Zoster vaccine live(Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp.)

A major new study has spotlighted three familiar medicines that could take on an unexpected new role in the fight against Alzheimer’s disease — with a shingles vaccine emerging as the front-runner. After reviewing 80 existing drugs, an international panel of experts identified Zostavax, Viagra (sildenafil), and riluzole as the most promising candidates for repurposing.Researchers have pinpointed three already approved medications that may be repurposed to treat or prevent Alzheimer's disease. Instead of starting from scratch, scientists examined medicines that are currently used for other conditions to see whether any could help protect the brain. The study, funded by Alzheimer's Society and led by the University of Exeter, was published in Alzheimer's Research and Therapy. Among the drugs reviewed, a shingles vaccine (Zostavax) emerged as the most promising candidate. Viagra (sildenafil) and a medication used to treat motor neurone disease (riluzole) also showed strong potential. Why Drug Repurposing Matters Dementia is the leading cause of death in the UK, affecting around one million people. One in three people born today will develop dementia in their lifetime -- yet there is still no cure. Creating brand new drugs can take 10 to 15 years and cost billions of pounds -- with no guarantee of success. Repurposing medicines that are already approved and widely used could provide a faster, safer, and more affordable path toward new Alzheimer's treatments. This work was also supported by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), the Exeter Biomedical Research Centre, and the NIHR HealthTech Research Centre in Brain Health. How the Top Alzheimer's Candidates Were Chosen An international group of 21 dementia specialists from universities, hospitals, and the pharmaceutical industry, along with people affected by dementia, evaluated 80 existing medications. Their goal was to identify which ones showed the greatest promise for treating or preventing Alzheimer's disease, which accounts for more than half of all dementia diagnoses. After multiple rounds of review, the panel agreed on three 'priority candidates' for further research. Each drug was selected because it targets biological processes linked to Alzheimer's, has shown encouraging results in cell and animal studies, and is considered safe for use in older adults. The three priority drugs are: Shingles Vaccine Shows Strongest Signal Experts are now calling for clinical trials to determine whether these medications truly benefit people who have Alzheimer's or are at risk of developing it. Among the three, the shingles vaccine stood out. It requires no more than two doses and has a long record of safety. Previous research suggests that people who received the vaccine were about 16% less likely to develop dementia. Researchers hope to launch a large UK clinical trial of the shingles vaccine, using the to track participants. PROTECT is an online registry in which volunteers complete annual questionnaires about their health and lifestyle and take part in brain health research. Other Drugs Considered Five additional medications were shortlisted but did not meet the criteria to be named 'priority candidates.' These included fingolimod (used in MS), vortioxetine (used to treat major depressive disorder), microlithium (used to treat depression), dasitinib (used for leukaemia), and cytisine (used in anesthetics). Experts Urge Caution and Further Trials Dr. Anne Corbett, Professor of Dementia Research at the University of Exeter, said: "Beating dementia will take every avenue of research -- from using what we already know, to discovering new drugs to treat and prevent the condition. "Drug repurposing is a vital part of that mix, helping us turn today's medicine for one condition, into tomorrow's treatment for another. "It's important to stress that these drugs need further investigation before we will know whether they can be used to treat or prevent Alzheimer's. We now need to see robust clinical trials to understand their true value and know for certain if they are effective to treat or prevent Alzheimer's." Prof Fiona Carragher, Chief Policy and Research Officer at Alzheimer's Society, said: "Dementia devastates lives, but we believe research will beat it. "Years ago, we saw aspirin being repurposed from being a painkiller to helping people reduce their risk of heart attack or stroke. This is what we want to see in the field of dementia, and why we believe drug repurposing is one of the most exciting frontiers in dementia research."

