(Bloomberg) -- Companies developing RNA-editing therapies rallied on Wednesday after breakthrough data from a clinical trial showed the technology’s promise as a treatment.
Wave Life Sciences Ltd. said it achieved so-called proof-of-mechanism in a single-dose trial of its potential treatment for a genetic disorder that causes lung and liver diseases. Its stock surged 74% — a record jump — to the highest level since September 2020, adding nearly $950 million to the drug developer’s market value.
Wall Street praised the potential for Wave Life’s drug as early efficacy results surpassed analysts’ expectations. While it could take years for the drug to come to market, the data represents a landmark for the RNA-editing space — as the earliest human data for any RNA editing therapy and a validation for the technology.
“This is the first time we’ve seen it in humans actually do what we think it’s doing” said Madison El-Saadi, an analyst at B Riley Securities. “The fact that we see this with just one dose, it is really promising.”
Shares of other developers in the space surged after Wave Life’s data. ProQR Therapeutics NV shares more than doubled, soaring by 122%, while shares of Korro Bio Inc. climbed 94%. Both stocks notched record one-day gains.
“We think WVE data is fantastic news for the broader field,” said Luca Issi, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets who holds an outperform rating on Korro’s shares.
Wave Life plans to report data from a multi-dose trial of its therapy in 2025.
(Updates with closing prices.)
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