Acumen and JCR Partner to Develop Advanced Brain-Targeted Therapy for Alzheimer’s Disease
Wednesday, July 16, 2025
Acumen Pharmaceuticals has announced a strategic collaboration and licence agreement with JCR Pharmaceuticals.
The partnership will support the development of an Enhanced Brain Delivery (EBD™) therapy aimed at improving the treatment of AD.
The collaboration seeks to combine Acumen’s expertise in targeting toxic soluble amyloid beta oligomers (AβOs) with JCR’s proprietary blood-brain barrier (BBB) delivery technology, J-Brain Cargo®. This platform facilitates the transport of therapeutic molecules, including biologics, across the BBB a key challenge in treating neurological conditions such as AD. JCR’s technology, which is already approved in Japan for use in treating lysosomal storage disorders, enables receptor-mediated transcytosis to reach brain tissue efficiently.
This agreement builds on over a year of feasibility research between the two companies. The new partnership will evaluate the potential of combining sabirnetug a humanised monoclonal antibody developed by Acumen with JCR’s transferrin receptor-based delivery system. The goal is to enhance the delivery and therapeutic performance of AβO-targeted antibodies for the treatment of AD. Alongside sabirnetug, the companies will also explore other oligomer-specific antibodies from Acumen’s research pipeline.
Sabirnetug is Acumen’s lead candidate and the first antibody to show selective targeting of soluble AβOs in Alzheimer’s patients. These toxic forms of amyloid beta are considered to play a key role in early synaptic damage and neurodegeneration in AD. In a Phase 1 clinical trial (INTERCEPT-AD), sabirnetug was well tolerated, demonstrating target engagement and reduction of amyloid plaques compared to placebo.
The antibody is now being studied in a Phase 2 trial, ALTITUDE-AD (NCT06335173), which has enrolled 542 participants with early Alzheimer’s disease across the US, Canada, the EU, and the UK. Topline results from this trial, including safety and efficacy data, are expected in late 2026.
Under the terms of the agreement, JCR will receive an upfront payment and could receive an additional option payment if Acumen proceeds with development. JCR is also eligible for further development and commercialisation milestone payments, as well as royalties on any future sales resulting from the collaboration.
As part of the next steps, a preclinical candidate data package, including findings from non-human primate studies, is expected in early 2026. At that stage, Acumen has the exclusive right to progress up to two therapeutic candidates under the agreement.
This collaboration supports the ongoing search for effective, next-generation treatments for Alzheimer’s disease by improving the delivery and action of biologic therapies directly within the brain.
Source: acumenpharm.com
