Xel Pharmaceuticals' Successful Completion Of Prototype Once-A-Week Huperzine A Transdermal Patch For Alzheimer's Disease

Main Category: Alzheimer's / Dementia
Article Date: 12 Sep 2008 - 4:00 PDT

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Xel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced the completion of the development of its once-a-week Huperzine A transdermal patch for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The prototype transdermal patch can deliver 400-800 mcg of Huperzine A per day for up to seven days. Huperzine A is a naturally occurring alkaloid found from the club moss Huperzia serrata that has been used for decades in China as a prescription medication for the treatment of dementia. Huperzine A is a potent, highly selective and reversible inhibitor of acetyl cholinesterase. Additionally, Huperzine A has anti-oxidative properties and possesses neuro-protective properties against glutamate that induce neuronal toxicity at the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor.

Dr. Danyi Quan, Chief Scientific Officer of Xel, said, "The failure of recent Phase III clinical trials for AD treatment may cast some new doubt on that theory, as well as on other experimental drugs. In addition, some new Alzheimer drugs show potential risks including serious side effects. However, the clinical studies performed in China to date showed Huperzine A to be more effective than other cholinesterase inhibitors currently on the market, and the U.S. clinical Phase II trials with Huperzine A oral tablets conducted by the nation's leader in AD therapy, Dr. Paul Aisen, clearly demonstrated the efficacy and safety of Huperzine A in the treatment of patients with AD."

"In the past 10 years, there have been limits and some real difficulties in finding a good candidate from existing Western medicines to develop transdermal drug delivery systems. However, many drug candidates derived from botanic sources with proven safety and efficacy data are available for further development, which now has become a fast and effective way for us to select candidates for designing our advanced drug delivery systems. Huperzine A is one of our most promising and successful transdermal products. Its low therapeutic dose and molecular weight makes Huperzine A ideal for transdermal drug delivery. Our once-a-week transdermal patch is a clearly preferable treatment method to AD patients and caregivers. The prototype Huperzine A transdermal patch is ready for IND filing and further development," Dr. Quan added.

According to Mr. Wade Xiong, President and CEO of Xel, "We are delighted to announce the completion of the development of our prototype Huperzine A transdermal patch. Xel has two world-renowned scientists, Dr. Dinesh C. Patel and Dr. Danyi Quan, both of whom pioneer in transdermal delivery technology. As our Chairman of the Board, Dr. Patel also was the past founder of transdermal drug delivery pioneer TheraTech, Inc. (now Watson Pharmaceuticals). Xel's business strategy is to identify compounds having proven safety and efficacy, and to further develop advanced drug delivery systems in order to provide better delivery profiles, as well as patent protection. Currently, Xel has several co-development and licensing opportunities available for major pharmaceutical companies."

About Xel Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Xel Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a specialized pharmaceutical company focused on merging advanced drug delivery technologies together with selected compounds having proven safety and efficacy from Chinese herbal medicine. Xel has developed and continues to research unique and patent-protected delivery technologies involving transdermal and controlled release delivery systems. For more information regarding this news release and Xel Pharmaceuticals, Inc., please visit http://www.xelpharmaceuticals.com.

Xel Pharmaceuticals, Inc.