What drugs or clinical trials at neurocept has dr paul cox been involved with?
Executive summary
Dr. Paul Alan Cox has led and helped initiate clinical work focused mainly on the dietary amino acid L‑serine as a potential neuroprotective therapy—trials include a Phase I safety study in ALS and later Phase II and larger MCI/Alzheimer’s trials involving Brain Chemistry Labs and academic collaborators; a 125‑patient trial for Mild Cognitive Impairment began in 2022 with Houston Methodist [1] [2]. His nonprofit Brain Chemistry Labs also ran earlier human studies and toxicology work around the cyanobacterial toxin BMAA and development of ALS diagnostics [3] [4] [5].
1. How Cox’s lab moved from ethnobotany to clinical trials
Cox’s ethnobotanical fieldwork — notably diet studies in Ogimi, Okinawa, and disease patterns in Guam — led him to hypothesize that higher dietary L‑serine might be neuroprotective; his Brain Chemistry Labs then pursued preclinical work and translated that work into FDA‑registered human trials of L‑serine for neurodegenerative disease [6] [3].
2. L‑serine: the molecule at the center of the work
Multiple sources say L‑serine is the central compound Cox advanced into human testing: animal and cell studies suggested it slowed tangle and plaque formation, and Cox’s groups moved to FDA‑approved human trials testing L‑serine in ALS, Alzheimer’s disease and Mild Cognitive Impairment [2] [1] [6].
3. Trials already completed or reported: Phase I in ALS and small safety studies
Cox published results of a six‑month clinical trial of L‑serine in ALS patients described as a Phase I safety study; independent labs in San Francisco and Phoenix assessed safety and reported L‑serine as safe in that context [1]. Brain Chemistry Labs also report running human trials and toxicology work around BMAA through their nonprofit [3] [4].
4. Ongoing and later‑stage studies: Phase II and a 125‑patient MCI trial
Reporting from multiple outlets indicates Dartmouth and other academic groups ran Phase II trials of L‑serine in ALS and Alzheimer’s at 30 g/day, and Brain Chemistry Labs launched a 125‑patient trial of L‑serine for Mild Cognitive Impairment in collaboration with Houston Methodist in August 2022 [1] [2].
5. Diagnostics and ancillary clinical work from Cox’s teams
Beyond therapeutics, Cox’s group has worked on diagnostic tools for ALS (a microRNA blood signature and a proposed simple blood test) and environmental toxicology of BMAA; these efforts appear linked to the same research ecosystem around Brain Chemistry Labs and have been publicized by Cox and allied organizations [5] [4] [7].
6. What the sources do and do not claim about Neurocept and other commercial products
Available sources in this dataset do not directly connect Cox to a product called “Neurocept.” A consumer‑oriented review site asserts Neurocept is a scam and that no trials prove it reverses Alzheimer’s, but that page does not link Cox to the product [8]. Available sources do not mention Cox’s involvement with any over‑the‑counter “Neurocept” supplement or a commercial honey recipe tied to his name [8].
7. Evidence strengths, limits and competing perspectives
Reporting highlights safety data and smaller‑scale or Phase II studies of L‑serine, but also reminds readers—the Alzheimer’s field has seen many failed candidates and requires large Phase III trials to prove disease‑modifying benefit; Fortune and associated reporting emphasize the long, expensive path from early promise to approved therapy [1]. Brain Chemistry Labs and allied press pieces present the positive translational arc from field observations to clinical trials [6] [2], while independent consumer pieces caution about unsupported commercial claims [8].
8. What remains unreported in these sources
The sources here do not provide Phase III trial results, regulatory approvals for L‑serine as a therapy, nor do they document Cox’s direct role (if any) as an industry‑sponsored investigator for a company named Neurocept—those items are not found in current reporting (not found in current reporting). They also do not detail final efficacy outcomes from the 125‑patient MCI trial beyond its launch [2].
9. Bottom line for readers seeking specifics
Cox’s publicly documented clinical involvement centers on translational work pushing L‑serine from ethnobotanical and toxicology findings into human trials (Phase I safety in ALS, Phase II ALS/Alzheimer’s trials, and a 125‑patient MCI trial with Houston Methodist) and on ALS diagnostics work; any linkage between Cox and a commercial “Neurocept” product is not supported by the sources provided [1] [2] [3] [5] [8].
Limitations: this summary relies solely on the supplied sources and therefore omits any reporting or records outside that set; if you want, I will search for FDA trial registrations, peer‑reviewed trial reports, or corporate filings to confirm current trial statuses and any commercial affiliations.