These names in the biotech sector are seeing a substantial increase in search activity today, as determined by InvestingChannel. They include:

• Gritstone Oncology (GRTS), 2,231% surge in interest
• Magenta Therapeutics (MGTA), 1,609% surge in interest
• Wave Life Sciences (WVE), 1,064% surge in interest
• Vanda Pharmaceuticals (VNDA), 784% surge in interest
• Beyondspring (BYSI), 760% surge in interest

Pipeline and key clinical candidates for these companies:

Gritstone is "working to create the world's most potent vaccines" by leveraging its "innovative vectors and payloads to train multiple arms of the immune system to attack critical disease targets," the company says.  Gritstone has programs in viral diseases and solid tumors. 

Magenta Therapeutics is developing medicines designed to bring the curative power of stem cell transplant to more patients with blood cancers, genetic diseases and autoimmune diseases. Magenta is "combining leadership in stem cell biology and biotherapeutics development with clinical and regulatory expertise to revolutionize blood and immune reset to allow more patients to take advantage of the curative potential of stem cell transplant and potentially improve eligibility for future gene therapies," the company says.

Wave Life Sciences is a clinical-stage genetic medicines company that "aspires to develop best-in-class medicines across multiple therapeutic modalities" using PRISM, the company's proprietary discovery and drug development platform for stereopure oligonucleotides. WVE-006, the most advanced program currently in development, is a PN chemistry-modified GalNAc-conjugated investigational development candidate for the treatment of alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, designed to correct the mutant SERPINA1 Z allele transcript to address both liver and lung manifestations of disease. Wave expects to submit clinical trial applications for WVE-006 in 2023.

Vanda Pharmaceuticals is focused on the development and commercialization of innovative therapies to address high unmet medical needs and improve the lives of patients.

BeyondSpring is focused on developing cancer therapies and lead asset plinabulin is being developed as a potential “pipeline in a drug” in various cancer indications as a direct anti-cancer agent and to prevent chemotherapy-induced neutropenia. BeyondSpring’s pipeline includes three preclinical immuno-oncology assets and a subsidiary, SEED Therapeutics, which is leveraging a proprietary targeted protein degradation drug discovery platform with an initial R&D collaboration with Eli Lilly (LLY).

Recent news on these stocks:

December 13

Gritstone announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office, USPTO, recently issued two new patents related to the company's novel self-amplifying mRNA, samRNA, vaccine platform technology. U.S. Patent No. 11,504,421 includes claims covering Gritstone's individualized cancer vaccine candidates. U.S. Patent No. 11,510,973 includes claims covering antigen-encoding samRNA vectors and has broad applicability across Gritstone's candidates in oncology and infectious disease.

Wave Life Sciences and GSK (GSK) announced a strategic collaboration to advance oligonucleotide therapeutics, including Wave's preclinical RNA editing program targeting alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, WVE-006. The discovery collaboration has an initial four-year research term.

Vanda Pharmaceuticals responded to the ruling in its Hetlioz ANDA litigation with the following statement: "Vanda has brought several Hatch-Waxman lawsuits in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware against Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. and Apotex Inc. asserting infringement of patents covering Hetlioz 20 mg capsules. A trial was held in March 2022. Today the Court ruled that Teva and Apotex did not infringe U.S. Patent No. RE46,604, and that the asserted claims of U.S. Patent Nos. RE46,604; 9,730,910; 10,149,829; and 10,376,487 are invalid. Vanda intends to appeal the decision to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and to request a stay of market entry by Teva and Apotex while the appeal is pending. Hetlioz is also approved in the European Union and is not subject to this litigation, nor is generic litigation pending outside of the United States. The litigation does not relate to the Hetlioz LQ oral suspension formulation."

BeyondSpring announced data from the ESMO Asia Congress 2022 and the American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting about the use of lead asset, plinabulin, for the prevention of docetaxel-induced neutropenia in non-small cell lung cancer patients. In addition, data was presented on plinabulin for the prevention of docetaxel-induced neutropenia in breast cancer at the 2022 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium. The analyses in the NSCLC studies support the efficacy of plinabulin as a monotherapy in reducing the mean duration of severe neutropenia with a greater than 1 day benefit for patients receiving docetaxel and plinabulin in two independent randomized trials.

December 12

Magenta Therapeutics highlighted updated clinical data from the ongoing MGTA-117 Phase 1/2 dose-escalation clinical trial made in an oral presentation at the American Society of Hematology 2022 Annual Meeting in New Orleans and provided program updates across the portfolio. "We have shown that a single dose of MGTA-117 binds target cells, depletes target cells, clears the body quickly as designed, and does so with a favorable tolerability profile in our ongoing Phase 1/2 clinical trial. We believe that these positive clinical data establishes proof-of-mechanism, and that we have reached an active dose. Target cell depletion is a critical measurement of success for MGTA-117, and we are encouraged by the levels of depletion we have observed in both the blood and the bone marrow of relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic syndrome patients."

About “Biotech Alert”

The Fly will report on a selection of biotech stocks seeing a surge in interest from retail and financial professional investors, based on data from InvestingChannel.

This Fly exclusive recap reveals the biotech stocks that are seeing a spike in searches among the 15-plus million retail and financial professional investors through InvestingChannel's online financial news media ecosystem.

This increased attention from the investors may be in response to, or advance of, outsized moves for stocks in the biotech sector, which tend to be volatile and prone to sharp swings in share price around binary events such as clinical study results and FDA approvals.