Opposite molecular sex correlations in tauopathy paralleled by motor and cognitive efficacy of davunetide in women
摘要
Progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) is a fatal tauopathy presenting an unmet medical need. Davunetide, targeting tauopathy, has been previously tested in PSP, which, when separated by sex, implied efficacy in women. Here, efficacy was evaluated using longitudinal data (52 weeks) and applying for the first time, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) -recommended 10-item PSP Rating Scale (PSPRS-10) compared to the 28-item PSPRS (primary endpoint). Time-, sex-, and treatment-related effects were analyzed using linear mixed-effects models including the FDA-recommended Mixed Models for Repeated Measures (MMRM). Cognitive evaluations used the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS). Clinical analyses at the individual level accentuated the impact of the 10 PSPRS chosen items and revealed a significant treatment effect favoring women when accounting for time, sex, and treatment interactions (P = 0.0005). Motor measurements were highlighted. RBANS analyses demonstrated women’s significant improvements in total raw score, letter–number sequencing, and language scores. Correlating cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) phosphorylated Tau/Tau with functional outcomes revealed significance with p-Tau/Tau ratio and grasping/imitative/utilizing behavior (assessing involuntary actions in PSPRS-28). This correlation was opposite in direction between females (r = 0.77; P = 0.006) and males (r = -0.62; P = 0.075), with sex difference showing a P = 0.0002 value. Similar results were obtained for language. Predicting the final PSPRS score (week 52), addressing all clinical measures, a clear woman-treatment-specific pattern in outcome importance was discovered, highlighting significance for the primary endpoint Schwab and England Activity of Daily Living (SEADL) scale, and stressing the necessity for sex-specific medicine with davunetide as a lead compound.