BioMarin Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ: [[ticker:BMRN]]) said today it has halted development of an experimental drug for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy after an early-stage clinical trial showed it was unlikely to be effective. While the result was discouraging for BMN 195, the company said in a separate statement that another drug, PEG-PAL, is showing “encouraging trends” in a small trial of patients with phenylketonuria (PKU). Full results from that study are expected during the fourth quarter of this year, the company said. BioMarin also lowered its financial forecast for 2010, based on anticipated delays in the U.S. introduction of Firdapse, a drug for a rare autoimmune disease.
Author: Luke Timmerman
Luke is an award-winning journalist specializing in life sciences. He has served as national biotechnology editor for Xconomy and national biotechnology reporter for Bloomberg News. Luke got started covering life sciences at The Seattle Times, where he was the lead reporter on an investigation of doctors who leaked confidential information about clinical trials to investors. The story won the Scripps Howard National Journalism Award and several other national prizes. Luke holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and during the 2005-2006 academic year, he was a Knight Science Journalism Fellow at MIT.
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