Destiny Pharma reports positive findings from XF-73 study

Clinical-stage biotechnology company Destiny Pharma announced new data on its lead drug, exeporfinium chloride (XF-73), on Monday.

The AIM-traded firm said the findings, which demonstrated the drug's efficacy in preventing methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) from entering the bloodstream in burn wound infections, would be presented at the Infection Prevention Society conference in Birmingham later in September.

It said the study, conducted using an in vivo burn wound model, applied XF-73 topically to MRSA-infected burn wounds and monitored the subsequent spread of MRSA into the bloodstream, a condition that could lead to sepsis - a life-threatening infection with a high mortality rate.

A placebo treatment arm was also included in the study.

It said key results included that a single topical application of XF-73 at doses of 25, 50, or 100 µg resulted in a significant reduction of MRSA within the burn wound tissue by up to 99.99% compared to the placebo group.

The spread of MRSA into the bloodstream was meanwhile significantly reduced by 99.9% in all XF-73 treatment groups, as measured by the bacterial count within the spleen.

In the 50 µg XF-73 treatment group, no MRSA bacteria were detected in the bloodstream, effectively preventing sepsis entirely.

Destiny said the findings highlighted the potential of XF-73 to significantly reduce the risk of sepsis in burn patients - a population particularly vulnerable to infections.

Globally, there were around nine million burn cases annually, with infections contributing to over 250,000 fatalities.

“These results from an in vivo burn wound infection model provide clear evidence that XF-73 can significantly reduce the risk, or even eliminate MRSA from reaching the bloodstream and causing sepsis,” said chief scientific officer Dr Bill Love.

“It is seen as a significant result for the continued development of our XF-73 dermal product.”

At 1408 BST, shares in Destiny Pharma were up 45.42% at 3.49p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.