Avigen, Inc. (AVGN)
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Avigen is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapies to treat neurological disorders, mainly using small molecule class of drugs. [1]
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Company Analysis
Company history
Alameda CA based Avigen was founded in 1992. The company was initially focused on the development of gene therapies, to treat neurological disease like Parkinsons disease and hemophilia.
In December 2005, Avigen decided to shift its Development focus to small molecule therapeutics to treat neurological diseases. The company entered into an agreement with Genzyme (GENZ) Corporation to provide independent funding for the ongoing development of the Company's gene therapy technologies and sold its gene therapy related assets to Genzyme. [2]
Product Pipeline [3]
AV650 is being developed in the North American market for the treatment of disabling neuromuscular spasm and spasticity under a license and supply agreement with Sanochemia Pharmazeutika AG. AV650 is an orally administered centrally-acting small molecule marketed for the treatment of neuromuscular spasm and spasticity in Europe and Asia. Preclinical studies necessary for the filing of a US IND have been completed and an IND filing is being prepared. Avigen's development program will build on the extensive ex-US safety and efficacy experience with this compound. AV650 is an important potential therapy for disabling neuromuscular spasms. AV650’s established record of successful use and safety in many international markets, help support the benefits it can provide as a fast acting muscle relaxant without sedation or alcohol interaction.
AV411 (ibudilast) is an approved drug outside the United States which we have recognized for application in treating neuropathic pain. Avigen is developing the drug, currently in Phase II clinical trial. It is an orally bioavailable small molecule with good pharmacokinetic, pharmacodynamic and safety profiles. AV411 is a unique glial cell regulator which fits within our interest in novel anti-inflammatory approaches for chronic pain. We have demonstrated efficacy in attenuating pain symptoms in three different animal models of neuropathic pain. Twice daily systemic administration results in sustained attenuation of pain. The compound is well tolerated at efficacious dose levels in multiday studies and current activities are focused around formulation development and safety profiling.
- AV 411 Intellectual Property issues
- Ibudilast has been approved in Japan and other parts of Asia for more than 15 years for the treatment of bronchial asthma and was recently approved to treat dizziness secondary to chronic cerebral stroke. The compound is not approved for use in any indication in the U.S. or Europe.
- It was originally developed by Kyorin Pharmaceuticals and approved in 1989 under the trade name Ketas ®. The composition of matter patent for the molecule has expired. However, Avigen believes that it will have a combination of use patents for various indications.
Avigen has also discovered that AV411 may counteract opioid tolerance and withdrawal symptoms by blocking the activation of certain kinds of glial cells in the spinal cord. Together with its collaborators at the University of Colorado, Avigen has initiated preclinical studies to demonstrate this hypothesis. Initial results have been positive. Poster presentation about the drug's preclinical data, Nov 2005
AV333 is an IL-10-based therapeutic approach to neuropathic pain similarly based upon attenuating glial cell activation. Avigen and its collaborators at the University of Colorado at Boulder have focused on the effectiveness of one of the most powerful naturally occurring anti-inflammatory proteins, interleukin-10 (IL-10), to block or reverse glial activation. Studies in IL-10 rats have demonstrated that it prevents or reverses all chronic pain states examined to date.
AV513 is a botanical drug comprising a particular type of sulfated polysaccharide, fucoidan,
which is extracted from sea algae. It is believed that AV513 actually improves the physiological “spark” for normal clot initiation in part by reducing natural anti-coagulation at local sites of bleeding and thereby allows more normal hemostasis, or clotting.
AV513 is unique as a potential oral therapeutic for multiple bleeding disorders. Concept and preliminary safety validations have been achieved with AV513 in stringent large and small animal models of hemophilia with clinically relevant end points.
Leadership
Management[4]
- Kenneth Chahine, PhD, JD: President
- Andrew A. Sauter: Vice President
- Michael D. Coffee: Chief business officer
- Christina Thomson, JD: Vice President, Corporate Counsel
- Kirk W. Johnson, PhD: Vice president, preclinical development
Board of Directors
- Zola Horovitz, PhD
- Daniel Vapnek, PhD
- John K.A. Prendergast, PhD
- Kenneth Chahine, PhD
- Richard Wallace, BCom
- Yuichi Iwaki, MD, PhD
- Jan K. Öhrström, M.D.
- Stephen G. Dilly, M.B.B.S., Ph.D.
News Feed
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Research Links
- Avigen, Inc. Snapshot
- Profile at Yahoo Finance
- Profile at MoneyCentral.com
- Company Events
- Earnings Estimates
- Competitors at Yahoo Finance
- Avigen, Inc. Leadership
- Officers and Directors at Reuters
- Salaries and Compensation at Reuters
- Insider Trades at Money Central
- Insider Trades at TheStreet.com
- Institutional Ownership at Money Central
- Avigen, Inc. Fundamentals
- Key Statistics Yahoo Finance
- Key Ratios at Reuters
- Dividends and Returns at Morningstar
- SEC Filings at Edgar Online
- Financial Statements Quickview at Morningstar
- Historical Prices at Yahoo Finance
- Analyst Estimates
- All Press Articles
- Avigen, Inc. Technical Analysis
- Avigen, Inc. Message Boards
Notes
- ↑ Corporate Website
- ↑ Genzyme Acquires Avigen’s Gene Therapy Technology, Genzyme press release, December 21, 2005. Accessed on february 27, 2007.
- ↑ Avigen Company Factsheet February 2007
- ↑ Corporate website. Accessed feb. 27, 2007.
