RepliCel Life Sciences Inc (TSXV:RP)
RepliCel is a regenerative medicine company developing autologous cell therapies that address diseases caused by a deficit of healthy cells required for normal healing and function.
Investors are warming to the smaller COVID-19 vaccine developers at the apparent expense of the traditional “big four” of Sanofi (SNY -1.5%), J&J (JNJ -0.3%), GlaxoSmithKline (GSK -0.3%) and Pfizer (PFE -0.6%).
The movement appears connected to the spike in Sorrento Therapeutics, up 195% on whopping turnover of over 300M shares after it announced, what it says, is a cure for the respiratory infection.
Selected tickers: Arcturus Therapeutics (ARCT +6.1%), Novavax (NVAX +11.4%), Dynavax Technologies (DVAX +5.5%), BioNTech (BNTX +1.0%), Moderna (MRNA -0.9%), iBio (IBIO +4.2%), GeoVax Labs (OTCPK:GOVX +14.5%)
In a Rose Garden speech today, Moncef Slaoui, head of the White House’s “Operation Warp Speed” to quicken the development of a coronavirus vaccine, said the early data he has seen gives him confidence that potentially “millions” of doses will be available by year-end.
The program is tasked with settling on as many as four vaccines, testing them, then producing 100M doses by November, 200M by December and 300M by January 2021.
Mr. Slaoui was chief of GlaxoSmithKline’s (GSK -0.3%) vaccine business during the period 2015-2017. Recently he served on the board of vaccine developer Moderna (MRNA +0.5%).
General Gustave Perna will serve as chief operating officer overseeing logistics.
Under Priority Review status, the FDA approves Bristol-Myers Squibb’s (BMY +0.7%) Opdivo (nivolumab) + Yervoy (ipilimumab) for the first-line treatment of metastatic or recurrent non-small cell lung cancer with no EGFR or ALK mutations.
Under accelerated review status, the FDA approves Clovis Oncology’s (CLVS +2.5%) Rubraca (rucaparib) for the treatment of adults with deleterious BRCA mutation (germline and/or somatic)-associated metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) who have been treated with androgen receptor-directed therapy and taxane-based chemo.
The PARP inhibitor was first approved in December 2016 for advanced ovarian cancer.
Based on positive results from a Phase 1b study in ambulatory boys aged 6 – 12 with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) will advance gene therapy candidate PF-06939926 into Phase 3 development “as quickly as possible.”
The primary endpoint of the late-stage study will be the change from baseline in a scale called NSAA at week 52. Dosing should commence in H2.
Shares off a fraction premarket.
