Market Recap: Key Stock Movements in Biotechnology Sector – Wed, July 12, 2023

?? Today's key financial highlights from the biotech and pharmaceutical sector are as follows:

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?? Aridis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ARDS) shared positive news as the FDA granted Qualified Infectious Disease Product (QIDP) Designation to AR-301, a Phase 3 clinical development being used as an adjunctive therapy for pneumonia caused by gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus in critically ill patients in hospitals. AR-301 (tosatoxumab) is a fully human monoclonal IgG1 antibody that specifically targets Staphylococcus aureus alpha-toxin, protecting against alpha-toxin mediated destruction of host cells and preserving the human immune cells. Its mode of action is independent of the antibiotic resistance profile of S. aureus, and it is active against infections caused by both MRSA and MSSA. This announcement saw Aridis' shares rise by 26%, closing at $0.34.

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?? AVROBIO, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVRO) recently completed a comprehensive review of its operations, including its programs, resources, and capabilities. Consequently, it has decided to halt further program development, focusing instead on exploring strategic alternatives to maximize shareholder value. This announcement resulted in a 46% increase in AVROBIO's share value, closing at $1.43.

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?? Cadrenal Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: CVKD) reported that it has entered into a securities purchase agreement with some institutional investors, issuing and selling 4,285,715 of its common stock shares at a price of $1.75 per share. The aggregate gross proceeds from the private placement are expected to be about $7.5 million. Cadrenal Therapeutics, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company that is focused on developing tecarfarin, a novel cardiorenal therapy with orphan drug and Fast Track designations for the prevention of systemic thromboembolism (blood clots) of cardiac origin in patients with end-stage renal disease (on dialysis) and atrial fibrillation (irregular heartbeat) or AFib. Tecarfarin (ATI-5923) is a vitamin K epoxide reductase antagonist that has a mechanism of action identical to that of warfarin. The advantage is that it is metabolized by carboxylesterases and not the cytochrome P450 (CYP450) pathway. Cadrenal's shares experienced a 29% increase, closing at $2.25.

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?? Liminal BioSciences Inc.'s (NASDAQ: LMNL) shares rose by 41% closing at $8.33 following an arrangement agreement with Structured Alpha LP (SALP). SALP will acquire all issued and outstanding common shares of Liminal BioSciences that it does not already own for cash payment of $8.50 per share in a "go private" transaction. Liminal BioSciences Inc. is a development-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing distinctive novel small molecule therapeutics for metabolic, fibrotic and inflammatory diseases using their drug discovery platform and data-driven approach. Some of their therapeutic assets include a GPR84 antagonist, which plays a key role in the linkage and regulation of the inflammatory and metabolic response, and promotes fibrosis, and an OXER antagonist, which is highly selective for 5-oxo-ETE, one of the most powerful chemo attractants and activators of eosinophils.

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?? PainReform Ltd.'s (NASDAQ: PRFX) shares dropped by 52%, closing at $7.99 following the announcement of a definitive agreement for the sale of 301,230 ordinary shares at $9.00 per share in a registered direct offering which is expected to generate approximately $2.7 million in gross proceeds. PainReform Ltd. is a clinical-stage specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the reformulation of established therapeutics. Their proprietary extended-release drug-delivery system is designed to provide an extended period of post-surgical pain relief without the need for repeated dose administration while reducing the potential need for the use of opiates very often administered post-surgically1. Their lead product, PRF-110, is based on the local anesthetic ropivacaine, targeting the post-operative pain relief market.

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???? Recursion (NASDAQ: RXRX) shares surged by 78%, closing at $12.08 on news of a $50 million investment from Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA). Alongside this, Recursion announced its intent to accelerate the development of AI foundation models for biology and chemistry. In collaboration with NVIDIA, these models will be refined and made accessible to other biotech firms via NVIDIA's cloud services.

Recursion is a clinical-stage biotechnology company that is industrializing drug discovery by decoding biology. They have four programs in mid-stage development, assessing assets against indications in familial adenomatous polyposis, GM2 gangliosidosis, neurofibromatosis type 2, and cerebral cavernous malformation.

• ?For familial adenomatous polyposis, they are developing REC-4881, an orally bioavailable, non-ATP-competitive allosteric small molecule inhibitor of MEK1 and MEK2 being developed to reduce tumor size in FAP patients.
• For neurofibromatosis type 2, they are developing REC-2282, a potentially first-in-disease, orally bioavailable, central nervous system (CNS) penetrant small molecule histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor for the treatment of NF2-mutated meningiomas.
• For cerebral cavernous malformation, they are developing REC-994, an orally bioavailable small molecule superoxide scavenger being developed for the treatment of CCM.

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?? Silk Road Medical's (NASDAQ: SILK) share price decreased by 29%, ending the day at $23.32 after JP Morgan analyst downgraded the stock from Overweight rating to Neutral and reduced the price target from $50 to $28. Silk Road Medical, Inc. is a medical device company located in Sunnyvale, California, and Plymouth, Minnesota, that is focused on reducing the risk of stroke and its devastating impact. The company has pioneered a new approach for the treatment of carotid artery disease called TransCarotid Artery Revascularization (TCAR), which is a clinically proven procedure combining surgical principles of neuroprotection with minimally invasive endovascular techniques to treat blockages in the carotid artery at risk of causing a stroke. They have also released ENFLATE, a balloon catheter purpose-built for TCAR.

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?? 60 Degrees Pharmaceuticals', Inc., (NASDAQ: SXTP) announced its initial public offering pricing of 1,415,095 units at a price of $5.30 per unit resulting in total gross proceeds of approximately $7.5 million for the company - leading their share price up by 25% closing at $4.68. 60 Degrees Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a specialty pharmaceutical corporation dedicated to leading the way in the development and commercialization of infectious disease medicines for COVID-19, malaria, dengue and other infectious diseases. They have been awarded a U.S. Patent Covering Tafenoquine (an 8-aminoquinoline analogue of primaquine) for Treatment of COVID-19 and Other Lung Infections.

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?? T2 Biosystems' (NASDAQ: TTOO) shares fell by 16%, ending the day at $0.13 after revising down its full-year product revenue guidance. The company now expects total sepsis and related product revenue between $9.5 million and $10.5 million, lower than the previous projection of $11 million to $13 million.

? This update is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as investment advice. It is recommended to seek professional advice before making any investment decisions.

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?? Data courtesy: FinViz