Elan Corporation announced on Friday that it has decided not to resume further dosing of AN-1792, an experimental drug under development for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.
Elan had been conducting trials on the drug with Wyeth-Ayerst Laboratories, the pharmaceutical division of American Home Products Corporation.
Last January, Elan and Wyeth suspended the trials with AN-1792 after four patients in France were reported to have experienced brain inflammation. Since this, eleven additional patients were reported with similar symptoms.
'We will continue to monitor all patients who have received drug in these studies,' Dr Ivan Lieberburg, Elan's Chief Scientific and Medical Officer, said.
'The well-being of patients is always our paramount concern. Our decision to first suspend dosing, and now permanently discontinue dosing in this exploratory phase of clinical research with this single compound, in our opinion, remains in the best interest of the health and safety of patients', he said.
'There are additional compounds under preclinical evaluation as part of this collaboration. We believe that these alternative therapeutic candidates may result in a treatment for Alzheimer's disease', he added.
Elan shares were unchanged at €16 at the close in Dublin on Friday evening.
