SIGA - NanoViricides stock skyrockets 50% on start of drug development program for monkeypox
- NanoViricides ( NYSE: NNVC ) said it has begun drug development to fight the monkeypox virus.
- The company started a program to screen its library of broad-spectrum antiviral nanoviricides against certain poxviruses to develop broad-spectrum poxvirus therapies that act by mechanisms other than tecovirimat (TPOXX) — SIGA Technologies' ( SIGA ) smallpox/monkeypox therapy — NanoViricides said in a Aug. 4 press release.
- The company added that is about to complete the synthesis of most of the compounds it intends to screen and has developed a cell culture model to test the effectiveness of these compounds against poxviruses similar to monkeypox.
- NanoViricides noted that it intends to use the active component (NV-387) of its COVID drug candidate NV-CoV-2 as a delivery vehicle, to attack monkeypox virus with additional "weapons" encapsulated in NV-387.
- The company expects that it may be possible to encapsulate tecovirimat within NV-387 nanomicelles to improve its safety over the current delivery mode which is known to lead to adverse reactions in patients with kidney damage, NanoViricides added.
- NNVC +49.59% to $3.68 premarket Aug. 4.
- SIGA -3.77% to $17.60
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NanoViricides stock skyrockets 50% on start of drug development program for monkeypox