Immune Booster BioCryst Takes on Reigning Flu Champs

• By the Indie Research Staff
• On 9:00 am EDT, Thursday October 15, 2009

When it comes to flu treatment doctors and patients have few options. While historically Tamiflu from Roche (OTC: RHHBY - News) and Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ: GILD - News) and GlaxoSmithKline's (NYSE: GSK - News) Relenza have dominated the market, small Alabama-based pharmaceutical company BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: BCRX - News) is making a big splash with its peramivir drug.

One of the key attributes of peramivir is that it is issued intravenously. While that eliminates the possibility of over-the-counter sales, it could boost the drug's chance of success should a large number of flu-stricken patients rush to hospitals for treatment. Meanwhile, Tamiflu's Achilles heel is that it only comes in pill form. According to coverage by the Associated Press, many sick people can't swallow pills, and illness can impede the body's capacity to absorb oral medications. Relenza is taken with an inhaler, though an IV form has been successfully tested in compassionate use.

The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services committed another $77.2 million to the development of peramivir in September, bringing the current total to just under $180 million over the last five years. While late-stage clinical trials may not be completed for another two flu seasons (one if this season is as heavy as some forecasts), peramivir could be approved for emergency use in response to the H1N1 pandemic.

The FDA also asked BioCryst to provide it with information for a pre-emergency use authorization (EUA) review. Essentially, BioCryst is in ongoing talks with the FDA, CDC, and the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) about the progress of peramivir testing, so if an emergency scenario presents itself, the FDA will have the necessary information to either authorize or neglect to authorize use of the drug on a broader basis.

There are risks for Biocryst investors, however: that swine flu's spread is kept in check by existing vaccines and antivirals and that peramivir doesn't prove to be profitable even if it does see widespread use this year.

BioCryst isn't the only small-cap that has seen a big boost from H1N1 headlines.

In a new 23-page report, Weekly Digest examines both small- and large-cap stocks with exposure to the swine flu pandemic, assesses which stocks will see further gains and which are just riding the hype.

Among the stocks featured in its report are BioCryst, Hemispherx Biopharma (AMEX: HEB - News), Dynavax (NASDAQ: DVAX - News), Inovio Biomedical (AMEX: INO - News), and many others.

For a FREE 23-page report covering 15 H1N1 stocks, please sign up for our free Weekly Digest.

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