Cholesterol Lowering Agent to Slow Progression (CLASP) of Alzheimer's Disease Study

A Multi-Center, Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial of Simvastatin to Slow the Progression of Alzheimer's Disease

CLASP is a research study to investigate the safety and effectiveness of simvastatin (a cholesterol lowering drug or statin) to slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Statins are commonly used to treat high cholesterol levels, which increase the risk of heart disease and stroke.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Alzheimer Disease
• Intervention / Treatment: Drug: Simvastatin

Detailed Description

In earlier studies in animals and humans, researchers found that lowering cholesterol levels with statins seems to have a positive impact on brain function and reduces the risk of AD. The CLASP trial will test the link between using a cholesterol lowering medication and slowing disease progress in people with mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease (AD).

CLASP is a research study to investigate the safety and effectiveness of simvastatin (a cholesterol lowering drug or statin) to slow the progression of AD. The clinical trial will include the treatment of patients with mild to moderate AD, and the objective is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of simvastatin to slow the progression of AD, as measured by the cognitive portion of the AD Assessment Scale. Measures of clinical global change (ADCS-CGIC), mental status, functional ability, behavioral disturbances, quality of life and economic indicators will be made also. The study design is randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel group design with equal randomization to drug and placebo. Randomization will be stratified and blocked to ensure balanced assignment within site. Sample size will include 400 participants enrolled from approximately 40 sites with a goal of 10 to 15 volunteers enrolled at each site. Study medication will be as follows: 20 mg of simvastatin or matching placebo to be given for 6 weeks, followed by 40 mg of simvastatin or matching placebo for the remainder of the 18-month study period. Participants will be instructed to take the medication once a day in the evening. Safety parameters to be checked will include adverse events, symptom checklists, vital signs, physical and neurological examinations, and laboratory tests.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 400
• Phase: Phase 3

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Alabama
    • Birmingham, Alabama, United States, 35294-0017
      • University of Alabama, Birmingham
  • Arizona
    • Phoenix, Arizona, United States, 85013
      • Barrow Neurology Group
    • Tucson, Arizona, United States, 85724-5023
      • Arizona Health Sciences Center, University of Arizona
  • California
    • Irvine, California, United States, 92697-7016
      • University of California, Irvine
    • La Jolla, California, United States, 92093-0948
      • University of California, San Diego
    • Los Angeles, California, United States, 90095
      • University of California, Los Angeles
    • Los Angeles, California, United States, 90093
      • University of Southern California
    • Palo Alto, California, United States, 94304
      • Stanford University/VA Aging Clinical Research Center
    • Sacramento, California, United States, 95817
      • University of California, Davis
  • Connecticut
    • New Haven, Connecticut, United States, 06511
      • Yale University School of Medicine
  • District of Columbia
    • Washington, District of Columbia, United States, 20060
      • Howard University
    • Washington, District of Columbia, United States, 20057
      • Georgetown University, Memory Disorder Program
  • Florida
    • Boca Raton, Florida, United States, 33486
      • Baumel Eisner Neuromedical Institute
    • Jacksonville, Florida, United States, 32224
      • Mayo Clinic (Jacksonville)
    • Miami Beach, Florida, United States, 33140
      • Wein Center
  • Georgia
    • Atlanta, Georgia, United States, 30329
      • Emory University
  • Illinois
    • Chicago, Illinois, United States, 60611
      • Northwestern University
    • Chicago, Illinois, United States, 60612
      • Rush Alzheimer's Disease Center, Rush University
  • Indiana
    • Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, 46202
      • Indiana University Alzheimer's Center
  • Kentucky
    • Lexington, Kentucky, United States, 40536-0230
      • University of Kentucky, Sanders-Brown Center on Aging
  • Massachusetts
    • Boston, Massachusetts, United States, 02115
      • Brigham and Women's Hospital
    • Boston, Massachusetts, United States, 02118
      • Boston University School Of Medicine
  • Michigan
    • Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States, 48109-0504
      • University of Michigan at Ann Arbor
  • Minnesota
    • Rochester, Minnesota, United States, 55901
      • Mayo Clinic
  • Missouri
    • St. Louis, Missouri, United States, 63104
      • St. Louis University
    • St. Louis, Missouri, United States, 63108
      • Washington University, St. Louis School of Medicine
  • New York
    • Brooklyn, New York, United States, 11203
      • SUNY Downstate
    • New York, New York, United States, 10032
      • Columbia University
    • New York, New York, United States, 10016
      • New York University School of Medicine
    • New York, New York, United States, 10029
      • Mount Sinai School of Medicine
    • Rochester, New York, United States, 14642
      • University of Rochester Medical Center
    • Stonybrook, New York, United States, 11794-8121
      • SUNY Stony Brook
    • Syracuse, New York, United States, 13210
      • Neurological Care of NY
  • North Carolina
    • Durham, North Carolina, United States, 27705
      • Duke University Medical Center
  • Ohio
    • Cleveland, Ohio, United States, 44120
      • University Memory and Aging Center, Case Western Reserve University/University Hospitals of Cleveland
  • Oregon
    • Portland, Oregon, United States, 97201
      • Oregon Health and Sciences University
  • Pennsylvania
    • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, 19104
      • University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Alzheimer's Disease Center
    • Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, 15213
      • University of Pittsburgh
  • Rhode Island
    • Providence, Rhode Island, United States, 02903
      • Brown University-Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island
  • South Carolina
    • North Charleston, South Carolina, United States, 29406
      • Medical University of South Carolina
  • Texas
    • Dallas, Texas, United States, 75390
      • University of Texas, Southwestern Medical School
    • Houston, Texas, United States, 77030
      • Baylor College of Medicine, Alzheimer's Disease Research Center
  • Vermont
    • Bennington, Vermont, United States, 05201
      • Southwestern Vermont Medical Center
  • Washington
    • Seattle, Washington, United States, 98108
      • University of Washington at Seattle

