Shares of biopharmaceutical company MediciNova (NASDAQ: MNOV) are rallying premarket on Wednesday following the company’s announcement that it has partnered with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA).
The partnership with BARDA, which is part of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, will see them repurpose MN-166 (ibudilast) as a potential medical countermeasure against chlorine gas-induced lung damage such as acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and acute lung injury (ALI).
BARDA will provide funding for proof-of-concept studies of MN-166 in preclinical models of chlorine gas-induced acute lung injury.
“Considering that pulmonary edema is a hallmark feature of exposure to chlorine, MN-166 has the potential to improve health outcomes and save lives,” commented Kazuko Matsuda, Chief Medical Officer of MediciNova.
“To date, more than 800 research participants have been treated with high-dose MN-166 in MediciNova’s clinical trials. MN-166 has shown a benign safety and tolerability profile,” added Matsuda.
Following the Tuesday evening announcement, MediciNova’s share price is trading 86% higher at $10.57 per share.