Biotechs at EASL

Biotechs at EASL

from Jules Levin of NATAP: in addition to the broad HCV drug development programs at the major companies and they all have multi-drug programs, 2 biotechs reported new data in several posters, Anadys and Idenix. Here are links to Idenix & Anadys EASL reports, these companies are still looking for partners. Of interest is that it appears right now tht differnt types of NNRTI polymerase inhibitors can be combined in regimens since they bind at different spots so you could have a regimen conceivably with 2 NNRTIs and a nucleotide. Pharmasset reported in posters on 2 new nucleotides with favorable resistance profiles, so there are various types of combinations that could emerge. In addition there is Bioles who is developing Lecteron a new interferon administered every 2 weeks, at this time in early development it had less flu-like symtpoms and similr antiviral efficacy but it remains to be seen if it will be useful, look what happened to Albuferon.

EASL 45th Annual Meeting
(European Association for the Study of the Liver)
April 14-18, 2010
Vienna, Austria

Anadys Shares Climb on Updated Look at Hepatitis C Drug Trial
Luke Timmerman 4/15/10

Anadys Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ANDS) is on the roller coaster again. The San Diego-based biotech company?s shares are up 17 percent this morning after it reported on another interim analysis of its hepatitis C clinical trial at a medical meeting in Europe.

Researchers found that 72 percent of patients who got Anadys? experimental drug (ANA598) and standard therapies had undetectable amounts of the virus in their bloodstream after eight weeks, compared with 38 percent who did that well on a placebo in addition to the standard treatments. The drug was considered well-tolerated, researchers said. The findings were presented today at the European Association for the Study of the Liver meeting in Vienna, Austria.

Anadys has been rolling out the data from this trial in bits and pieces. Today?s slice of the data represents how patients did on a 400 milligram dose, while an earlier analysis showed how patients did on a 200 milligram dose. Investors balked at the earlier analysis of the 200 milligram dose, after Anadys saw an unusually high early response rate among patients in the placebo group. The whole clinical trial is designed to enroll 90 patients who are randomly assigned to get the low dose of the Anadys drug, a high dose, or a placebo. The main goal of the study is to show the drug is wiping out the virus for 12 weeks, although patients will also be followed longer to see if they have undetectable amounts of virus in the blood a full 24 weeks after they complete therapy, which is known as a “sustained viral response,” or a clinical cure.

Anadys shares climbed 18 percent to $3.08 at 10:46 am Eastern time today on heavy trading volume. The stock fell 12 percent back on February 25, after the company reported an earlier analysis which showed the high response rate among placebo patients.

Luke Timmerman is the National Biotechnology Editor for Xconomy. You can e-mail him at ltimmerman@xconomy.com, call 206-624-2374, or follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.com/ldtimmerman.