IRLAB progresses fully funded IRL757 study in Parkinson’s Disease in partnership with MSRD
Gothenburg, Sweden, October 2, 2025 – IRLAB Therapeutics AB (Nasdaq Stockholm: IRLAB A), a company discovering and developing novel treatments for Parkinson’s disease, today announced that its collaborator, – the McQuade Center for Strategic Research and Development, LLC (MSRD) – has issued a payment of USD 4 million to further advance the drug candidate IRL757 into a clinical safety, tolerability and Signal Finding Study in patients with Parkinson’s disease who experience apathy. The first patients are expected to be enrolled before the end of 2025.
ANNOUNCEMENT FOR EUROPEAN MEDICAL & PHARMACEUTICAL TRADE MEDIA AND EUROPEAN FINANCIAL MEDIA ONLY
Gothenburg, Sweden, October 2, 2025 – IRLAB Therapeutics AB (Nasdaq Stockholm: IRLAB A), a company discovering and developing novel treatments for Parkinson’s disease, today announced that its collaborator, – the McQuade Center for Strategic Research and Development, LLC (MSRD) – has issued a payment of USD 4 million to further advance the drug candidate IRL757 into a clinical safety, tolerability and Signal Finding Study in patients with Parkinson’s disease who experience apathy. The first patients are expected to be enrolled before the end of 2025.
“We are excited about the potential of our drug candidate IRL757, now moving rapidly towards a clinical study aiming to detect early signals of efficacy in Parkinson’s patients experiencing apathy. So far, we have completed all necessary preparations, including applying for Clinical Trial Authorization from the regulatory authorities in the EU. The scientific and financial support from our collaborator MSRD allows us to efficiently advance the development of this first-in-class drug candidate,” says Kristina Torfgård, CEO of IRLAB.
The decision to advance the development of IRL757 into a safety, tolerability and signal finding study (Phase Ib) in Parkinson’s disease was based on the results of preclinical pharmacology, toxicology and safety studies and the recent successful completion of Phase I studies in healthy adults and one in healthy adults aged 65 years and older.
Apathy is characterized by indifference, resignation and a lack of response to what is happening in the outside world. The condition often leads to significant disability affecting a substantial proportion of people living with Parkinson's disease, and with other neurodegenerative diseases. Currently, there are no drugs on the market to treat apathy.
IRLAB and MSRD, a member of the global Otsuka family of pharmaceutical companies, formed a collaboration in May 2024 to advance IRL757 through proof-of-concept trials as a potential treatment for apathy.
IRLAB's drug candidate IRL757 has shown positive effects in several preclinical models of cognitive function, including improved motivation. This effect is believed to be associated with the drug candidate's unique ability to counteract disturbances in central nervous system nerve signaling proposed to underly apathy in several neurological conditions.