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 50 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

• Mild to moderate patients with AD who are free of life-threatening disease and who do not require lipid-lowering treatment according to current guidelines.
• NINCDS/ADRDA criteria for probable AD.
• Mini-Mental-State-Exam (MMSE) score between 12 and 26.
• Stable medical condition for 3 months prior to the screening visit.
• Age greater than or equal to 50 years, and no upper age limit.
• Lives in a community dwelling, not in a nursing home.
• Stable doses of (non-excluded) medications with central nervous system activity for 4 weeks prior to the screening visit.
• Physical condition acceptable for the study as confirmed by medical history, physical exam, neurologic exam and clinical laboratory tests.
• Informant/study partner available and willing to accompany participant to all scheduled visits and complete informant-based assessments and to supervise administration of study medications.
• Fluent in English or Spanish.
• Modified Hachinski is less than or equal to 4.

Exclusion criteria:

• Coronary heart disease (CHD) including angina, or peripheral vascular disease including symptomatic carotid artery disease, or stroke or TIA, as these individuals are likely to require treatment with lipid-lowering drugs.
• Serious renal disease.
• Uncontrolled diabetes.
• Triglycerides are greater than 500 mg/dL.
• LDL-Cholesterol below 80 mg/dL
• Upper limit for the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) guidelines for LDL-Cholesterol is 130-190 mg/dL, depending on age and other cardiovascular risk factors.
• Other indication for the need to treat with lipid-lowering drug.
• Active liver disease or persistent elevation in serum transaminase.
• Active neoplastic disease (skin tumors other than melanoma are not exclusionary; subjects with stable prostate cancer may be included at the discretion of the Project Director).
• Use of another investigational agent within 2 months of the screening visit.
• History of clinically significant stroke.
• Current evidence or history in the past 2 years of seizures, head injury with loss of consciousness and/or immediate confusion after the injury.
• Current DSM-IV criteria based diagnosis for major psychiatric disorder including psychosis, major depression, bipolar disorder, alcohol or substance abuse.
• Blindness, deafness, language difficulties or any other disability which may prevent the subject from participating or cooperating in the protocol.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

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

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: National Institute on Aging (NIA)
• Collaborators: Alzheimer's Disease Cooperative Study (ADCS)
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Mary Sano, PhD, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; Principal Investigator: Leon J. Thal, MD, University of California, San Diego

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Hartmann T. Cholesterol, A beta and Alzheimer's disease. Trends Neurosci. 2001 Nov;24(11 Suppl):S45-8. doi: 10.1016/s0166-2236(00)01990-1.
• Jick H, Zornberg GL, Jick SS, Seshadri S, Drachman DA. Statins and the risk of dementia. Lancet. 2000 Nov 11;356(9242):1627-31. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(00)03155-x. Erratum In: Lancet 2001 Feb 17;357(9255):562.
• Simons M, Schwarzler F, Lutjohann D, von Bergmann K, Beyreuther K, Dichgans J, Wormstall H, Hartmann T, Schulz JB. Treatment with simvastatin in normocholesterolemic patients with Alzheimer's disease: A 26-week randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind trial. Ann Neurol. 2002 Sep;52(3):346-50. doi: 10.1002/ana.10292.

Helpful Links

• Alzheimer's Disease Cooperative Study

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: December 1, 2002
• Primary Completion (Actual): October 1, 2007
• Study Completion (Actual): October 1, 2007

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: February 3, 2003
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 3, 2003
• First Posted (Estimate): February 4, 2003

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimate): July 28, 2009
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 24, 2009
• Last Verified: June 1, 2009

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Cholesterol-lowering drug; Mild to Moderate Alzheimer disease
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Mental Disorders; Brain Diseases; Central Nervous System Diseases; Nervous System Diseases; Neurocognitive Disorders; Neurodegenerative Diseases; Dementia; Tauopathies; Alzheimer Disease; Molecular Mechanisms of Pharmacological Action; Enzyme Inhibitors; Antimetabolites; Anticholesteremic Agents; Hypolipidemic Agents; Lipid Regulating Agents; Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors; Simvastatin
• Other Study ID Numbers: IA0038; ADC-015-LL