Anadys Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ANDS) Reports Phase II Data; Q2 2010 Financials
July 29th, 2010 at 10:39 am Posted by Eric Adams
Formerly known as Sriptgen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., San Diego-based Anadys Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ANDS) is a biopharmaceutical company developing novel medicines for the treatment of Hepatitis C (HCV), a liver disease affecting more than 4 million Americans.
ANDS seeks to address HCV, as the Company believes its a large unmet medical need “in which medical improvements in treatment outcomes may be attainable with the introduction of new medicines.” As a result, ANDS is developing two treatments: ANA598, a non-nucleoside polymerase inhibitor; and ANA773, an oral, small molecule inducer of endogenous infecterons that acts via the Toll-like receptor 7, or TLR7, pathway in HCV.
The Company believes ANA773 could also be effective as an immunotherapeutic agent in the treatment of cancer because the developmental drug works to trigger the innate system, which is typically the first line of defense against bacterial and viral infections.
Today, ANDS announced that 100% of HCV patients, who were randomized to stop all treatment at Week 24 in an ongoing Phase II trial, taking 200 mg ANA598 twice daily maintained undetectable levels of virus 12 weeks after stopping treatment, which is referred to as Sustainable Virological Response 12, or SVR12. The initial post-treatment results from patients who stopped therapy at Week 24 are expected later this year.
This development coincided with ANDS reporting its Q2 2010 financial results and highlights, which revealed $22.1 million in cash, cash equivalents and securities available for sale; a 34.7% decrease in operating expenses compared to Q2 2009; and a net loss of $3 million, compared to a net loss of $6.5 million for Q2 2009.
In the first hour of trading, ANDS gained nearly 7% over Wednesday’s close of $2.01, hitting a high of $2.15 so far today. Currently, ANDS is trading at $2.12, up 5.47% on the day.
