SAN DIEGO, March 20, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Amydis Diagnostics, Inc., a preclinical stage, privately-held pharmaceutical company developing proprietary chemistry and innovative approaches to detection of amyloid-related neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, announced that they received a Phase 2 SBIR grant award by the National Institute on Aging (NIA) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The grant award for $1.8 million will fund research and development of a novel ophthalmic diagnostic probe for Alzheimer’s Disease. The company previously was awarded a Phase 1 grant from 2015-2016.
Alzheimer’s disease is a significant healthcare burden and unmet medical need. Buildup and deposition of amyloid-beta plaques in the brain is a hallmark of the disease, and this accumulation continues to be the leading biomarker of interest for early detection. Accrual of amyloid-beta is believed to typically occur well before the appearance of clinical symptoms of cognitive decline.
The ability to identify amyloid-beta deposits helps in identifying patients at risk for Alzheimer’s disease and enables enrollment of patients in clinical trials investigating disease modifying treatments, and may ultimately guide therapeutic intervention at an early stage. Current diagnostic procedures to detect amyloid-beta in the brain are based on brain imaging techniques or biochemical assays following an invasive procedure. Amydis aims at establishing less costly, non-invasive diagnostic procedures based on ophthalmologic procedures.
“Amydis is fortunate to have been selected for this highly competitive grant award. The award reflects NIA's commitment to finding truly novel approaches to detecting and treating Alzheimer's disease,” said Stella Sarraf, Ph.D., Interim Chief Executive Officer and Founder of Amydis Diagnostics, Inc. “This grant provides rigorous peer-reviewed validation of the opportunity approach we've taken to the development of our technology and allows us to further develop and take our promising technology to the marketplace for the detection of amyloid-beta deposits as a diagnostic for Alzheimer’s disease.”
About Amydis Diagnostics, Inc.
Amydis Diagnostics, Inc. was founded in 2013 to address the urgent medical and clinical need for more sensitive and specific diagnostic testing for Alzheimer’s disease. By significantly improving the effectiveness, accessibility, and ease of testing, our unique technology has the potential to help physicians detect Alzheimer’s disease at its earliest stages. The power of knowing will enable patients and physicians to make the right decisions and change the lives of those impacted by the disease. More information on Amydis can be found at www.amydis.com.
Disclosure
Research reported in the grant submission and award was supported by the National Institute on Aging of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number R44AG050454. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
This news release contains "forward-looking statements" concerning the development and commercialization of Amydis’ pipeline products, the potential benefits and attributes of such products, and the Company's expectations regarding its prospects. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks, assumptions and uncertainties that could cause actual future events or results to differ materially from such statements. These statements are made as of the date of this news release. Actual results may vary. Amydis undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements for any reason.