Sage's 'underwhelming' depression drug data a boost for Seelos - B.Riley

Seelos Therapeutics

17/02/2022 13:00

** Brokerage B.Riley Securities believes "underwhelming"
data on Sage Therapeutics  SAGE.O  and partner Biogen's  BIIB.O 
depression treatment is a shot in the arm for drug developer
Seelos Therapeutics  SEEL.O 
    ** On Wednesday, Sage and BIIB said their oral drug,
zuranolone, improved symptoms at day three in patients with
major depressive disorder (MDD), but analysts raised questions
about the drug's efficacy and how long it would last
 urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N2UR2QP
    ** B.Riley says Phase 3 data on zuranolone indicates "an
extremely low bar" on efficacy for SEEL's drug SLS-002, which is
being tested for suicidal ideation and behavior in MDD
     ** Seelos in May reported https://bit.ly/3gSYE89 results
from a mid-stage study showing a nearly 25-point reduction in
scores on a different scale measuring depression symptoms 24
hours after the first dose of SLS-002
     ** B.Riley says while cross-trial comparisons can be
difficult, SLS-002's higher efficacy points to a differentiated
fast-acting profile as well as greater durability vs zuranolone 
     ** Says recent weakness in SEEL shares represents an
attractive buying opportunity
    ** SEEL had fallen 26.4% YTD, up to the last close

 (Reporting by Amruta Khandekar)
 ((Amruta.Khandekar@thomsonreuters.com;))