Shares of Catalyst Pharmaceuticals Inc. jumped 22% in premarket trade Wednesday, after the biotech reported positive data from a trial of a treatment for a form of myasthenia gravis, a rare neuromuscular disease, for which there is currently no treatment. The company said the investigator-sponsored trial of Firdapse as a treatment for myasthenia gravis patients with anti-MuSK antibodies met its main goals. The study was conducted in Milan, Italy. “Not only are the results statistically significant, but more importantly, there was a large clinical benefit to the patients,” Dr Renato Mantegassa, director, department of neuroimmunology and neuromuscular diseases, Fondazione Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, said in a statement. Catalyst shares have gained 11% in the year so far, while the S&P 500 has gained 5.7%.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.
From:: Stock Market News