Shares of Bio-Path Holdings (NASDAQ:BPTH) stock are soaring on Thursday after some major firm news.
The biotechnology company announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued a notice of allowance for a strategic patent for its leading candidate, prexigebersen. This patent covers its use “in combination with either a cytidine analogue, such as decitabine, or the Bcr-Abl tyrosine kinase inhibitors dasatinib and nilotinib.”
According to the release, prexigebersen is a liposomal formulation containing the antisense oligodeoxynucleotide targeting growth factor receptor-bound protein 2 (Grb2). What does this all mean? Well, this patent gives Bio-Path Holdings broad protection to use its prexigebersen drug as a treatment for a variety of cancers. It also gives it protection to use this drug in addition to other front-line treatments. As the market continues to search for new treatments, this should give BPTH stock a leg up.
While the drug gives Bio-Path Holdings protection to use prexigebersen against a variety of cancers, CEO Peter Nielsen had another important update. Investors should note that the drug is part of an ongoing Phase 2 clinical trial against acute myeloid leukemia (AML).
Here is what else Nielsen said about the news:
“This further strengthens our intellectual property portfolio and complements already granted patents. Our growing patent estate continues to be a valuable asset for Bio-Path as it provides protection not only for our core product portfolio and research efforts but now also offers broad protection in combination with established front-line therapies.”
BPTH stock was up 23.4% as of Thursday morning.
On Penny Stocks and Low-Volume Stocks: With only the rarest exceptions, InvestorPlace does not publish commentary about companies that have a market cap of less than $100 million or trade less than 100,000 shares each day. That’s because these “penny stocks” are frequently the playground for scam artists and market manipulators. If we ever do publish commentary on a low-volume stock that may be affected by our commentary, we demand that InvestorPlace.com’s writers disclose this fact and warn readers of the risks.
Read More: Penny Stocks — How to Profit Without Getting Scammed
On the date of publication, Nick Clarkson did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article.
Nick is a web editor at InvestorPlace.