ViroPharma Up On Data For Hepatitis C Drug

ViroPharma Inc. (VPHM) shares jumped 13% Tuesday after the drug company reported what it called positive data from small, early-stage studies of an experimental treatment for hepatitis C.

The Exton, Pa., company is developing HCV-796 with pharmaceutical giant Wyeth (WYE) of Madison, N.J. HCV-796 is a potential treatment for hepatitis C, a liver disease caused by a virus. Drug Pipeline

ViroPharma late Monday reported preliminary data from a Phase 1b study of HCV-796 in combination with a medication called pegylated interferon in people with hepatitis C infection who hadn't been previously treated. Pegylated interferon is a standard treatment for hepatitis C and is sold under the brands Pegasys by Roche Holding AG (RHHBY) and Peg-Intron by Schering-Plough Corp. (SGP).

ViroPharma said the combination therapy was superior to pegylated interferon alone in reducing the virus. After 14 days of treatment, the combination therapy had a mean viral reduction of between 3.3 and 3.5 log10, equivalent to a reduction of 99.95% to 99.97%. In comparison, pegylated interferon alone had a viral reduction of 1.7 log10, ViroPharma said.

There was no evidence during the treatment period of "viral rebound" with the combination therapy, compared with pegylated interferon alone, ViroPharma said. No dose-limiting toxicities were seen and tolerability was consistent with that expected from pegylated interferon. ViroPharma remains blinded to the safety data pending completion of the trial.

"These data are clearly very promising as HCV-796 in combination with pegylated interferon appears highly potent with substantial antiviral activity across all doses tested," Colin Broom, ViroPharma's chief scientific officer, said in a press release.

ViroPharma will release complete data on the Phase 1b study at an upcoming medical meeting, Chief Executive Michel de Rosen said on a conference call with analysts Tuesday.

The company plans to begin dosing in Phase 2 clinical trials of HCV-796 in the fourth quarter.

ViroPharma said separately Tuesday that it was presenting new data on HCV-796 at a hepatitis C conference in Australia.

ViroPharma shares rose $1.44 to $12.61 on Tuesday, on volume of 14.2 million, well above the daily average of 1.8 million. Wyeth shares rose 40 cents, or 0.8%, to $48.70.

It was the second big boost for ViroPharma shares in less than a week. The stock rose 8% Thursday after a Cowen analyst upgraded his rating, saying sales of the company's only current product, the Vancocin antibiotic, may not be hurt by generic competition as early as investors previously feared. Still, the stock is down about 33% year-to-date largely on the generic threat for Vancocin.

If ViroPharma and Wyeth can successfully bring HCV-796 to market, it would reduce ViroPharma's dependence on Vancocin. ViroPharma also is developing an antiviral compound called Maribavir.