Collaborative Medicinal Development LLC (CMD) is a privately-held biopharmaceutical company developing innovative therapies for neurodegenerative diseases.  CMD has announced that it was awarded a AU$1 million grant from FightMND to support a Phase 2 study of CuATSM for treatment ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), also known as Lou Gehrig'sdisease, or Motor Neuron Disease (MND).

In 2016, FightMND helped to support the phase 1 clinical trial of CuATSM where it was given to MND patients as a therapeutic for the first time. The primary objective, as per any phase 1 trial, was to assess safety and tolerability of the drug and, if possible, identify a dose that could be taken to the next round of testing.  By assessing the drug at a number of different doses the trial successfully identified a recommended dose for phase 2 testing.  Although a Phase 1 study is not designed to prove efficacy, signals of disease modification were demonstrated.  Accrual to the Phase 1 study is now completed.

The Company's lead drug, CuATSM, was licensed from the University of Melbourne and entered clinical trials in ALS and Parkinson's disease in 2017. The CMD team includes Craig Rosenfeld, MD (CEO), Kay Noel, PhD (COO), and Jim Babcock (Chairman, founder of Cthulhu Ventures LLC, CMD's founding investor)

The next step in development is to perform a randomized, double blind, placebo controlled study.  "With FightMND's generous second grant, the Phase 2 study will start later in 2019" said Dr. Craig Rosenfeld, the CEO of CMD. 

CMD's goal is to advance a disease modifying therapy for ALS and to have CuATSM approved by the FDA.