Acorda Therapeutics develops new drug for MS patients

Washington, March 1: People with multiple sclerosis may be able to improve their walking abilities with the help of a new medication named 'fampridine', according to a U.S. research.

Fampridine, developed by Acorda Therapeutics Inc (ACOR.O) may bring a ray of hope towards improving the quality of life to all those living with the condition.

According to study lead Dr. Andrew Goodman, it will be the first drug to reverse a multiple sclerosis symptom after its approval by the U.S health authorities. Goodman is from the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York and has also served as a consultant in Acorda Therapeutics.

Researchers said that when tried on MS patients, fampridine improved the walk and walking speed in about 35 percent patients after a 14 week administration against just 8 percent of placebo patients. The findings of the study, funded by Acorda Therapeutics Inc, appear in 'The Lancet' journal.

MS patients receiving fampridine agreed to have developed stronger legs and could do their daily walking activities in a much smoother way including using the staircase. They were walking 25 percent quicker to cover a distance of 25 feet (8 metres) with the drug.

Goodman commented that while MS has no cure, existing medication slows down its development and may prevent relapse too. "With these pills, the patients know if it's working," he said.

Of the 301 adult MS patients involved in the study from United States and Canada, some took 10 milligrams fampridine twice daily and others took placebo twice daily.

Acorda Therapeutics had submitted a drug application for fampridine on January 30 to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for its further approval.

Dr. Ron Cohen, president and CEO of Acorda Therapeutics, said, "This trial included both physician and patient assessment scales that demonstrated both improvement in walking speed and clinical meaningfulness of that improvement. The results of this study indicate that fampridine-SR could potentially represent an important new treatment option in managing MS."

Acorda declined to comment on media reports that Biogen Idec Inc. (BIIB.O) was in talks to buy the company to get access to fampridine.

The immune systemdefine interferes in the communication between the brain and the body by attacking the function of nerve fibers in the brain and spinal cord in multiple sclerosis. According to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, about 2.5 million people are affected with MS, with 400,000 in the United States alone. The drug aims to improve nerve signals by influencing potassium ion channels, the cellular doorways in the body.