Benzinga | Apr 1, 2021 09:37AM EDT

Eloxx Stock is Trading Higher After Zikani Therapeutics Acquisition

* Eloxx Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: ELOX) has acquired Zikani Therapeutics Inc in an all-stock transaction. The new entity will focus on ribosomal RNA-targeted therapies for the treatment of rare diseases and oncology.

* Sumit Aggarwal, previously the President and CEO of Zikani, has been named President and CEO of Eloxx. Vijay Modur, Zikani's Chief Scientific and Medical Officer, has been named Eloxx's Head of Research and Development.

* Under the terms of the merger agreement, stockholders of Zikani received approximately 7.6 million Eloxx common shares and will own about 16% of the combined company.

* Eloxx's ELX-02 is currently in Phase 2 clinical trials in Cystic Fibrosis (CF) patients affected by nonsense mutations in the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene.

* In Phase 1 testing, ELX-02 was generally well- tolerated and demonstrated high bioavailability with consistent pharamacokinetics across single and multiple-dose studies.

* Eloxx also plans to file an IND in 2022 for oral therapy for protein restoration in patients with nonsense mutations in Recessive Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa (RDEB) and Junctional Epidermolysis Bullosa (JEB).

* RDEB is an incurable, extremely painful, and often fatal skin blistering condition. JEB is the most severe form of EB, with most patients dying in infancy.

* Price Action: ELOX shares are up 15.1% at $3.82 in the premarket trading on the last check Thursday.