This category covers biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies developing carbonic anhydrase (CA) modulators for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. Carbonic anhydrases are zinc metalloenzymes that catalyze the reversible hydration of carbon dioxide to bicarbonate, playing crucial roles in:
Recent research has highlighted mitochondrial carbonic anhydrase (particularly CA-VB) as a novel therapeutic target in AD, with CA-VB inhibition showing promise in rescuing brain endothelial stress and restoring memory in preclinical models[1].
Inhibition of abnormal carbonic anhydrase activity to restore normal pH and bicarbonate handling in the brain. Includes both classical CA inhibitors and targeted mitochondrial CA-VB modulators.
Targeting CA-VB in mitochondria to improve endothelial mitochondrial function, reduce oxidative stress, and restore neurovascular coupling.
Restoring brain pH homeostasis, which becomes dysregulated in AD brains due to accumulated amyloid and tau pathology.
Improving oxygen utilization and protecting against hypoxic stress in AD brains through CA modulation.
| Company | Program | CA Target | Development Stage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sanyal Chemicals | sulthiame derivatives | CA-II, CA-IV | Preclinical |
| Roche | RG7201 | CA-VB selective | Discovery |
| Allinky Biopharma | AP-101 | Pan-CA inhibitor | Preclinical |
| Vecoy | VEC-101 | Mitochondrial CA | Discovery |
The carbonic anhydrase modulation field for AD is still emerging, with most activity at preclinical research stage:
Lemon NL, et al. Mitochondrial Carbonic Anhydrase-VB inhibition rescues brain endothelial stress and memory in Alzheimer's disease models. bioRxiv. 2026. ↩︎