Biotech Sector Rises on Accelerated Anti-cancer Drug Candidate Developments and Clinical Trial Progress

PALM BEACH, Florida, August 16, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

MarketNewsUpdates.com News Commentary 

This month's latest FDA Approval advancements, anti-cancer drug candidate developments and Clinical studies momentum across the biotech and pharma sector continues to accelerate as headlines surrounding the active biotechnology industry advances forward resulting in new levels in the markets.  The iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index has realized a healthy gain of around 15% so far this year from leaders in the industry including: Moleculin Biotech, Inc. (NASDAQ: MBRX), Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Limited (NYSE: TEVA), Endo International plc (NASDAQ: ENDP), Gilead Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD) and Microbot Medical Inc. (NASDAQ: MBOT)

Moleculin Biotech, Inc. (NASDAQ: MBRX), a preclinical pharmaceutical company focused on the development of anti-cancer drug candidates, some of which are based on license agreements with The University of Texas System on behalf of the MD Anderson Cancer Center, today announced it has acquired WP1122 active drug compound it plans to study for the treatment of brain tumors.  Read this and more news for Moleculin Biotech at http://www.marketnewsupdates.com/news/mbrx.html

Walter Klemp, CEO of Moleculin commented: "There has been a lot of excitement recently surrounding the WP1122 technology and its potential to become a new approach for treating brain tumors.  We are pleased that we have now secured exclusive access to a significant quantity of GMP synthesized WP1122 drug substance from our sublicense partner in Poland."

"Access to this product allows us to accelerate pre-clinical toxicology and analytical testing of WP1122," Mr. Klemp continued, "which enables preparation of an Investigational New Drug application so we can begin proof of concept clinical trials.  Research at MD Anderson using live human brain tumors transplanted into mice has shown that WP1122 has the potential to outperform the current standard of care treatment for glioblastoma, one of the most pervasive forms of brain tumors.  We are eager to get this drug into human testing to determine if we have something that could make a real difference for patients." 

In other biotech developments and market performance of note: 

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Limited (NYSE: TEVA) came to a close up 4.72% on Tuesday at $17.97 trading over 22.6 million shares by the market close and was down very slightly in afterhours trading. The company recently announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved QVAR^® RediHaler™ (beclomethasone dipropionate HFA) inhalation aerosol, a breath-actuated inhaler for the maintenance treatment of asthma as a prophylactic therapy in patients four years of age and older. QVAR^® RediHaler™ is not indicated for the relief of acute bronchospasm. The product is expected to become commercially available in both 40mcg and 80mcg strengths to patients by prescription during the first quarter of 2018.

Endo International plc (NASDAQ: ENDP) closed up over 6% on Tuesday at $8.14 with over 9.9 million shares traded on the day. The company recently announced second-quarter 2017 financial results. Total revenues decreased by 5 percent to $876 million in second-quarter 2017 compared to the same period in 2016 primarily due to generic competition adversely impacting the Branded Established Products portfolio. GAAP net loss from continuing operations in second-quarter 2017 was $696 million compared to GAAP net income from continuing operations of $390 million during the same period in 2016. This decrease was primarily attributable to charges associated with the Company's manufacturing network restructuring; after-tax impairment charges associated with market and competitive factors impacting certain products' revenues, the pending Somar divestiture and the market removal of OPANA^® ER; and second-quarter 2016 recognition of certain net tax benefits. GAAP net loss per share from continuing operations for the second-quarter 2017 was $3.12, compared to diluted GAAP EPS from continuing operations of $1.75 in second-quarter 2016. Read more here: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/endo-reports-second-quarter-2017-103000822.html

Gilead Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD) closed up slightly on Tuesday with over 5.1 million shares traded by the market close. The company recently announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted priority review for the company's New Drug Application (NDA) for an investigational, fixed-dose combination of bictegravir (50mg) (BIC), a novel investigational integrase strand transfer inhibitor (INSTI), and emtricitabine/tenofovir alafenamide (200/25mg) (FTC/TAF), a dual-NRTI backbone, for the treatment of HIV-1 infection. Gilead filed the NDA for BIC/FTC/TAF with a Priority Review voucher on June 12, 2017, and FDA has set a target action date under the Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) of February 12, 2018.

Microbot Medical Inc. (NASDAQ: MBOT) closed up over 12% on Tuesday with over 1.3 million shares traded by the market close. The company recently announced financial and operational results for the quarter and six months ended June 30, 2017, as well as provided an update on progress towards key strategic initiatives. "As major healthcare companies are seeking to establish capabilities in the medical robotic space, our team is leveraging Microbot's already existing and unique core capabilities and is making meaningful progress with our transformational technological robotic platforms," commented Harel Gadot, CEO, President and Chairman. Read more here: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/microbot-medical-inc-reports-second-200100412.html

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