Korean firms Neurophet & AriBio to develop next-gen platform for Alzheimer's diagnosis

South Korea-based startup Neurophet, an artificial intelligence (AI) solution company for brain disease, has announced its collaboration with AriBio (also based in South Korea), a biopharmaceutical company developing therapies for neurodegenerative diseases, to develop next-generation platform for Alzheimer's diagnosis.

The collaboration aims to develop a new Alzheimer's diagnostic platform by integrating Neurophet's brain image analysis technology using MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) with fluid biomarker data from AriBio's global Phase 3 clinical trial for early Alzheimer's disease. AriBio's platform team with clinical trial data analytics capabilities will collaborate with Neurophet's AI team on developing this advanced diagnostic platform.

The conventional method to diagnosing Alzheimer's disease typically involves amyloid-PET (positron emission tomography) scan or CSF (cerebrospinal fluid) test to detect cortical amyloid beta deposition and confirm the presence of Alzheimer's. However, amyloid-PET scans are relatively expensive, and the CSF test involves a lumbar puncture, where a long needle is inserted between the vertebrae to drain fluid, which causes pain and requires time for recovery. These limitations result in lower medical accessibility for patients.

To address these challenges, Neurophet and AriBio are developing a new diagnostic platform. The plan is to create a platform that can predict the risk of amyloid beta protein positivity early by conducting MRI analysis and blood-based biomarker tests before amyloid-PET scans. This approach aims to reduce unnecessary amyloid-PET scans and actively utilize a more accessible Alzheimer's disease testing method.

Neurophet has entered into an agreement with AriBio to participate in the global phase 3 clinical trial of AR1001, an oral treatment for Alzheimer's disease.