The MGC Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX: MXC) share price is shooting higher and is currently up around 2% at 4.9 cents. Earlier in the day it was up to 5.1 cents, a gain of around 6% on the previous closing price.
MGC shares have been in the green all day after the biopharmaceuticals and phytomedicine company announced a key update regarding its drug candidate CimetrA.
Here are the details.
What did MGC Pharmaceuticals announce?
MGC said the Israeli Ministry of Health had approved a dosing study of CimetrA, indicated in the potential treatment of Covid-19. Today's announcement appears to have impressed investors, pushing the MGC Pharmaceuticals share price higher.
For reference, CimetrA is formulated from naturally derived anti-inflammatories found in the plants Curcumin and Boswellia (also known as Indian frankincense).
A dosing study is a necessary step in a drug's approval process. It is used to determine the most effective amount of active ingredient required to achieve a desired response, without causing any adverse side effects.
The aim is to identify a label's "therapeutic dose" alongside a wider safety profile, in preparation for registration and sale to the public.
As such, MGC's latest study will "further examine the anti-inflammatory and immune-modulatory effects of CimetrA".
It will recruit 240 patients across a number of jurisdictions, including Israel, South Africa, the US, and Russia. After which, results will be submitted to the health authorities of each country.
Interpretation of the results will then be used to determine the "most effective dosage of CimetrA for treating symptoms of Covid-19". This includes a rare but serious complication known as a 'cytokine storm'.
Cytokines are markers in the body that are critical in regulating the immune system. Covid-19 can cause them to be released in overwhelming abundance — a cytokine storm — which is detrimental to the body's tissues.
Previous studies MGC has undertaken support CimetrA's use as an immune system modulator that is effective in preventing and treating cytokine storms.
This appears significant, as cytokine storms are believed to be the main cause of death in Covid-19 patients.
What is management saying?
Speaking on the announcement possibly driving the MGC Pharmaceuticals share price, co-founder and managing director Roby Zomer said:
This latest dosage study is the latest step as we move closer to being in a position to apply for marketing authorisation for CimetrA™ in territories across the globe.
We believe that CimetrA will prove to be a vitally important drug in the treatment of COVID-19 going forward, and look forward to sharing the results of the study in due course, along with further steps towards providing COVID-19 patients and governments across the world a cost-effective treatment to fast-track patient recovery and minimise the massive cost burden of long-term hospitalisation.
MGC Pharmaceuticals share price snapshot
The MGC Pharmaceuticals share price has been an outsized winner this year to date, having climbed almost 100%.
It has also gained 122% over the past 12 months. That's well ahead of the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index (ASX: XJO)'s return of around 25% in that time.
