Bristol-Myers to Buy Rights to Hep C Drug

ZymoGenetics is testing a once-weekly and once-every-two week dosing schedule for PEG-Interferon lambda.

Bristol-Myers is not a major player in hepatitis C, but the company is in early-stage testing with a new drug, BMS 790052, that aims to target the virus by working against a protein known as NS5a.

ZymoGenetics' stock price has fallen from $12 to less than $3 over the past year due to disappointing sales of Recothrom, a drug that helps surgeons control bleeding.

ZymoGenetics' shares closed up roughly 8% to $3.12 Monday, and Bristol-Myers shares closed down about 1% to $22.14.