Hawthorn, CoPlex Therapeutics sign licensing deal to develop and commercialize hawAD14 for Alzheimer's

Sep 13 2011

Hawthorn Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today an exclusive global licensing deal with CoPlex Therapeutics on hawAD14, a preclinical oral small molecule candidate for the treatment of Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases. Under the terms of the agreement, Hawthorn will receive an exclusive worldwide license to develop and commercialize hawAD14 and will be responsible for funding all future development.

Research indicates hawAD14 significantly decreases levels of Amyloid Beta (Aβ) and tau phosphorylation activity, the main constituents of amyloid plaques and paired helical filaments that make up neurofibrillary tangles in Alzheimer's disease.

"In terms of the discovery's uniqueness, it's one of only few programs in the world demonstrating multiple protective effects against the predominant pathophysiologic pathways of Alzheimer's disease," said Rob Lewis, chief scientific officer at Hawthorn Pharmaceuticals. "Preclinical studies have shown the ability to significantly affect both Aβ processing enzymes and kinases responsible for tau hyperphosphorylation."

"We are in the process of conducting the necessary preclinical studies in order to file an IND with the FDA," said Max Draughn, Hawthorn Pharmaceuticals' chief executive officer. "It's our goal to ultimately see disease modifying results in human studies and eventually make a therapeutic difference someday to millions of suffering Alzheimer's patients."