AbbVie's recent clinical trial results for emraclidine and tavapadon reflect a mixed outcome in their efforts to advance neurological treatments.
In the EMPOWER-1 and EMPOWER-2 Phase 2 trials, emraclidine, an M4-selective positive allosteric modulator (PAM), did not meet its primary endpoint of improving the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) total score in schizophrenia patients over six weeks. This failure in efficacy occurred despite emraclidine showing a well-tolerated safety profile, consistent with its previous Phase 1b trial.
Common side effects included headache, dry mouth, and dyspepsia, with similar incidence across dosage groups.
As a result of these unmet endpoints, AbbVie’s stock price declined by over 12%. Emraclidine was acquired through AbbVie's $8.7 billion acquisition of Cerevel Therapeutics, a Massachusetts-based biotech company.
Despite this setback with emraclidine, AbbVie experienced success with tavapadon, also from Cerevel, in the TEMPO-1 Phase 3 trial for Parkinson’s disease. Tavapadon demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in motor function, measured by the MDS-UPDRS Parts II and III combined score at week 26, marking a promising advance for AbbVie’s portfolio in neurological treatments.
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