Singapore- Brain health-focused pharmaceutical company Cerecin, announced that it is a sponsor for the Alzheimer’s Disease Therapeutics: Alternatives to Amyloid Symposium to be held in New York, New York, USA. Dr. Samuel Henderson, Cerecin’s Chief Scientific Officer, presented the rationale and evidence for the development of ketogenic therapies in Alzheimer’s disease (AD).

The one-day symposium is organized by The New York Academy of Sciences Brain and Behavior Discussion Group and was held on 11 December 2018. Recognizing that the prevailing focus of Alzheimer’s disease drug development on the amyloid cascade hypothesis has not generated new treatments, the Symposium brought together leaders from academic, research and corporate entities, in an effort to connect ideas and find alternative therapeutic targets.

The Symposium explored new emerging mechanisms that may underly Alzheimer's disease, including mitochondrial dysfunction, vascular disorders, infections, and ketogenic therapies. The induction of ketosis is the foundation of Cerecin’s medical food product Axona and lead investigational drug compound tricaprilin. In his presentation, Dr. Henderson introduced the rationale and evidence for ketogenic therapies in Alzheimer’s disease.

“Given that there is no cure for Alzheimer’s disease and no new therapies have been approved for the past 15 years, it is both necessary and important that we start to look beyond amyloid approaches and spread a wider net to identify new AD drugs. ” said Dr. Henderson,  “It’s encouraging to see that the industry is opening up to non-amyloid approaches. At Cerecin we have been investigating the therapeutic potential of ketosis in Alzheimer’s for more than a decade and we are glad to share findings with others working on non-amyloid therapies.”

Cerecin has recently opened its second headquarters in Singapore due to its unparalleled global infrastructure, world class science and highly skilled work force. “We are delighted to sponsor this important Symposium”, said Dr. Charles Stacey, CEO of Cerecin. “The aging demographic in Asia will dramatically increase the prevalence of Alzheimer’s Disease in the region over the next 20 years and will present a major health care crisis. Raising awareness of our treatment approach and connecting with researchers working on new ideas will together help us move the field forward.”