The PYC Therapeutics Ltd (ASX: PYC) share price has risen 170% in a year and 13% this month, following promising results in the development of a new lead drug, and the appointment of U.S. Biopharma Executive Jason Haddock to its board.

PYC announced Haddock will join its board of directors as the company seeks to access the US biopharmaceuticals industry. Haddock currently serves as a Board Director of Codiak BioSciences (NASDAQ: CDAK), a biotech company developing precision exosome therapeutics.

Haddock's appointment at 'critical time' for PYC 

Sahm Nasseri, U.S. Chief Executive Officer of PYC Therapeutics, said that Haddock's appointment would assist PYC in a range of fundamental areas.

As we look to set up PYC to access the important U.S. biotech capital markets, Jason brings a wealth of valuable industry experience, having served as a financial, operations and strategic leader at a range of biotech companies.

We welcome him as our second independent U.S. member of PYC's Board of Directors and part of the growing U.S.-based leadership team as we continue to transform into a clinical stage biotechnology company. Jason's unique expertise will play an important role in shaping our strategic path forward as we continue to enable corporate development in the U.S. and move our pipeline closer to clinical development.

Haddock said he was excited to join PYC at a critical time in the company's expansion into the US market.

It is an honor to join PYC at such a critical time for the company and partner with the growing PYC executive team as it develops and executes on roadmaps that advance its pipeline of multiple candidates towards the clinic and engages key stakeholders in the U.S.

I look forward to contributing my insights gained from a career dedicated to the development of therapies that can change the lives of patients, as PYC works to address unmet needs for ocular and other inherited diseases.

PYC Therapeutics share price rises after drug development

PYC is focused on developing treatments for inherited diseases, most of which are very rare. Its share price has risen 13% this month after it announced its lead investigational drug, VP-001, for the treatment of retinitis pigmentosa, has restored function of the Retinal Pigment Epithelium.

Rp-11, as the disease is referred, kills off healthy cells in the retina in the human eye. VP-001, the drug that PYC manufactures, restores the target cells for the therapy, in patient-derived models of the disease.

The past year has seen a notable growth trajectory for the Australian drug researchers. PYC Therapeutics' share price has risen by more than $1 per share since April 2020.

The post Why is the PYC Therapeutics share price up 170% in a year? appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

Today, the PYC Therapeutics (ASX: PYC) share price is up 11.11% to 20 cents at the time of writing. The surge in the PYC Therapeutics share price came after the company added a new drug to its pipeline.

What was the announcement?

PYC Therapeutics has added a new drug to its pipeline for the treatment of 'Autosomal Dominant Optic Atrophy' (ADOA) caused by mutations in the OPA1 gene. The disease causes blindness and, according to PYC Therapeutics, it affects 1 in every 30,000 people. The company has also advised that no treatment is currently available for this type of ADOA, with those suffering from the disease losing vision rapidly in childhood and early adolescence. 

The new drug, known as VP-002, works by correcting a protein deficiency in cells which are affected by the OPA1 type of ADOA. The company expects the drug to have a rapid path into clinical development due to synergies across its existing drug programs. The drug will utilise the same proprietary delivery method as other drugs in PYC Therapeutics' pipeline. The company has stated that it is in the pre-clinical stages of developing a technology for the delivery of drugs directly into the retina for blinding eye diseases. According to PYC Therapeutics, it will also use its existing 'backbone' chemistry to develop VP-002.

About the PYC Therapeutics share price

PYC Therapeutics is a pharmaceutical company which is developing a range of drugs that can be injected directly into cells. The drug maker has been listed on the ASX since 2005.

On 6 October 2020, PYC Therapeutics made an announcement that it had added another drug to its pipeline. The new drug is intended to treat diabetes-related retinopathy and age-related macular degeneration which, according to the company, are the two leading causes of blindness globally.

In the year to 30 June 2020, PYC Therapeutics posted a loss of 0.26 cents per share. The company had $7.24 million cash on hand at 30 June 2020.

The PYC Therapeutics share price is up 365.12% since its 52-week low of 4.3 cents and is up 233.33% since the beginning of the year. The PYC Therapeutics share price is up 233.33% since this time last year.

The post Why the PYC Therapeutics (ASX:PYC) share price is up 11% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

The PYC Therapeutics Ltd (ASX: PYC) share price leapt 9% higher to 18 cents today before slipping to trade at 17 cents by late afternoon. The share price gains came after the company announced that its lead drug was effective in all patient-derived models tested.

PYC Therapeutics shareholders have had much to celebrate this year, with the share price up 192% in 2020. By comparison the All Ordinaries Index (ASX: XAO) is down 8% since 2 January.

Not that the PYC share price was spared the pain during the wider COVID-19 driven market rout earlier this year. That saw the price tumble 29% from 21 February through to 23 March.

Investors lucky enough to buy at that low will be sitting on gains of 250% today.

What does PYC Therapeutics do?

PYC Therapeutics is a drug development company specialising in delivering large drugs directly into patients' cells. Its cell penetrating peptides (CPPs) are designed to overcome what the company calls 'the delivery challenge'. Its work involves directly targeting cells 'undruggable genomes' for maximum impact. The company uses its CPP platform to develop a range of therapies, with a current focus on inherited retinal diseases.

PYC Therapeutics has a market cap of $504 million.

Why did the PYC share price lift?

It is hoped that PYC's lead drug program, VP-001, becomes the first disease-modifying therapy for patients with Retinitis Pigmentosa type 11 (RP11). On Monday, the company announced that the critical achievement for its lead program lay in showing the positive impact of the drug on models derived from 5 patients suffering from RP11.

This morning, PYC Therapeutics reported that results from all 5 of its patient derived models had shown the desired effect of its drug on the target gene. The company stated that the results offered "the strongest indication to date that the drug will be effective in all patients with RP11 when the program enters clinical development".

PYC CEO Rohan Hockings said:

RP11 is a disease of insufficient PRPF3 protein. This result shows VP-001 increases PRPF31 protein in patient derived models. This is a major milestone for the VP-001 program, and further increases our confidence as we approach the clinic. Only in precision medicine can you see such meaningful readouts at this stage of development.

With the PYC share price already up more than 190% in 2020, I think this is one share to keep a close eye on.

The post Why the PYC Therapeutics (ASX:PYC) share price is up 9% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.

With the All Ordinaries (Index: ^AORD) (ASX: XAO) down more than 1% in late afternoon trading, it may surprise some to know that small biotech stock Phylogica Limited (ASX: PYC) has rocketed up more than 80% to 4.7 cents.

With a price rise like that you'd have to suspect the company had some good news – and you'd be right.

The company reported today that its peptide fusions 'kill aggressive, drug-resistant breast cancer cells' and phylomer peptide fusions 'significantly boost potency of cancer drugs'.

That's good news in anyone's language, and why the shares have soared so much today.

But despite today's rise, the company's shares are still down more than 45% over the past 5 years. That's the way things can go with biotech stocks. In many ways, it's like a lottery ticket. Find one winner and shares can skyrocket, like Sirtex Medical Limited (ASX: SRX), up 243% in the past 5 years (despite a recent 50% fall).

As we wrote back in October last year, adopting a portfolio approach might be one way to invest in the sector – the equivalent of buying multiple lottery tickets – and increasing your odds of picking a winner.

Despite the excellent news today, Phylogica still has a long way to go before it becomes profitable. That could be 5 or even 10 years away – with substantial hurdles in the company's path along the way. We wish the company all the best, but investors may want to watch this from the sidelines for now.

The post Why Phylogica Limited soared 80% today appeared first on The Motley Fool Australia.