Aptinyx, Inc. was forced to suspend its study of NYX-458—a treatment for cognitive impairment in Parkinson’s disease (PD) and dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB)—due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Last week the biopharmaceutical company announced that they’ll again start screening patients for their Phase 2 study.
The protein alpha-synuclein, which causes PD and DLB, has been shown to reduce the activity of NMDA, a receptor that plays an important role in memory and learning. NYX-458 may be able to protect NMDA from the effects of alpha-synuclein. It’s already been shown to reverse cognitive decline in non-human primates.
Aptinyx will study the safety, tolerability, and potential cognitive benefits of NYX-458 versus placebo in a 12-week study of 100 patients. Data from the Phase 2 trial are expected to be released in the second half of 2022.
