Vaccinex, Inc. (NASDAQ: VCNX) stock has witnessed a notable rise on the US stock charts, continuing its upward momentum from the regular trading session into the extended hours. The stock increased by 7.21% in after-hours trading, reaching $5.50, following a 5.77% rise during the regular session, closing at $5.13.
This surge appears to be an extension of the rally initiated last week, driven by the company’s release of new clinical trial data, which has cumulatively led to a weekly stock price increase exceeding 7%.
Vaccinex Shared Promising Clinical Data
Following the release of encouraging clinical results from its SIGNAL-AD Phase 1b/2 study, Vaccinex’s stock price has recently increased. This experiment assessed the impact of pepinemab, the top antibody therapy offered by the business, on AD patients in the early stages of the illness.
The information made public last week supported pepinemab’s promise as a treatment for AD, but it also highlighted the drug’s wider use in the treatment of neurodegenerative illnesses, such as Huntington’s disease (HD), for which the business has already successfully finished a Phase 2 trial.
Strategic Focus of VCNX
Following the success of its HD trial, Vaccinex strategically pivoted to explore the efficacy of pepinemab in Alzheimer’s disease, recognizing the significant market opportunity and interest among potential pharmaceutical partners. The SIGNAL-AD trial, designed as a smaller, cost-effective study, focused on common features of disease progression in both AD and HD, particularly the decline in brain metabolic activity.
The trial achieved its primary goal, demonstrating a statistically significant difference in FDG-PET signals in the medial temporal cortex after 12 months of treatment with pepinemab, compared to a placebo. Vaccinex’s findings indicate that pepinemab treatment may benefit patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) due to AD, mirroring the earlier success seen in HD patients.
However, the benefit appears to diminish as AD progresses to dementia, emphasizing the need for early intervention. With an estimated 1 million people affected by MCI due to AD in the United States alone, Vaccinex believes it is well-positioned to enter a significant partnership for further development, potentially reducing its operational expenses without the need for additional proof-of-concept studies.
