MUST READS 

An April 8, 2016 The Wall Street Journal article reported that “AstraZeneca PLC and Eli Lilly and Co. said they would progress a clinical trial for an Alzheimer’s drug after initial human testing showed it didn’t have harmful side effects.” According to the article, “AstraZeneca and Lilly said they would progress the drug to a phase three clinical trial. The final stage of testing, in patients with early stage Alzheimer’s. They hope to enroll a total of 2,200 patients across 14 countries in the trial. They said they would also start test the drug in patients with mild Alzheimer’s in a separate trial set to start enrolling participants in the third quarter of 2016.” [behind paywall]

Upcoming Webcast: Drug Trials: Challenges for Alzheimer’s and Other Urgent Needs. This Forum will explore the challenges and complexities of drug trials, and how they impact disease treatment and prevention  — particularly for conditions that currently have little or no therapeutic options. Live webcast, Friday, April 15, 2016, Special Time: Noon-1pm EST

An April 7, 2016 Jewish Journal article highlighted an upcoming NOVA documentary about Alzheimer’s disease. According to the article, “But the war against Alzheimer’s is being waged on many fronts, with drugs in development to treat or prevent what is now the sixth leading cause of death in the U.S. Those efforts are the subject of “Can Alzheimer’s Be Stopped?” a NOVA documentary airing Apr. 13 on PBS. It presents the latest theories and clinical trials that some day may lead to prevention or cure.”

An April 7, 2016 Providence Journal article reported that former Pfizer researchers are teaming up with the University of Rhode Island to launch a neuroscience startup focused on Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. According to the article, “The team, which is calling itself MindImmune, is working to build a company they hope will find treatment for diseases of the brain — Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and other neuro-degenerative disorders, said Richard G. Horan, a managing director of the Slater Technology Fund. The scientists recently approached URI about locating on the Kingston campus, Paula Grammas, director of URI's George & Anne Ryan Institute for Neuroscience, told a group of nearly 300 business people last week at the Santander Bank-Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce economic-outlook breakfast.”

INTERESTING READS FROM AROUND THE WEB

Business Finance News: Pfizer Inc and IBM Combine Pharma and Tech For Innovation

STAT: How an obscure medical technology caught the eye of Joe Biden. And John Grisham 

The Atlantic: The Brain That Wasn’t Supposed to Heal