Chimerix antiviral drug shows potential in late-stage study

Oct 8 (Reuters) - Chimerix Inc said its experimental oral antiviral improved the survival rate of patients with a certain type of respiratory infection, according to preliminary data from a late-stage study.

The news on the drug, used earlier this week to treat the first Ebola patient diagnosed in the United States, sent the company's shares up 6 percent to $35.25 in premarket trading.

Chimerix said the data on the drug, brincidofovir, was based on 48 evaluable patients with adenovirus, a common virus that causes respiratory illnesses.

The company said the 48 patients who took brincidofovir had a mortality rate of 35 percent, compared with historic rates of up to 80 percent in the first month after diagnosis.

A majority of the patients also had suppression or clearance of adenovirus from the blood, Chimerix said.

(Reporting By Rosmi Shaji in Bangalore; Editing by Savio D'Souza)