CytRx furthers study on therapeutic drug
CytRx, a biopharmaceutical company with operations in Worcester, announced that it plans to initiate additional animal stroke functional recovery studies using a drug designed to improve the recovery of motor skills in an experimental rat model of stroke.
The drug, called arimoclomol, is currently being evaluated as a therapeutic treatment for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease). The lead oral drug candidate was tested in rats where stroke was induced by blocking blood flow to parts of the brain causing cerebral oxygen deprivation. The rats were then dosed orally with arimoclomol daily for 28 days. While motor skills diminished in all cases, those rats treated with the CytRx drug showed faster recovery than those left untreated.
The next round of animal studies is expected to begin in Q1 of 2007. The results are anticipated to be released in Q2 of next year.
Said CytRx president and CEO Steven A. Kriegsman: "Our decision to further study arimoclomol as a therapeutic for stroke recovery is based on the promising results of this early-stage animal study. In addition, we have already shown in our ALS clinical trial that arimoclomol can cross the human blood: brain barrier, which is an important attribute for any potential stroke recovery therapeutic."
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