Content about Alzheimer's disease

PARSIPPANY, N.J. — Actavis is challenging Novartis' patent on a patch used to treat Alzheimer's disease, Actavis said.

The generic drug maker said it had filed with the Food and Drug Administration an amendment to its regulatory application for rivastigmine transdermal system to include the 13.3 mg-per-24-hours dosage strength, a generic version of Novartis' Exelon. Novartis filed suit against Actavis on Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware seeking to prevent commercialization of the generic version.

NEW YORK — An experimental drug under development by Pfizer and a unit of Johnson & Johnson does not appear effective in Alzheimer's disease patients who carry a certain genotype, according to results of a late-stage clinical trial announced by Pfizer on Tuesday.

NEW YORK — Pfizer is partnering with a division of Johnson & Johnson and a charity organization to launch an initiative to award funding to projects designed to improve the diagnostic identification and tracking of Alzheimer's disease.

SAN FRANCISCO — Drug maker Bristol-Myers Squibb and the Gladstone Institutes will collaborate to find new ways to treat Alzheimer's disease, the two said Thursday.

NEW YORK — Dr. Reddy's Labs has launched a drug for treating Alzheimer's disease, the company said.

Dr. Reddy's announced the launch of rivastigmine tartrate capsules in the 1.5-mg, 3-mg, 4.5-mg and 6-mg strengths.

The drug is a generic version of Novartis' Exelon. Exelon and other generic versions of the drug had sales of about $92.6 million during the 12-month period ended in June, according to IMS Health.

JERUSALEM — The Food and Drug Administration has approved a generic drug for Alzheimer’s disease made by Teva Pharmaceutical Industries.

The FDA approved Teva’s donepezil hydrochloride tablets in the 5-mg and 10-mg strengths.

The drug is a generic version of Aricept, made by Pfizer and Eisai. Branded and generic versions of the drug had sales of about $2.3 billion during the 12-month period ended in March, according to IMS Health.

PRINCETON, N.J. — Sandoz has launched generic versions of treatments for Alzheimer’s disease, the generic pharmaceuticals division of Swiss drug maker Novartis said Wednesday.

Sandoz announced the launch of donepezil hydrochloride film-coated tablets and donepezil hydrochloride orally disintegrating tablets, which are generic versions of Eisai and Pfizer’s Aricept and Aricept ODT, respectively.

Donepezil hydrochloride film-coated and orally disintegrating tablets had sales of $2.3 billion in the 12-month period ended in March, according to IMS Health.

OSAKA, Japan — Japanese drug maker Takeda Pharmaceutical  has signed an agreement with Durham, N.C.-based Zinfandel Pharmaceuticals to develop a test for assessing Alzheimer’s disease risk in adults, the two companies said.

WASHINGTON According to a study published in the November edition of Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association, taking docosahexaenoic acid may improve memory and learning in older adults with mild cognitive impairments. The study found that DHA taken for six months improved memory and learning in healthy, older adults with mild memory complaints.

WASHINGTON Nearly 100 drugs are in development for treating Alzheimer’s disease, according to a new report by the main lobby for the pharmaceutical industry.

The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America said 98 medicines for dementia, mostly Alzheimer’s, were in clinical trials or under review by the Food and Drug Administration.

PARIS Nestle will set up a health-and-wellness division to address such problems as obesity, cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer’s disease and others, according to published reports.

The New York Times reported Monday that the company would create the Nestle Institute of Health Sciences, set to begin operations on Jan. 1.

The division, which will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary, will be based at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in the city of Lausanne, the Times reported. Nestle is based in Vevey, Switzerland.

WASHINGTON A small study conducted by Canadian researchers found factors that may link Type 2 diabetes with such cognitive impairments as dementia.

Older adults with diabetes who also have high blood pressure, walk slowly or lose their balance, or believe they’re in bad health, are more likely to have poorer cognitive functions than those without these problems, according to a new study conducted by researchers at the University of Alberta in Canada and published in the September issue of Neuropsychology