Shares in ASX biotechs Nyrada and BARD1 both pop on positive news updates

Preclinical stage company, Nyrada (ASX:NYR), announced major progress today in the fight on cholesterols, reporting encouraging efficacy results from the second pre-clinical vivo study of NYX-PCSK9i.

The study shows that when given in combination with the statin Lipitor, Pfizer’s best-selling drug of all time, NYX-PCSK9i reduced total cholesterol by two-thirds (around 65 per cent).

And when being given as a monotherapy, NYX-PCSK9i is shown to reduce total cholesterol by 46 per cent.

With these encouraging results, Nyrada is set to commence the Phase I first-in-human study in mid 2022.

Nyrada – comparison with Liptor

Today’s efficacy results compared very favourably for Nyrada, as Pfizer’s Liptor, when used as a standalone drug, reduces cholesterol by only 27 per cent.

Since it was approved in 1997, Lipitor has been the best-selling drug worldwide, generating lifetime sales of US$164 billion.

It was also the most prescribed drug in Australia in 2020.

In the vivo study, a dose of 50mg/kg was administered and evaluated over 5 weeks with no adverse effects identified.

Pleasingly, NYX-PCSK9i was well-tolerated with no significant changes in food intake, body weight, or liver function of those observed.

The results today support the selection of NYX-PCSK9i as the preferred compound for preclinical studies at an internationally recognised Contract Research Organisation, ahead of a Phase 1 first-in-human study.

The Nyrada share price rose by more than 7 per cent today on the news.

Nyrada share price today:

BARD1 pops 7pc on antibody results

In other biotech news, BARD1 Life Sciences (ASX:BD1) announced that its previously announced results on antibody tests for ovarian cancer has been published in the internationally respected peer-reviewed journal, Genes.

The full-text article in Genes was titled “BARD1 Autoantibody Blood Test for Early Detection of Ovarian Cancer”.

The article discussed studies performed in 2018 by BARD1 at the University of Geneva for its autoantibody (AAb) test to detect ovarian cancer.

That research-stage assay showed a predicted accuracy of 0.96 with 86% sensitivity for detection of ovarian cancer in asymptomatic women compared to healthy controls.

The AAb-based test is one of the approaches that BARD1 is developing for ovarian cancer to enable earlier detection, save women’s lives and avoid unnecessary surgery.

Whilst the study has shown promising data, Nyrada believes it requires considerable further assay development on a commercial assay platform, before advancing towards clinical development of a potential commercial test.