Destiny Pharma Shares Rally on US Government Support for Its Open Wound Drug

Shares of Destiny Pharma PLC (LON: DEST) surged 13% after announcing that it was partnering with the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), which will help it develop its XF-73 technology for treating open wound infections.

The clinical-stage biotech company said that the Non-Clinical Evaluation Agreement (NCEA) with the US NIAID would see it supply the dermal formulation of the treatment. At the same time, NIAID contractors will conduct “clinically enabling safety studies”.

XF-73 technology has demonstrated positive results in previous preclinical studies and two Phase 1 dermal irritancy trials. The firm will use NIAID’s preclinical services programme to complete the preclinical safety studies and support the preclinical drug development stage.

The project is scheduled to end in 2022. Investors cheered the partnership, giving Destiny Pharma a massive boost in the race to commercialise the drug, given the enormous resources at NIAID’s disposal, a government agency.

Neil Clark, Destiny Pharma’s CEO, said: “We are very pleased to be working with NIAID again on another XF-73 project to build on the existing data that supports its potential as a novel product to prevent and/or treat serious dermal infections, including those associated with diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) and burn wounds.”

Adding:

“This study will enable us to finalise the selection of our dermal indication. XF-73 is also in clinical development as a nasal gel formulation for the prevention of post-surgical infections and is on plan to report results from a Phase 2b study at the end of this month.”

XF-73 is designed to treat infections related to open wounds and broken skin, as well as surgical scars, and has demonstrated promising results so far.

Destiny Pharma share price.

Destiny Pharma shares rose 13.04% to trade at 130p, rising from Friday’s closing price of 115p.