to slow disease progression in individuals with early PD.

Trial Registration

NCT03100149