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°®¶¹´«Ã½. (Headquarters: Tokyo, President & CEO: Haruo Naito, “Eisai”) announced today that first data from clinical studies with E2609, a BACE (beta-site amyloid precursor protein-cleaving enzyme) inhibitor discovered in-house, will be presented during oral sessions at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference (AAIC) 2012, taking place in Vancouver, Canada from July 14 to 19, 2012.

E2609 is a BACE inhibitor currently being developed by Eisai as a next-generation oral Alzheimer’s disease treatment. The drug reduces the overall amount of β-amyloid by inhibiting BACE. β-amyloid deposition in the brain is thought to be one of causes of Alzheimer’s disease, and reducing β-amyloid is expected not only to improve symptoms, but also to have modulatory effects such as slowing down the progression of the disease.

Since launching the Alzheimer’s disease treatment Aricept®, Eisai has been committed to enhancing the value that the drug provides patients through the development of new formulation types and new indications, the carrying out of disease awareness-raising activities aimed at promoting early diagnosis and treatment, and the improvement of diagnostic technologies. However, despite these efforts, Alzheimer’s disease still remains an area with a large number of unmet medical needs. Aiming to develop next-generation Alzheimer’s disease treatments, Eisai is also pursuing the development of the novel monoclonal antibody BAN2401 and other compounds in addition to E2609 as it seeks to make further contributions to address the diversified needs of, and increase the benefits provided to, Alzheimer’s disease patients and their families as well as healthcare providers.