The University of Rhode Island will launch the BEACON Study to test a new treatment for Alzheimer’s disease–marking the first time the University has ever sponsored a clinical drug trial.
Beginning in April, The Ryan Institute of Neuroscience will begin to test a drug to reduce inflammation in brain blood vessels as a possible treatment for Alzheimer’s.
“We’ve found that injury to brain blood vessels—which can be caused by factors such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, and other conditions—can create a toxic cycle of inflammation in the brain that may contribute to the development and progression of Alzheimer’s disease,” said Paula Grammas, Ryan Institute Executive Director and principal investigator.
During the first phase of the trial, the BEACON Study will enroll between 40 and 60 people who have been diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer’s disease and are between the ages of 50 and 85. Grammas says that because clinical drug trials have multiple phases, the process will occur over many years. “This phase of the study will last three years before we know if there is an observed benefit.”
Grammas’s research is the foundation for the BEACON Study and is something she has been working on for more than 30 years. Grammas is co-leading the study with Dr. John Stoukides, the medical director for the Rhode Island Mood and Memory Research Institute. Stoukides is a URI College of Pharmacy alumni who graduated in 1985.
“I find it very rewarding to see this study come to fruition at URI and a place like Rhode Island,” said Grammas. “It may be a small state, but there is a tremendous network here for neuroscience.”
The BEACON Study will be working with three trial sites in Rhode Island as well as with the URI College of Pharmacy Pharmaceutical Development Institute which will manufacture the placebo for the trial.
The first phase of the study was made possible by a $1.3 million grant from Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation (ADDF). However, the study will require additional support as it moves through subsequent phases.
“Clinical trials are extremely expensive, and much of a scientist’s work goes toward applying for funding to support research,” said Grammas.“Private donations and support from organizations like ADDF has a huge impact on the ability to make gains in treating and curing diseases.”
The Alzheimer’s Association reports that 5.7 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s and by 2050, the number is projected to rise to around 14 million. Alzheimer’s Disease is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States.
According to Alzheimer’s Disease International, someone develops dementia every three seconds and around 50 million people had the disease in 2017. Worldwide, developing countries have the highest incidence of Alzheimer’s, but it is still prevalent in developed nations as well.
Grammas finds the lack of treatment for Alzheimer’s Disease unacceptable and says the field needs needs to be much more aggressive in pursuing new paths to finding something that can stop or slow the disease.
“When I first began my research, very few people were looking at the possible role of brain blood vessels in Alzheimer’s. The blood vessels are what keeps brain nerve cells healthy and alive, so it made sense to me to investigate them further,” said Grammas.
Grammas hopes that people feel the clinical drug trial is an exciting milestone for URI. “It is much more common to see this happen at large research institutions with medical schools, so the study is a testament to URI’s capacity for research.”