Safety, Tolerability, and Pharmacokinetic Study of EVP-6124 in Patients With Alzheimer's Disease

A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Ascending-Dose Phase 1b Safety Study of Three Different Doses of an Alpha-7 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor Agonist (EVP-6124) or Placebo in Patients With Mild to Moderate Probable Alzheimer's Disease

This study is being conducted to determine the safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics (PK) of three different doses of an investigational medication, EVP-6124, in individuals with mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease who are also taking an Alzheimer's medication (AChEI [acetylcholinesterase inhibitor]: either donepezil or rivastigmine). In addition, PK of AChEI medications will be assessed. Cognitive function will be evaluated on an exploratory basis.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Central Nervous System Diseases; Alzheimer's Disease
• Intervention / Treatment: Drug: EVP-6124 (0.1 mg/day); Drug: Donepezil; Drug: Rivastigmine; Drug: EVP-6124 (0.3 mg/day); Drug: EVP-6124 (1.0 mg/day); Drug: Comparator: Placebo

Detailed Description

This is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, Phase 1b safety study of three dose levels of EVP-6124 in subjects with mild or moderate Alzheimer's disease and who are taking an AChEI medication (donepezil or rivastigmine).

Study drug will be supplied as capsules and will be orally administered once daily for a total of 28 days. Eligible subjects will be admitted to an inpatient study unit on Day -2 (two days before the first dose of study drug is administered) and will remain confined to the inpatient study unit for a total of five days. Starting on Day 4, subjects will continue the study in the outpatient setting, with study visits on Days 7, 14, 21, and 28. Safety assessments, PK sampling, and cognitive testing will be performed inpatient and at each study visit.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 49
• Phase: Phase 1

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • California
    • San Diego, California, United States, 92103
      • Pacific Research Network, Inc.
  • Florida
    • Hallandale Beach, Florida, United States, 33009
      • MD Clinical
  • New Jersey
    • Berlin, New Jersey, United States, 08009
      • Comprehensive Clinical Research
    • Princeton, New Jersey, United States, 08540
      • Global Medical Institutes, LLC

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 50 years to 90 years (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• male and post-menopausal or surgically sterile female pts
• 50-90 yrs old, who meet clinical criteria for probable Alzheimer's disease (Mini-Mental State Examination of 18-26; Hachinski Ischemic Score ≤4)
• must be taking donepezil or rivastigmine for at least 3 mos.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Unstable medical condition that is clinically significant in the judgment of the investigator; major organ system dysfunction
• Untreated hypothyroidism
• Insufficiently controlled diabetes mellitus
• Diagnosis of major depression requiring antidepressant medications within the last 5 years
• Stroke within 6 months before screening, or concomitant with onset of dementia
• Certain concomitant medications

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

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

Number of Arms

4

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Placebo Comparator: Placebo	Drug: Donepezil; Concomitant therapy with donepezil at a stable dose, taken daily at the same time or immediately after the assigned EVP-6124 dose. Patients must have been taking concomitant therapy for at least 3 months prior to enrollment to be eligible for the study.; Drug: Rivastigmine; Concomitant therapy with rivastigmine at a stable dose, taken daily at the same time or immediately after the assigned EVP-6124 dose. Patients must have been taking concomitant therapy for at least 3 months prior to enrollment to be eligible for the study.; Drug: Comparator: Placebo; Matching placebo was administered as one capsule per day for 28 days.
Experimental: EVP-6124 (0.1 mg/day)	Drug: EVP-6124 (0.1 mg/day); EVP-6124 was administered as one 0.1 mg capsule per day for 28 days.; Drug: Donepezil; Concomitant therapy with donepezil at a stable dose, taken daily at the same time or immediately after the assigned EVP-6124 dose. Patients must have been taking concomitant therapy for at least 3 months prior to enrollment to be eligible for the study.; Drug: Rivastigmine; Concomitant therapy with rivastigmine at a stable dose, taken daily at the same time or immediately after the assigned EVP-6124 dose. Patients must have been taking concomitant therapy for at least 3 months prior to enrollment to be eligible for the study.
Experimental: EVP-6124 (0.3 mg/day)	Drug: Donepezil; Concomitant therapy with donepezil at a stable dose, taken daily at the same time or immediately after the assigned EVP-6124 dose. Patients must have been taking concomitant therapy for at least 3 months prior to enrollment to be eligible for the study.; Drug: Rivastigmine; Concomitant therapy with rivastigmine at a stable dose, taken daily at the same time or immediately after the assigned EVP-6124 dose. Patients must have been taking concomitant therapy for at least 3 months prior to enrollment to be eligible for the study.; Drug: EVP-6124 (0.3 mg/day); EVP-6124 was administered as one 0.3 mg capsule every day for 28 days.
Experimental: EVP-6124 (1.0 mg/day)	Drug: Donepezil; Concomitant therapy with donepezil at a stable dose, taken daily at the same time or immediately after the assigned EVP-6124 dose. Patients must have been taking concomitant therapy for at least 3 months prior to enrollment to be eligible for the study.; Drug: Rivastigmine; Concomitant therapy with rivastigmine at a stable dose, taken daily at the same time or immediately after the assigned EVP-6124 dose. Patients must have been taking concomitant therapy for at least 3 months prior to enrollment to be eligible for the study.; Drug: EVP-6124 (1.0 mg/day); EVP-6124 was administered as one 1.0 mg capsule every day for 28 days.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Safety and Tolerability of Multiple Doses of EVP-6124 or Placebo in Subjects With Alzheimer's Disease	All adverse experiences spontaneously reported by subject and/or observed by investigator and repeated clinical evaluation of physical examinations, vital signs, 12-lead ECG (electrocardiogram), ambulatory ECG, and laboratory tests (hematology/blood chemistry/urinalysis)	Pre-treatment (Day -2) [or screening for physical examination] to Day 28 [or Day 35, for AEs only]

