Leading Australian biotech company PharmAust has received recognition for its innovative clinical research, backed by a Research and Development Tax Incentive (RDTI) for the 2022 tax year.

The Australian Taxation Office has approved PharmAust’s (ASX:PAA) application for a RDTI, with $654,109 deemed refundable on research and development undertaken by its wholly owned subsidiaries Epichem Pty Ltd and Pitney Pharmaceuticals Pty Ltd.

It will see PharmAust bank $424,709 after repaying $229,400 of early access funding to Radium Capital.

The RDTI program administered by the ATO and AusIndustry enables innovative companies to receive up to a 43.5% refundable tax offset of eligible expenses on research and development activities.

The receipt of the RDTI will bolster PharmAust’s financial position ahead of trials.

“We appreciate the continued support and acknowledgement by the Australian Government for the critical work undertaken in our R&D programs. The receipt of the R&D refund strengthens PharmAust’s financial position to execute on our upcoming clinical trials,” PharmAust Finance Director Sam Wright said.

PharmAust has a non-dilutive funding agreement with Radium Capital which will provide PharmAust with immediate funds equivalent to 80% of its accrued RDTI rebate for the period July 2022 to December 2022.

The next installment from FightMND of $138,134.80 is due to be received once the final patient in the first cohort has completed day 29.

Epichem, a highly successful medicinal chemistry company, generated $3.4m in sales of goods and services in FY2022, helping support its research efforts to deliver therapeutic drugs for both humans and animals.

Today’s R&D rebate together with the Radium facility, FightMND funding and profitable Epichem subsidiary ensures PharmAust can meet various preclinical and clinical commitments.

Monepantel trials under way

PharmAust’s lead drug candidate is monepantel, or MPL, a novel, potent and safe inhibitor of the mTOR pathway, which has a key influence in cancer growth and neurodegenerative diseases.

The Phase 1/2 clinical trial of MPL in Motor Neurone Disease/Amyotraphic Lateral Sclerosis, sometimes known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease in the United States, has completed the enrolment of its first cohort of six patients.

The final of six patients across sites in Melbourne and Sydney was dosed at the start of the month.

The open label study, comprising an escalating four-week dose of MPL, is aimed at determining the tolerability, safety, pharmacokinetics and preliminary efficacy of MPL in individuals living with MND.

“The MPL tablets have been well tolerated by patients in the first cohort of the trial and the Safety Monitoring Committee will review data from each Dosage Level for continued safety and pharmacokinetic data up to cycle,” the company said on December 2.

The trial has been supported by leading MND research charity FightMND, which made an $881,085 grant commitment.

 

 

 

This article was developed in collaboration with PharmAust, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

 

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.

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