BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:BCRX) take an experimental drug treating the rare disease hereditary angiodema into phase II clinical trials later this year.
The Durham drug developer, which does not yet have any Food and Administration-approved drugs, gave the update in the announcement of its first quarter financial results. Hereditary angiodema is a rare genetic condition that results in swelling in the face and airways and can lead to suffocation. The company said that the phase I trial on the compound BCX4161 is progressing and should be completed this summer.
For the three months ended March 31, revenue was $3.6 million compared to $12.2 million in the same period in 2012. The decrease was attributed to a one-time revenue recognition of $7.8 million for the drug candidate forodesine, a compound being studied as a treatment for a variety of blood cancers. BioCryst licensed forodesine to British drug company Mundipharma.
BioCryst’s revenue reduction in the quarter was also attributed to reduced spending on its flu treatment peramivir, which had been supported by federal funding. Less peramivir work also resulted in reduced research and development spending. R&D decreased to $7.4 million in the quarter compared to $15.5 million a year ago. BioCryst halted phase III work on the drug late last year but in April, the company said that more recent communication with regulators pointed to a possible path to filing a new drug application, or NDA. BioCryst said that it has scheduled a pre-NDA meeting with the FDA to discuss the NDA filing.
