Experimental treatment significantly slows progression of fatal brain disease in women, study finds
Researchers at Tel Aviv University found that the drug Davunetide significantly slowed disease progression in women with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), though it showed no effect in men. The study highlights the importance of sex-specific clinical trials in neurodegenerative disease research.
Why it matters
This discovery offers a potential breakthrough for a fatal disease that currently lacks effective treatment and underscores the necessity of gender-based analysis in medical trials.
The findings indicate that women and men with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) may respond differently to the experimental treatment.
Progressive supranuclear palsy, or PSP, is a rare and fatal neurodegenerative disease.
Researchers at Tel Aviv University led the analysis and said the results reinforce the need for sex-specific approaches to neurodegenerative diseases.
Neurodegenerative diseases are conditions in which nerve cells in the brain or nervous system gradually lose function and die.
The team reanalysed data from a 52-week international clinical trial involving more than 300 people with PSP.
The disease is caused by the abnormal accumulation of tau protein in the brain. Tau is a protein found in nerve cells that builds up abnormally in people with PSP.
There is currently no effective drug treatment for the disease.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in