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Feb. 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Centivax, Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company engineering vaccines and therapies for durable, universal protection against highly diverse targets, today announced that the first participants have been dosed in the company's Phase 1A clinical trial evaluating Centi-Flu 01, a pan-influenza universal flu vaccine, in healthy volunteers. The study is a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, dose escalation study with an open-label active-controlled phase, to evaluate the safety and immunogenicity of Centi‑Flu 01 in healthy adults 18-64 years of age and those 65 and older. The Phase 1A represents a key milestone toward a new kind of flu vaccine designed to provide broader, more reliable protection than standard seasonal vaccines—protecting against currently circulating strains, future strains and pandemic strains. Unlike conventional seasonal influenza vaccines, which must be reformulated annually to attempt to match predicted circulating strains, Centi-Flu 01 is designed to focus both antibody and cellular immune responses on conserved regions of the influenza virus that cannot mutate and are shared across strains and distance subtypes. This approach aims to generate broad, consistent, and durable immunity against both seasonal and pandemic influenza. "For decades, flu vaccination has been reactive," said Sawsan Youssef, PhD, founder and Chief Science Officer of Centivax. "A universal influenza vaccine allows us to be proactive—moving from annual guesswork to predictable durable response." In addition to safety, the study will evaluate efficacy based on established correlates of protection, using the gold-standard hemagglutination inhibition (HAI) assay against a panel of more than twenty flu strains—including currently circulating strains, historical mismatch strains, seasonal guidance strains, and pandemic strains—in a direct head-to-head comparison with existing standard-of-care flu vaccines. Because the HAI assay is the same correlate-of-protection used to license seasonal flu vaccines, positive data will provide a clear benchmark demonstrating the candidate's ability to deliver broad protection with a single vaccine. The first data, in 180 subjects, is expected within the year. "We are aiming to correct the problem so many of us experience: where, despite taking a flu shot, you still get sick," said Jacob Glanville, PhD, founder and Chief Executive Officer of Centivax. "The Phase 1A is a key value-inflection point for the company because we will see very quickly whether the vaccine—and the universal immunity platform—is working and if it outperforms standard of care. This accelerates us towards the very large $7B a year flu market and the unmet medical need of consistent immune protection against flu." Beyond its flagship universal flu program, Centivax's epitope-focusing platform is advancing a growing pipeline spanning a pan-herpes Alzheimer's preventative, a broad oncology treatment, a malaria vaccine, and a universal antivenom recently published in Cell and featured by major media. Collectively, these programs underscore the universal immunity platform's broad potential to tackle diverse medical threats. "Vaccines can deliver benefits well beyond preventing the initial infection, serious disease and symptom reactivation caused by pathogens," said Jerry Sadoff, MD, Chief Medical Officer of Centivax. "From my much earlier work helping lead the development of Zostavax, we're now seeing evidence that shingles vaccination is associated with lower risks of Alzheimer's disease and cardiovascular events. That's a glimpse of what's possible. We believe universal vaccines can take this further—expanding protection across diverse pathogens as well as protecting against the diverse long-term pathology they contribute to." The Centivax universal immunity mission has been supported by a broad coalition of investors, strategic partners, philanthropic organizations, and U.S. government entities dedicated to advancing next-generation immunology and strengthening global pandemic preparedness. This includes over $26M in non-dilutive financing from groups such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness (CEPI), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Military Infectious Diseases Research Program (MIDRP), the U.S. Naval Medical Research Command (NMRC), the Department of Defense (DOD) and others. Centivax investors include Future Ventures, NFX, Global Health Investment Corporation (GHIC), BOLD Capital Partners, Base4 Capital, Kendall Capital Partners, Amplify Partners, and others. About Centivax Centivax is a universal immunity company, deploying a proprietary computational immune-engineering platform to create vaccines and therapies that deliver universal protection against entire classes of diverse targets. The lead clinical candidate for influenza—featured in The New Yorker , the Netflix docuseries Pandemic: How to Prevent an Outbreak, and other outlets—addresses a greater than $7 billion global flu market, with follow-on programs spanning a growing pipeline for Alzheimer's disease, oncology, malaria and a universal antivenom. This growing portfolio underscores the technology's broad potential not only to protect against a wide array of infectious diseases–including viral, bacterial, protozoan, fungal, parasitic and man-made bioterror threats–but also to improve healthspan by reducing the long-term complications these pathogens can trigger, such as neurodegenerative disease, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and autoimmune conditions. Centivax is headquartered in South San Francisco, California. Visit and follow @Centivax on X. Media Contact Stephanie Wisner, MBA Chief Business Officer [email protected] | +1 415-712-0001 SOURCE Centivax 21% more press release views with Request a Demo