Sage Therapeutics Halts Dalzanemdor After Setbacks, Questions Future Amid Financial Struggles and Pipeline Challenges

Sage Therapeutics has decided to cease the development of dalzanemdor, an NMDA receptor modulator, after repeated failures in clinical trials. The latest disappointing results came from a Phase II study aimed at treating cognitive impairment in Huntington’s disease, where dalzanemdor failed to significantly outperform a placebo[2][3]. This decision follows a history of unsuccessful trials, including those for Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases, heavily impacting Sage's already strained pipeline[1][3]. The series of failures precipitated a 3% drop in Sage's stock and contributed to a broader financial decline, alongside strategic layoffs and focus shifts towards other projects like SAGE-319[1][2].