Video
A Skeptical Look at Aducanumab
Author(s):
The FDA approval of aducanumab has given hope to millions of patients with Alzheimer disease—but will it live up to the hype?
The big news in Alzheimer disease (AD) is the Federal Drug Administration’s approval of aducanumab. It is the first-ever disease-modifying AD treatment, which works by targeting amyloid beta plaques in the brain.
But its approval has also generated controversy. Three members of the Federal Drug Administration’s advisory committee have resigned, arguing that evidence for the drug’s efficacy was not strong enough to merit approval.
George Perry, PhD, is among the skeptics. In this Mental Health Minute, he raises questions about the drug’s mechanism. He has long been skeptical of what he calls the amyloid hypothesis, and has searched for alternative explanations.
Dr Perry is the Semmes Foundation Distinguished University Chair in Neurobiology at the University of Texas, San Antonio.
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