Vaccinex set for record low after Huntington's treatment fails to meet goal

Vaccinex

22/09/2020 13:20

** Biotech co's shares  VCNX.O  fall 63% to $2 premarket;
set to touch their record low and set for worst day ever
    ** Co says its lead clinical candidate, pepinemab, to treat
patients with early signs of Huntington's disease, did not meet
its main goal in a mid-stage trial  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nGNX20YXlz
    ** No statistically significant difference between the
placebo and pepinemab-treated groups, possibly due to small
group size in this phase 2 study - VCNX 
    ** However, co says results from two cognitive assessments
showed beneficial changes in planning ability and memory
associated with disease progression
    ** "We believe the data, therefore, suggest that patients at
a somewhat more advanced stage of Huntington's disease may
derive the greatest benefit from pepinemab" - CEO
    ** Co says it expects to begin enrolling patients this month
in a new Alzheimer's disease study of pepinemab 
    ** Up to Monday's close, stock rose ~13% YTD

 (Reporting by Dania Nadeem in Bengaluru)
 ((Dania.Nadeem@thomsonreuters.com; within U.S. +1 646 223 8780,
outside U.S. +91 80 6182 3463;))