Protagonist Therapeutics Inc. stock (NASDAQ:PTGX) nosedived 47% on Tuesday after the company released preliminary results from its phase II open-label study of PTG-300, an injectable hepcidin mimetic to treat patients with transfusion-dependent beta-thalassemia.  

With nearly 5,000 abstracts on tap for this December's American Society of Hematology (ASH) meeting in Orlando, Fla., organizers of the annual conference have highlighted a multitude of new advances in the event's programming.

Less than two weeks after giving the go-ahead to Novartis AG for Adakveo (crizanlizumab) to reduce the frequency of vaso-occlusive crises (VOCs) in adult and pediatric patients ages 16 and older with sickle cell disease (SCD), the FDA cleared – well ahead of its Feb. 26, 2020, PDUFA date – Oxbryta (voxelotor), from Global Blood Therapeutics Inc. (GBT), for SCD in adults and pediatric patients ages 12 and up. 

La Jolla Pharmaceutical Co. discontinued its study LJ401-BT01 due to lack of efficacy and will reassess further development of LJPC-401 (synthetic human hepcidin) based on recent mixed clinical results.