In the race to discover an effective vaccine to win the war against COVID-19 many smaller battles must be fought to stem the tide of infections and lessen the symptoms of infection. And make no mistake – the novel coronavirus is, and will continue to be for the foreseeable future, a potentially killer virus.
Now, biotech companies around the globe are rushing to find not just a cure, but methods of mitigating the debilitating and sometimes deadly effects of COVID-19 on the human body.
One such company is
XORTX Therapeutics Inc. (XRX) (
CSE.XRX,
OTCQB: XRTXF,
Forum) – a leading-edge biopharmaceutical company focused on developing innovative therapies to treat acute kidney disease. Now, the Company is moving toward “
Phase 3 Trials to help with an orphan chronic kidney disease – Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease (ADPKD) and
COVID-19 coronavirus acute kidney injuries.” To date, the clinical stage programs have been designed to treat chronic ADPKD – XRx-008 and acute kidney injury (AKI) associated with COVID-19 infection – XRx-101.
The Calgary AB-based company believes that XRx-101 – a formulation of
Oxypurinol – could be relevant and important for decreasing kidney and lung injury, as well as health consequences associated with coronavirus infection. Xanthine oxidase inhibitors (XOI) have been reported to have a potent antiviral effect against influenza-A virus and herpes infections suggesting a potential therapeutic benefit for suppressing the COVID-19 infection.
In the News
Recently,
the company announced a strategic partnership with the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York to study the incidence of Acute Kidney Injury and Hyperuricemia in patients hospitalized with COVID-19.
This clinical study in nearly 4,000 patients with COVID-19 builds upon unpublished observations from over 1,100 individuals, where greater than 60% of individuals with acute kidney injury had elevated uric acid levels above the normal range. This partnership with Dr. Coca and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York is an investigator-led study focused on evaluation of more than 5,600 individuals with COVID-19 infection.
(Click image to enlarge)
About the Company
XORTX was founded in 2013 with a goal to develop drugs that could treat a number of diseases by reducing serum acid uric which has been linked to cardiovascular and renal diseases. Since its founding, XORTX has remained focused on kidney diseases with the development of new formulation for the orphan disease (polycystic kidney) while maintaining a larger scope to develop a treatment for diabetic patients with Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD).
Currently, XORTX has two programs using pre-existing FDA approved drugs, but enhanced with its proprietary drug delivery technology. The original drug, approved more than 50 years ago for the treatment of gout, has been restricted to other disease because of its toxicity and lack of benefits in approximately 30% of patients.
There are two clinical programs currently ongoing:
- XRx-008 for ADPKD an orphan indication in the U.S., Europe, and Japan. XORTX is currently in discussions with the USFDA to review the critical development pathways for the pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial that is expected to lead to a commercial launch potentially in 2024.
- XRx-101 for the treatment of AKI due to coronavirus COVID-19 infections. According to recent reports between 30 to 60% of hospitalized COVID-19 patients are diagnosed with an elevated uric acid (usually more than 7.0 mg/dL), which is one of several first signs of kidney dysfunction leading to AKI. This concentration of uric acid in the circulation is well characterized as sufficient to induce AKI. XORTX is also in discussions with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the design of a pivotal Phase clinical trial that would lead to a commercial launch potentially in 2023.
Investor Alert
In a recent
eResearch Initiating Report, XORTX was given a favourable “Speculative Buy” rating and one-year price target of $2.30 from the investment analyst firm. The report cited multiple compelling value-creation opportunities in the Company’s pipeline while also stating, “expect this small cap biopharmaceutical company to become an attractive investment for investors and for commercial partners.”
XORTX Therapeutics Inc. is an intriguing and potentially game-changing bio-pharma company whose progress investors should pay close attention to in the coming months.
For more information regarding XORTX Therapeutics Inc., please visit them online at
www.xortx.com.
FULL DISCLOSURE: This is a paid article produced by Stockhouse Publishing.