About ICOD

Our Vision

DS subject doing tests

The ICOD project, funded by European Union (EU) aims to develop the first pharmacological therapy for cognitive impairment in Down syndrome (DS) making it accessible to patients worldwide.

We will perform first-in-humans safety and tolerability studies in healthy subjects and an efficacy multicentric clinical trial in subjects with DS with a new molecular entity (AEF0217), which reverses cognitive impairment in mouse models of DS.

AEF0217 is the first pharmacological treatment specifically designed to address the core cognitive impairment of individuals with DS: working memory.

AEF0217 belongs to a new pharmacological class developed by the biotech company Aelis Farma: the Signaling Specific inhibitors of the Cannabinoid (CB1) receptor (CB1-SSi). AEF0217 holds the promise to become a safe and efficacious pharmacological treatment of cognitive deficits in individuals with DS.

AEF0217 is the first pharmacological treatment specifically designed to address the core cognitive impairment of individuals with DS: working memory. Improving working memory in individuals with DS should significantly increase their learning capability and consequently their autonomy and quality of life.