Targacept announced that it was halting the development of a drug that was supposed to treat overactive bladders after it failed to demonstrate significant decrease in incontinence by mid-stage of the study.
The biotech once collaborated with AstraZeneca for the TC-5214 one-time depression medication which saw four late stages of the study. The company chief executive officer and president Dr. Stephen A. Hill said that the results of the study were not compelling enough to justify the continued development of the compound in overactive bladder.
The shares plunged almost 29 percent to $2.80 in after-hours trading. Targacept is currently developing a sophisticated clinical therapy pipelines to treat people with serious genitourinary or gastrointestinal and nervous system disorders and diseases. Its key technology is modulating receptor-based in the central nervous system, transmitting signals from different organ systems and the brain.
Targacept still has another compound in clinical development that will treat patients with diabetic gastroparesis, a disease that causes the stomach's partial paralysis. The company halted its development of a schizophrenia drug in 2013 and an Alzheimer's drug this July. It ended the TC-5619 for these diseases after it did not show major improvement in cognitive function or negative symptoms after 24 weeks in its Phase 2b trial.
"The high dose of TC-5214 demonstrated mixed results on the co-primary endpoints by providing a statistically significant reduction in micturition frequency and an improvement that did not reach statistical significance on episodes of urinary incontinence per 24 hours, after 12 weeks of treatment," Targacept said. The company may focus on nicotine receptors in the future.
According to Hill, the company's plans in the past year include a wide range of options for optimal use of resources. It will continue to evaluate portfolio options which the company believes have the potential to make a major difference in the patients' lives and offer meaningful advantage for its stakeholders. Hill got his job cut out to recover Targacept. In mid-2012, the company's chief executive officer J. Donald deBethizy resigned after four trial obstacles for TC-5214 that forced the company to dismiss 50 percent of its employees.
