Diabetes drugs that promote weight loss have been gaining popularity among celebrities and investors for their potential to address neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s. Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic, along with other diabetes medications such as insulin and metformin, appears to address several aspects of the metabolic system implicated in Alzheimer’s disease, including inflammation and amyloid protein.
Researchers are hopeful that improving glucose utilization and reducing inflammation in the entire body, including the brain, could slow the progression of debilitating diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. While results are years away, recent positive data on Alzheimer’s drugs developed by Eisai Co Ltd with partner Biogen and Eli Lilly and Co have sparked interest in testing diabetes drugs against neurodegenerative diseases.
Dr. Suzanne Craft, professor of gerontology and geriatric medicine at Wake Forest University School of Medicine, has been approached by pharmaceutical companies interested in testing diabetes treatments in Alzheimer’s patients. Craft believes diabetes treatments may amplify the clinical benefit of anti-amyloid drugs, leading to complete stabilization or even some recovery in Alzheimer’s patients. She is currently running an Alzheimer’s trial evaluating intranasal insulin in combination with another diabetes drug.
Newer treatments such as GLP-1 agonists, a rapidly expanding class of diabetes drugs, have commercial incentives to test for their potential in Alzheimer’s. Ozempic, known chemically as semaglutide, and Lilly’s Mounjaro dominate the market, with other players working on a dozen potential new treatments. Four companies with GLP-1 drugs, including two larger drugmakers, are watching for results of trials testing Novo’s drug in Alzheimer’s.
Ivan Koychev, consultant neuropsychiatrist for Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, is running a trial testing semaglutide with the aim of halting the earliest changes in the brains of people at risk of developing Alzheimer’s. GLP-1s are his primary focus because there is “good epidemiological evidence that they are linked to lower risk for dementia but run much lower risk of serious side-effects relative to the amyloid clearance therapies.”
While there is potential for diabetes drugs to be used in Alzheimer’s, early research has yielded mixed results. Hannah Churchill, research communications manager at the Alzheimer’s Society, cautions that it’s difficult to know whether this is a front-runner at this stage.
Dementia affects over 55 million people globally, and the market for Alzheimer’s drugs is expected to grow to $9.4 billion by 2028, and for Parkinson’s to $6.6 billion, according to pharmaceutical data provider Citeline. With such a significant market, any success in using diabetes drugs to address Alzheimer’s could lead to a big payoff. However, success is uncertain, and further research is needed to determine the effectiveness of using diabetes drugs in neurodegenerative diseases.