Amorfix achieves 85% specificity and sensitivity with EP-AD CSF Diagnostic Test for AD

Oct 1 2011

Amorfix Life Sciences, a product development company focused on diagnostics and therapeutics for misfolded protein diseases, today announced it has achieved 85 percent specificity and sensitivity with its EP-AD CSF Diagnostic Test.

Unlike tests that measure changes in the levels of non-aggregated Abeta 1-42, the Amorfix EP-AD CSF Diagnostic Test can detect the presence of the aggregated form which is strongly implicated in Alzheimer's disease (AD). When the scores from the Amorfix test were correlated with scores from the MMSE (Mini-Mental State Examination, a clinical test used to measure disease severity), the results demonstrated that aggregates were not only found in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from late-stage AD, but also in patients with early stage AD or mild cognitive impairment (MCI). In addition, the data suggest that the Amorfix test is superior for identification of patients with MCI when compared to the measurements of monomeric Abeta 1-42 alone.

"This accomplishment represents a significant step forward for our Alzheimer's disease diagnostic program", said Dr. Robert Gundel, President and Chief Executive Officer of Amorfix.  "We have developed a unique system for the detection of the aggregated Abeta peptide, a recognized biomarker for AD. As such, we see the utility of this assay as a means to dramatically improve the current state of AD diagnostics by improving clinicians' ability to properly identify patients with early stage disease.  In addition, our assay may be used as a way to significantly improve the accuracy and reduce the time and cost of conducting clinical trials for development of new treatments for AD.  We are now actively seeking a development partner to bring this important and valuable new asset to the market as quickly as possible."

Source: AMORFIX LIFE SCIENCES LTD.