- PharmAust (PAA) has been granted $881,085 for a phase one clinical trial of monepantel in patients with Motor Neurone Disease (MND)
- The Australian clinical-stage oncology company specialises in repurposing drugs and its lead candidate monepantel is also being trialled in patients with refractory metastatic cancer and tested against COVID-19
- The grant from Australia’s largest independent funder of MND research, FightMND will be used to manufacture monepantel, to assess and monitor patients and to engage an independent clinical research organisation
- The trial will be conducted at two sites in Melbourne and Sydney and recruitment is expected to begin in 2021, subject to receiving ethics approval
- Shares have been trading four per cent higher at 13 cents
PharmAust (PAA) has been granted $881,085 for a phase one clinical trial of monepantel in patients with Motor Neurone Disease (MND).
The Australian clinical-stage oncology company specialises in repurposing drugs and its lead candidate monepantel, an mTOR inhibitor, is being tested against COVID-19 and has been undergone a phase one clinical trial in patients with refractory metastatic cancer.
PharmAust Chief Scientific Officer Dr Richard Mollard said the company is delighted to receive the grant from Australia’s largest independent funder of MND research, FightMND.
“PharmAust acknowledges FightMND and its donors, in particular the patients, their families and friends and their support network. PharmAust is looking forward to assisting Dr Mathers and Dr Rowe in this trial.”
The grant funds will be used to manufacture monepantel, to assess and monitor patients and to engage an independent clinical research organisation to help manage the trial.
Patients will be enrolled at two sites: the Calvary Health Care Bethlehem in Melbourne under Coordinating Principal Investigator Dr Susan Mathers and Macquarie University in Sydney under Principal Investigator Professor Dominic Rowe.
The trial is subject to Institutional Human Research Ethics Committees approval, but PharmAust expects to be able to begin recruitment in 2021. PharmAust will retain all intellectual property arising from the trial.
Shares have been trading four per cent higher at 13 cents at 12:27 pm AEST.