Hadasit Bio Holdings Ltd. (TASE:HDST) portfolio company Tolarex Ltd. has begun a Phase I/II clinical trial of its autoimmune treatment for Graft versus Host Disease (GvHD), or rejection of transplants.
12 patients will participate in the trial at Hadassah Medical Center Ein Kerem. GvHD is the main obstacle to bone marrow transplants, and kills 30-50% of leukemia patients who get bone marrow transplants, whether from relatives or strangers.
Tolarex said that it has sufficient funding to complete the current trial but that it will need additional funding for further development of its drug. The company is currently seeking $5 million.
Another Hadasit Bio portfolio company, Verto Ltd. recently completed a Phase I/II trial for its autoimmune treatment for Lupus. The company is currently in talks with investors for joint development of the drug.
Hadasit Bio is a subsidiary of Hadasit - the Technology Transfer Company of Hadassah Medical Organization.
Hadasit Bio's share rose 1.3% today to NIS 1.32, after rising 20.4% yesterday. Its current market cap is NIS 53 million.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on October 13, 2009
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