Benzinga | Nov 16, 2021 09:22AM EST

Quanterix' Simoa Technology Powers Advances In Alzheimer's Disease Research Presented At 2021 Clinical Trials On Alzheimer's Disease (CTAD) Conference

Quanterix Corporation (NASDAQ:QTRX), a company digitizing biomarker analysis with the goal of advancing the science of precision health, today announced that its ultra-sensitive Simoa(r) technology enabled important advances in ongoing clinical trials for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. The findings were presented at the Clinical Trials on Alzheimer's Disease (CTAD) conference held on November 9-12, 2021.

"Researchers in industry and academia continue to demonstrate the importance of highly sensitive plasma-based biomarker measurements including pTau-181, pTau-217 and pTau-231," said Kevin Hrusovsky, Chairman and CEO of Quanterix and Founder of Powering Precision Health (PPH). "The assays represent a new frontier in Alzheimer's disease clinical research, enabling new trial designs focused on patients at earlier stages of disease, and facilitating accelerated and more efficient trial enrollment. We are excited about the emerging role our innovative tools can play in advancing critically important drugs and their potential for ushering in a new field of "neuro diagnostic therapies" that someday may enable treatment before the onset of devastating symptoms such as dementia."

Biogen Corporation, a global pharmaceutical company, presented data from its Phase 3 EMERGE and ENGAGE studies, which used Quanterix' Simoa HD-X technology and assays to measure plasma pTau-181. Biogen reported a significant reduction in plasma pTau-181 levels following treatment with ADUHELM(tm). Importantly, the reduction correlated with reduction in brain amyloid as measured by PET scan, as well as a reduction in cognitive and functional decline. Quanterix recently announced that its Simoa plasma pTau-181 assay has been granted Breakthrough Device Designation from the FDA for use as an aid in Alzheimer's disease diagnosis.

Eli Lilly and Company presented data from its Phase 2 TRAILBLAZER ALZ study, which employed Quanterix' HD-X technology and assays to measure plasma pTau-217, using antibodies developed by Lilly. The study demonstrated that a reduction in plasma pTau-217 was a statistically significant predictor of slowing of cognitive decline. Lilly also highlighted the utility of Simoa plasma pTau-181 and pTau-217 assays as tools for screening trial participants, with the potential to improve the speed and reduce the cost of pivotal clinical trials.

Additionally, Dr. Nicholas Ashton, assistant professor at the University of Gothenberg, Sweden, presented data from a prototype Simoa plasma pTau-231 assay. These results highlight the potential role for emerging biomarker measurements in the detection of Alzheimer's disease pathology even earlier in the disease continuum, when patients are asymptomatic and not yet exhibiting brain pathology in PET imaging studies.

The mission of the CTAD conference is to disseminate new learnings from clinical trials in Alzheimer's disease and to drive collaborative discussion among the leaders in the field of Alzheimer's detection and treatment. As highlighted in the presentations throughout the week, Quanterix continues to serve as an instrumental partner with academic research and industry partners, helping to fuel critical advances in neurodegenerative research through the close study of plasma and cerebral spinal fluid neurological biomarkers.

To learn more about Quanterix, visit www.quanterix.com/about. For more information about Simoa(r) neurology assays, visit https://www.quanterix.com/therapeutic-areas/neurology/.