Experimental Alzheimer's vaccine aims to clear brain plaques
NCT ID NCT05462106
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jul 10, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study tests an experimental vaccine called ACI-24.060 in people with early Alzheimer's and non-demented adults with Down syndrome. The vaccine is designed to help the immune system clear amyloid plaques from the brain, which are linked to Alzheimer's. Researchers will check if it is safe and if it can slow memory loss. The trial involves 304 participants and compares the vaccine to a placebo.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- ACI-24.060 (an experimental vaccine that targets amyloid plaques in the brain)
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this vaccine could slow or stop memory decline in early Alzheimer's and in adults with Down syndrome, offering a new way to control the disease.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early-phase trial (Phase 1/2) with only 304 participants, so it may not prove effective. The vaccine could cause side effects like brain swelling or allergic reactions, and it requires ongoing monitoring.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 1/2
Runs two stages together: safety and dose first, then whether the treatment works.
- Participants
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About 304 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Jun 2022
- Expected to finish
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Apr 2029
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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A company
The lead sponsor is a pharmaceutical, biotech, or medical-device company.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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35 to 85 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: Study Part 1a and Part 1b 1. Age ≥50 and ≤85 years at screening. 2. Diagnosis of prodromal AD: MCI due to AD according to National Institute on Aging Alzheimer's Association (NIA-AA) criteria. 3. PET scan at screening consistent with the presence of amyloid pathology. 4. Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR)-Global Score of 0.5. 5. Subjects either not taking any marketed treatment for AD or receiving a stable dose of an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor (ACHEI) and/or memantine for at least 2 months prior to screening. Study Part 2 1. Age ≥35 and ≤50 years at screening (subjects with DS with age ≥35 and ≤39 years may be considered on the condition that there is prior evidence of amyloid results compatible with AD pathology at PET-scan and/or in biofluids). 2. Male or female subjects with DS with a cytogenetic diagnosis being either trisomy 21 or complete unbalanced translocation of chromosome 21. 3. PET scan at screening consistent with the presence of amyloid pathology. 4. Mild to moderate intellectual disability as per Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) classification. 5. Subjects must have a study partner who has direct and regular contact, at least 10 hours per week, with the subject and who is able to provide reliable answers to questions related to the subject, according to the study investigator. Exclusion Criteria: 1. Any unstable and/or clinically significant medical condition likely to hamper the evaluation of safety and/or efficacy of the study treatment (eg, moderate and/or severe untreated obstructive sleep apnea, clinically significant reduction in serum B12 or folate levels, clinically significant abnormalities of thyroid function, stroke, or other cerebrovascular conditions), as per investigator's judgement. 2. DSM-5 criteria for substance use disorders drug or alcohol abuse or dependence (with the exception of tobacco use disorder) currently met within the past 5 years. 3. History or presence of uncontrolled seizures. If there is a history of seizures, they must be well controlled, with no occurrence of seizures in the 2 years before study screening. The use of antiepileptic medications is permitted. 4. Concomitant or history of clinically significant and/or unstable psychiatric or neurologic disorder other than those considered to be related to AD (eg, head injury with loss of consciousness, symptomatic stroke, Parkinson's disease, severe carotid occlusive disease, transient ischemic attacks, hemorrhagic and/or non-hemorrhagic stroke). Subjects with a history of major depressive disorder may be included if they have been free of major episodes for at least 1 year before screening. 5. History of meningitis or meningoencephalitis. 6. History of moderate or severe traumatic brain injury. 7. History or presence of inflammatory neurological disorders. 8. History or presence of immunological or autoimmune disorders. 9. History of severe allergic reaction (eg, anaphylaxis) including, but not limited to severe allergic reaction to previous vaccines, foods, and/or medications. 10. Significant risk of suicide, defined using the C-SSRS as the subject answering "yes" to suicidal ideation questions 4 or 5 or answering "yes" to suicidal behavior within the past 12 months. 11. MRI scan at screening showing a single area of cerebral vasogenic edema, superficial siderosis, or evidence of a previous macro-hemorrhage or showing more than 4 cerebral microhemorrhages (regardless of their anatomical location or diagnostic characterization as "possible" or "definite"). Evidence of space occupying lesions other than benign meningioma of less than 1 cm diameter, more than 2 lacunar infarcts, or 1 single infarct larger than 1 cm in diameter. Screening MRI scan showing structural evidence of alternative pathology not consistent with AD and is considered to be at the origin of subject's symptoms. 12. Deviations from normal values for hematologic parameters, liver function tests, and other biochemical measures, judged to be clinically significant by the investigator. 13. Subjects with a positive Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV-1 and 2) test at screening. 14. Subjects with clinical or laboratory evidence of active hepatitis B or C at screening (eg, HBV or HCV antigens). 15. Subjects with positive syphilis serology consistent with active syphilis at screening. 16. Subjects with presence of antibody titers related to immunological or autoimmune disorders at screening. 17. MRI examination cannot be done for any reason, including but not limited to metal implants contraindicated for MRI and/or severe claustrophobia. 18. Any contraindication for PET scan imaging. 19. Any contraindication to lumbar puncture in subjects undergoing this procedure (note: lumbar puncture is optional in subjects with DS). 20. Previous treatment with ACI-24 or any other active immunotherapy against AD at any time in the past unless there is firm evidence that the subject received placebo only and the placebo formulation is not expected to induce any specific immune response. 