Moleculin Biotech up 48% on potential of candidates against coronavirus

Nano cap Moleculin Biotech (MBRX +47.5%) rallies on a healthy 15x surge in volume in reaction to its agreement with the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston (UTMB) to conduct research on the company’s line-up of molecular inhibitors, including lead candidate WP1122, to assess their antiviral properties against a range of viruses, including coronavirus.

WP1122 is a prodrug of 2-DG (2-deoxy-D-glucose), a dual decoy of simple sugar glucose and mannose (a kind of sugar related to glucose) that may be effective in treating viral infection. Emerging research on the role of glucose and mannose metabolism in viral activity has apparently been encouraging.

Under the terms of the collaboration, Moleculin will supply WP1122, related inhibitors and technical support while UTMB will conduct testing in a range of viral disease models, including COVID-19.

https://seekingalpha.com/news/3552567-moleculin-biotech-up-48-on-potential-of-candidates-against-coronavirus