POSATIRELIN FOR THE TREATMENT OF LATE-ONSET ALZHEIMERS-DISEASE - A DOUBLE-BLIND MULTICENTER STUDY VS CITICOLINE AND ASCORBIC-ACID

Introduction - Posatirelin (L-pyro-2-amindadipyl-1-leucil-1-prolinamid e) a new synthetic tripeptide with cholinergic, catecholaminergic and neurotrophic properties, was investigated in the treatment of Alzheime r's disease. Material and methods - A multicentre, double-blind study vs citicoline (reference drug) and ascorbic acid (inactive drug) was c arried out in elderly patients suffering from late-onset Alzheimer's d isease. The once daily intramuscular treatment lasted for three months followed by one-month oral treatment with a placebo. Subscales and fa ctors of GBS (Gottfries-Brane-Steen) Rating Scale were identified as p rimary measures for efficacy assessment, Results - At the end of the t reatment, GBS subscale and factor scores assessing intellectual and em otional impairments, orientation and memory, ability to perform activi ties of daily living, depression-anxiety, attention and motivation wer e improved in the posatirelin group, showing significant differences w ith respect to the citicoline and/or ascorbic acid groups, Tolerabilit y was good in all groups. Conclusions - The improvement in the GBS Rat ing Scale scores observed in the posatirelin group is clinically relev ant. It is worth verifying the drug-induced functional improvements, i n further studies with large samples.