 | |  |
Aspect secures rights to anti-depression technology
By Dyke Hendrickson
Aspect Medical Systems of Newton has secured exclusive rights to commercialize brain-monitoring technology for depression developed at the Neuropsychiatric Institute and David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. The technology is designed to reduce the cost of antidepressant drug and device development, and the time required for patients to obtain effective therapy.
Dr. Andrew Leuchter, professor of psychiatry and senior investigator for the depression research group at UCLA, will serve as chair of Aspect's neuroscience advisory board. He brings to Aspect more than 15 years of clinical and research experience in depression and will lead the development of clinical strategy and application of this technology.
Aspect's BIS technology is being used to measure consciousness of anesthetized and sedated patients in operating rooms, intensive care units and other clinical settings worldwide.
The UCLA technology could aid in the development of new treatments for depression by distinguishing between the brain wave patterns of patients who respond to antidepressant drug or device therapy, and those who respond to a placebo.
By identifying the trial subjects who are responsive to depression treatments, the technology could enable researchers to discover the most promising antidepressant compounds or devices sooner, with significantly fewer experimental subjects, company officials say.
The UCLA technology has also been shown to predict - within days after treatment commences - whether or not patients will eventually experience relief from the particular antidepressant medication they are receiving.
Aspect Medical Systems employs more than 220 people worldwide. The company's Bispectral Index (BIS) technology has been used to assess adequacy of anesthesia and sedation on more than 5 million patients.
Aspect is also investigating how extensions of BIS technology may aid in the diagnosis and management of neurological diseases. Research in Alzheimer's disease and depression has been documented in peer-reviewed publications.
From Mass High Tech, The Journal of New England Technology, July 29, 2002
| | |