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
EVP-6124 PK Data Following the First Dose of EVP-6124 - Maximum Concentration (Cmax)	EVP-6124 PK data; Maximum Concentration (Cmax); i.e, highest concentration of drug in plasma	24 hours
EVP-6124 PK Data Following the First Dose of EVP-6124 - Time to Maximum Concentration (Tmax)	EVP-6124 PK data; Time to Maximum Concentration (Tmax); i.e, amount of time required to reach highest concentration of drug in plasma	24 hours
EVP-6124 PK Data Following the First Dose of EVP-6124 - Area Under the Curve (AUC[0-24 h])	EVP-6124 PK data; Area Under the Curve (AUC[0-24 h]); i.e, area under the concentration-time plot	24 hours
Donepezil PK Data Following the First Dose of EVP-6124 - Maximum Concentration (Cmax)	Donepezil PK data; Maximum Concentration (Cmax); i.e, highest concentration of donepezil (parent compound only) in plasma after dosing with EVP-6124	24 hours
Donepezil PK Data Following the First Dose of EVP-6124 - Time to Maximum Concentration (Tmax)	Donepezil PK data; Time to Maximum Concentration (Tmax); i.e, amount of time required to reach highest concentration of donepezil (parent compound only) in plasma after dosing with EVP-6124	24 hours
Donepezil PK Data Following the First Dose of EVP-6124 - Area Under the Curve (AUC[0-24 h])	Donepezil PK data; Area Under the Curve (AUC[0-24 h]); i.e, area under the concentration-time plot for donepezil (parent compound only) after dosing with EVP-6124	24 hours
Rivastigmine PK Data Following the First Dose of EVP-6124 - Maximum Concentration (Cmax)	Rivastigmine PK data; Maximum Concentration (Cmax); i.e, highest concentration of rivastigmine in plasma after dosing with EVP-6124	24 hours
Rivastigmine PK Data Following the First Dose of EVP-6124 - Time to Maximum Concentration (Tmax)	Rivastigmine PK data; Time to Maximum Concentration (Tmax); i.e, amount of time required to reach highest concentration of rivastigmine in plasma after dosing with EVP-6124	24 hours
Rivastigmine PK Data Following the First Dose of EVP-6124 - Area Under the Curve (AUC[0-24 h])	Rivastigmine PK data; Area Under the Curve (AUC[0-24 h]); i.e, area under the concentration-time plot for rivastigmine after dosing with EVP-6124	24 hours

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: FORUM Pharmaceuticals Inc
• Collaborators: Syneos Health
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: David R. Hassmann, D.O., Comprehensive Clinical Research; Principal Investigator: Beth Safirstein, M.D., MD Clinical; Principal Investigator: Stephen Thein, Ph.D., Pacific Research Network, Inc.; Principal Investigator: Jeffrey Apter, M.D., Global Medical Institutes

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: October 1, 2008
• Primary Completion (Actual): March 1, 2009
• Study Completion (Actual): March 1, 2009

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: October 1, 2008
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: October 2, 2008
• First Posted (Estimate): October 3, 2008

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimate): April 20, 2012
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: April 18, 2012
• Last Verified: April 1, 2012

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Alzheimer's Disease; Pharmacokinetics; Cognition; Central Nervous System Diseases
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Mental Disorders; Brain Diseases; Neurocognitive Disorders; Neurodegenerative Diseases; Dementia; Tauopathies; Nervous System Diseases; Alzheimer Disease; Central Nervous System Diseases; Physiological Effects of Drugs; Neurotransmitter Agents; Molecular Mechanisms of Pharmacological Action; Cholinergic Agents; Enzyme Inhibitors; Neuroprotective Agents; Protective Agents; Nootropic Agents; Cholinesterase Inhibitors; Donepezil; Rivastigmine
• Other Study ID Numbers: EVP-6124-007