Abzena shares plunge as Gilead drops simtuzumab

Life sciences group Abzena noted on Wednesday that during Gilead Sciences’ announcement of third quarter earnings on 1 November, it stated that no further development of simtuzumab will be pursued.

The AIM-traded firm also noted that GS-5745 will not be progressed further by Gilead for Crohn's disease.

“This follows on from the announcement on 20 October of top line Phase II clinical study results of Gilead's product, GS-4997 (selonsertib) in combination with the investigational monoclonal antibody, simtuzumab (SIM) or SIM alone, in patients with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH),” the board said in a statement.

It said simtuzumab and GS-5745 are part of a range of products created using Abzena's proprietary technology that its partners have been progressing in clinical development.

At 1341 GMT, shares in Abzena were down 13.67% at 34.1p.