New post-hoc analysis of Ongentys capsules effect on COMT activity at the 2022 MDS International Congress

These data demonstrate that COMT inhibition shown by opicapone leads to more consistent daily levodopa exposure, which continues to be a challenge and goal in treating Parkinson's disease," said Eiry W. Roberts, MD, Chief Medical Officer at Neurocrine Biosciences. "Adding a once-daily dose of opicapone 50 mg to levodopa/carbidopa resulted in inhibition of S-COMT activity and reduced fluctuations in L-dopa concentrations regardless of disease state, age, sex, ethnicity, or BMI."

The post-hoc analyses were conducted using data from 2 previous open-label Phase 1 studies of Ongentys, an approved once-daily adjunctive treatment to levodopa/carbidopa in patients with Parkinson's disease experiencing OFF time. Results of this post-hoc analysis showed that once-daily Ongentys 50 mg, when added to levodopa/carbidopa, decreased mean S-COMT activity by more than 80 percent in both patients with Parkinson's disease and healthy participants. Mean percentage reduction in S-COMT activity was 79–85 percent for all subgroups in both individual and pooled studies, although some subgroups had small participant numbers. Ongentys also reduced inter-patient variability in S-COMT activity by 86 percent from baseline.

Neurocrine Biosciences will also present survey results (abstract #993) on the continuing educational needs of U.S. clinicians managing OFF episodes in Parkinson's disease, demonstrating the variability in approach to managing OFF episodes and need for relevant Continuing Medical Education approaches.

The current gold standard for treatment of motor symptoms is levodopa/carbidopa. While levodopa/carbidopa improves patients' motor symptoms, as the disease progresses, the beneficial effects of levodopa begin to wear off more quickly. Patients then experience motor fluctuations throughout the day between "on" time, periods when the medication is working and Parkinson's disease symptoms are controlled, and "OFF" time, when the medication is not working and motor symptoms return.