21. Previous treatment with any investigational and/or marketed passive immunotherapy against AD within 6 months before screening or 5 half-lives, whichever is longer, unless there is firm evidence that the subject received placebo only. 22. Ongoing treatment with any approved anti-amyloid passive immunotherapy for Alzheimer's disease. 23. Use of acetylcholinesterase inhibitor or glutamatergic drugs (eg, memantine, topiramate, lamotrigine) if not on stable dose for at least 2 months before screening. 24. Any vaccine, either live or not, including but not limited to influenza or COVID-19 vaccine, received within 4 weeks before randomization. 25. Subjects with treated hypothyroidism not on a stable dose of replacement medication for at least 2 months before screening and having clinically significant abnormal serum T4 and/or thyroid stimulating hormone at screening. 26. Subjects undergoing lumbar puncture and being treated with any anticoagulants or antiplatelet drugs, except aspirin at doses of 100 mg daily or lower. 27. Use of antidepressants (other than selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors/serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors at stable dose); typical antipsychotics; γ-aminobutyric acid agonists (eg, gabapentin); or stimulants (eg, methylphenidate, modafinil). Stable doses of atypical antipsychotics or benzodiazepines are only allowed if this is not considered to influence the safety and the efficacy of the study treatment according to the site investigator and the sponsor medical monitor. 28. Chronic use of opioid analgesics. A limited treatment duration for acute conditions until 24 hours before cognitive assessment is allowed. 29. Current use of immunosuppressant or immunomodulating drugs or their use within the 6 months before study screening. Current use of oral steroids or their use within the 3 months before study screening. Additional Exclusion Criteria in Study Part 2 The following are exclusion criteria at the time of randomization but will not be considered as exclusionary after treatment assignment: 30. Clinical diagnosis of AD dementia in DS as per International Classification of Diseases 10 (ICD-10). 31. DSQIID \>20. 32. Intelligence quotient score \<40 (KBIT-2).
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Genom att skicka in godkänner du våra Användarvillkor
Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The study's own enquiry address
This study publishes an address for enquiries. See it below .
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The places running it
15 sites in 3 countries. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Show contact details
Enter your email to view the contact information for this study.
Genom att skicka in godkänner du våra Användarvillkor
Study contacts
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Contact
Email: •••••@•••••
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Contact
Email: •••••@•••••
Locations
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Barrow Neurological Institute
WITHDRAWNPhoenix, Arizona, 85013, United States
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Cambridge and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust - Windsor Research Units
ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITINGCambridge, United Kingdom
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Charter Research, LLC
RECRUITINGOrlando, Florida, 32803, United States
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Charter Research, LLC
RECRUITINGThe Villages, Florida, 32162, United States
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Flourish Research
NOT_YET_RECRUITINGMatthews, North Carolina, 28105, United States
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Fundació ACE, Institut Català de Neurociències Aplicades
RECRUITINGBarcelona, Spain
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Headlands Horizons LLC
NOT_YET_RECRUITINGOrlando, Florida, 32819, United States
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Hospital Clínico San Carlos
RECRUITINGMadrid, Spain
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Hospital Universitario Marqués de Valdecilla
ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITINGSantander, Spain
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Hospital Universitario Virgen De Las Nieves
WITHDRAWNGranada, Spain
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Hospital Universitario de la Princesa
ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITINGMadrid, Spain
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Hospital Universitario y Politécnico La Fe
RECRUITINGValencia, Spain
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Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau
RECRUITINGBarcelona, Spain
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Indiana University / IU Health
ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITINGIndianapolis, Indiana, 46202, United States
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K2 Medical Research The Villages LLC
RECRUITINGLady Lake, Florida, 32159, United States
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Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
RECRUITINGLiverpool, United Kingdom
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Massachusetts General Hospital
ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITINGBoston, Massachusetts, 02114, United States
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NeuroClin Limited
NOT_YET_RECRUITINGWarrington, WA3 7PB, United Kingdom
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Neurology Clinical, P.C.
RECRUITINGCordova, Tennessee, 38018, United States
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Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust
RECRUITINGOxford, United Kingdom
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Re:Cognition Health Limited
RECRUITINGLondon, United Kingdom
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South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust of The Maudsley Hospital
RECRUITINGLondon, United Kingdom
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The Washington University
ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITINGSt Louis, Missouri, 63130, United States
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UT Health San Antonio
WITHDRAWNSan Antonio, Texas, 78229, United States
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University of Kansas Medical Center Research Institute
ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITINGFairway, Kansas, 66205-2513, United States
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Vanderbilt University Medical Center
ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITINGNashville, Tennessee, 37232-2103, United States
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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