# A novel estrogen modulator for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease

> **NIH VA I01** · PORTLAND VA MEDICAL CENTER · 2020 · —

## Abstract

A number of studies have shown that the sex hormone, estrogen, has favorable or
“neurotrophic” effects on neuronal cells in the brain. Unfortunately, clinical trials using estrogen
revealed unacceptable side effects, including increased risk of blood clots and hormone-
sensitive cancers. Moreover, estrogen is not practical for use in men, because it promotes
unwanted physical changes and feminizing effects; consequently, estrogen has been
abandoned as a treatment for AD.
As an alterative strategy, the current study will test a novel drug called “STX”, which has the
favorable neurotrophic effects of estrogen without its unwanted side effects. Preliminary studies
indicate that STX protects neuronal cells against Alzheimer’s-associated toxic responses and
can be safely given to mice as they age. The overall goal is to determine if STX has potential
for treating Alzheimer’s disease in human patients.
This drug will be tested first on brain neuronal cells grown in a dish under conditions that mimic
specific aspects of Alzheimer’s disease, with the goal of identifying the molecular pathways that
control its protective responses. The drug will then will be tested in normal aging mice (to
confirm its safety), and in mice that have been genetically engineered to develop Alzheimer-type
changes in the brain. Established protocols will be used to carefully assess the effects of STX
on memory function, neuronal damage, and brain lesions associated with Alzheimer’ Disease.
These studies will integrate behavioral tests of spatial memory, immunohistochemical methods
to quantify neuronal damage, and biochemical assays to quantify protein aggregation.
Concurrently, the molecular pathways identified in cultured neuronal cells will be validated in the
brains of treated animals. Successful completion of these experiments will provide the
framework for advancing STX toward clinical trials.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9898288
- **Project number:** 5I01BX003440-03
- **Recipient organization:** PORTLAND VA MEDICAL CENTER
- **Principal Investigator:** JOSEPH F QUINN
- **Activity code:** I01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** VA
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** —
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-04-01 → 2022-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9898288

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9898288, A novel estrogen modulator for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease (5I01BX003440-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9898288. Licensed CC0.

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