Dynavax Jumps on Test Data
Dynavax Technologies
(DVAX) - Get Report
shares rose Monday after the biotech company said a phase I trial of its ragweed allergy treatment showed "significant improvement in symptoms."
The drug, AIC, is being tested for the most common cause of allergic rhinitis, the sniffling and sneezing caused by the overreaction of the body's immune system to otherwise harmless substances such as ragweed pollen.
Dynavax said that in 14 trials conducted in the U.S., Canada and Europe patients using AIC experienced significantly reduced allergy symptoms and the use of allergy medications in patients, compared with those receiving a placebo.
The results were presented at the Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology's annual meeting
The company said that pending the outcome of discussions with the Food and Drug Administration, Dynavax anticipates initiating a pivotal phase III clinical program in early 2006.
Dynavax's AIC is a higher-dose and shorter-duration treatment than typical immunotherapies which reduce sensitivity to allergens by direct exposure to them. While typical immunotherapy consists of shots every two to four weeks over three to five years, Dynavax says AIC can work in six weeks.
AIC is one of what Dynavax calls its "next-generation vaccines," using the company's ISS technology in which synthetic DNA molecules stimulate the body's normal immune response while suppressing the immune response that causes the chronic inflammatory allergic reaction.
Recently, shares in the Berkeley, Calif.-based company were up 35 cents, or 7.7%, to $4.89.