Antisense cheered by Biogen Idec MS drug news

Melbourne company Antisense Therapeutics (ASX:ANP) has been cheered by news this week that Biogen Idec will file early for approval of its monoclonal antibody-based drug for multiple sclerosis (MS).

Antisense CEO Mark Diamond said the news providing crucial validation of the Melbourne firm's VLA-4 target.

"We're very excited by the news," Diamond said. "It gives us greater confidence in the likelihood that our antisense MS drug succeeds in development... and it provides a clear path to regulatory approval for our drug, significantly reducing the risk associated with taking it to the market."

Essentially, he said, Biogen Idec and Elan had spent hundreds of millions of dollars validating VLA-4 as a target for the treatment of MS -- information that was to the advantage of companies like Antisense who were also working on therapeutics that targeted the same molecule.

Biogen Idec's share price has risen more than 30 per cent in the two days since the announcement was made that the two companies would file for regulatory approval mid-year after discussing the data from the first year of two Phase III trials with the FDA.

Biogen Idec's drug Antegren (natalizumab) is a monoclonal antibody-based inhibitor that targets VLA-4, selectively preventing the movement of immune cells from the bloodstream into chronically inflamed tissues, which occurs in a variety of inflammatory diseases such as MS. It is the first drug to specifically target the mechanisms of MS progression -- currently the standard therapy for the disease is based on interferon.

Antisense's drug ATL1102, which is currently undergoing Phase I clinical trials, also targets VLA-4 but at an earlier stage, inhibiting the expression of the VLA-4 protein.

"With its highly specific mechanism of action and well tolerated drug chemistry, ATL1102 may potentially provide important advantages over Antegren in the cost of therapy and method of delivery as well as improved effectiveness," Diamond said. "Submission of the Antegren application to the FDA establishes a path to regulatory approval for our VLA-4 MS antisense drug and further validates our development plans for ATL1102."