Elpipodect (MK-8189) Safety and Tolerability in Participants With Alzheimer's Disease With or Without Symptoms of Agitation-Aggression and/or Psychosis (MK-8189-017)

April 8, 2026 updated by: Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC

A Randomized Clinical Study to Evaluate the Safety and Tolerability of MK-8189 in Participants With Alzheimer's Disease With or Without Symptoms of Agitation-Aggression and/or Psychosis

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the safety and tolerability of multiple ascending doses of elpipodect in participants with Alzheimer's Disease (AD) with or without symptoms of agitation-aggression and/or psychosis.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
29

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Phase 1

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • California
      • Santa Ana, California, United States, 92705
        • CITrials ( Site 0007)
    • Florida
      • Cutler Bay, Florida, United States, 33189
        • Top Medical Research ( Site 0005)
      • Hallandale, Florida, United States, 33009
        • Velocity Clinical Research, Hallandale Beach ( Site 0001)
      • Miami, Florida, United States, 33173
        • Well Pharma Medical Research, Corp. ( Site 0006)
    • Georgia
      • Atlanta, Georgia, United States, 30331
        • Atlanta Center for Medical Research ( Site 0004)
      • Decatur, Georgia, United States, 30030
        • iResearch Atlanta ( Site 0009)
    • New Jersey
      • Princeton, New Jersey, United States, 08540
        • Global Medical Institutes LLC; Princeton Medical Institute ( Site 0008)
    • New York
      • Staten Island, New York, United States, 10314
        • Richmond Behavioral Associates ( Site 0003)

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

65 years to 85 years (Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

The main inclusion and exclusion criteria include but are not limited to the following:

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Has a documented diagnosis of probable Alzheimer Disease based on National Institute on Aging-Alzheimer Association criteria for AD, with a history of cognitive and functional decline with gradual onset and slow progression for at least 1 year before screening, that is either corroborated by an informant who knows the participant well or is documented in medical records
  • Lives in the community setting with a reliable trial partner/caregiver or lives alone in an assisted living facility, with supervision and has a reliable trial partner/caregiver
  • Has a reliable and competent trial partner/caregiver who must have a close relationship with the participant and is knowledgeable of the participant's condition and progress and able to read, understand and speak the designated language at the study site
  • Can read at the 6th grade level/equivalent as determined by the investigator
  • Has an academic and/or employment history sufficient to exclude intellectual disability and is able, in the opinion of the investigator, to fully participate in the study
  • Participants receiving treatment with a cholinesterase inhibitor or other treatment for AD, must have been on a stable regimen for 3 months prior to screening and there are no expected changes in co-medication during the study
  • Is able to discontinue any antipsychotic medication they are taking at the time of Screening
  • Has a body mass index (BMI) > 18 and ≤ 35kg/m2, inclusive

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Has agitation/aggression or psychosis that is attributable to concomitant medications, environmental conditions, substance abuse, or an active medical or psychiatric condition
  • Has a known history of stroke or evidence from prior magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan (if available) that is clinically important in the investigator's opinion
  • Has evidence of a clinically relevant neurological disorder other than the disease being studied (i.e., probable AD) at Screening
  • Has a history of seizures or epilepsy within the last 5 years before Screening
  • Has evidence of a clinically relevant or unstable psychiatric disorder
  • Is at imminent risk of self-harm
  • Has a history of alcoholism or drug dependency/abuse within the last 5 years before Screening
  • Has a history of cancer (malignancy). Exceptions: (1) Adequately treated non-melanomatous skin carcinoma or carcinoma in situ of the cervix or; (2) Other malignancies that have been successfully treated with appropriate follow up and therefore unlikely to recur for the duration of the study
  • Has a family history of long QT syndrome
  • Previously developed severe extrapyramidal symptoms (EPS) following administration of any prescribed medication or study treatment
  • Is positive for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), hepatitis C antibodies or human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
  • Had major surgery, donated or lost 1 unit of blood (approximately 500 mL) within 4 weeks prior to the pre-study (screening) visit
  • Consumes greater than 3 glasses of alcoholic beverages per day
  • Consumes excessive amounts, defined as greater than 6 servings (1 serving is approximately equivalent to 120 mg of caffeine) of coffee, tea, cola, energy drinks, or other caffeinated beverages per day
  • Is a regular user of cannabis, any illicit drugs or has a history of drug (including alcohol) abuse within approximately 3 years

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Triple

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Placebo Comparator: Placebo
Participants will be assigned to one of the following regimens: Titration 1: 2 tablets Days 1-28 OR Titration 2: 2 tablets Days 1-28 OR Titration 3: 1 tablet Days 1-3; 2 tablets Days 4-28.
Drug: Placebo
MK-8189 matching placebo administered orally QD
Experimental: Elpipodect
Participants will be assigned to one of the following regimens: Titration 1: 4 mg x 2 tablets Days 1-3; 4 mg x 1 tablet & 12 mg x 1 tablet Days 4-28 OR Titration 2: 4 mg x 2 tablets Days 1-3; 4 mg x 1 tablet & 12 mg x 1 tablet Days 4-6; 12 mg x 2 tablets Days 7-28 OR Titration 3: 4 mg x 1 tablet Days 1-3; 4 mg x 2 tablets Days 4-6; 4 mg x 1 tablet & 12 mg x 1 tablet Days 7-9; 12 mg x 2 tablets Days 10-28.
Drug: Elpipodect
MK-8189 administered orally once a day (QD) at a titration via tablet in 4 mg and 12 mg dose strengths
Other Names:
  • MK-8189

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Number of Participants Who Experienced an Adverse Event (AE)
Time Frame: Up to approximately 42 days
An AE is any untoward medical occurrence in a clinical study participant, temporally associated with the use of study intervention, whether or not considered related to the study intervention. An AE can therefore be any unfavorable and unintended sign (including an abnormal laboratory finding), symptom, or disease (new or exacerbated) temporally associated with the use of a study intervention. Results are reported according to dose.
Up to approximately 42 days
Number of Participants Discontinuing From Study Therapy Due to AE
Time Frame: Up to approximately 42 days
An AE is any untoward medical occurrence in a clinical study participant, temporally associated with the use of study intervention, whether or not considered related to the study intervention. An AE can therefore be any unfavorable and unintended sign (including an abnormal laboratory finding), symptom, or disease (new or exacerbated) temporally associated with the use of a study intervention. Results are reported according to dose.
Up to approximately 42 days

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Study Director: Medical Director, Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

Helpful Links

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
July 1, 2022

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
January 10, 2023

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
January 10, 2023

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
January 27, 2022

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
January 27, 2022

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
February 7, 2022

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
April 29, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
April 8, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
April 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 8189-017
  • MK-8189-017 (Other Identifier: Merck)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Plan Description

https://trialstransparency.msdclinicaltrials.com/pdf/ProcedureAccessClinicalTrialData.pdf

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

Yes

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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