Monday, March 30, 2009

Dyax trims pipeline, cuts 60 jobs to focus on DX-88

By Mass High Tech staff

Cambridge-based drug developer Dyax Corp. reports it is planning to eliminate 60 jobs, just days after it announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is looking for more information about its lead product candidate, DX-88, before it can approve the drug.

Dyax (Nasdaq: DYAX) says the 60 positions will be cut immediately from various departments within the company. The move will allow it to focus its resources on the commercialization of DX-88, through savings.

Officials at Dyax say the company will be “reassessing priorities within its internal pipeline of product candidates.” The personnel cuts, along with other external cost reductions, will contribute approximately $18 million in annual savings for Dyax, officials said in a statement. The company should experience a one-time charge related to the cuts of approximately $2 million during the first quarter of 2009.

DX-88 (ecallantide) is a recombinant small protein and selective plasma kallikrein inhibitor that is being evaluated as a treatment for acute hereditary angioedema, a rare and sometimes fatal disease.

On Friday, Dyax reported that the FDA issued a letter requesting the submission of a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy, as well as additional data about the chemistry, manufacturing and controls section of the Biologic License Application. The letter didn’t request any additional clinical trials for approval of DX-88, stated Dyax.

Earlier this month, Dyax updated an existing loan to receive a $15 million tranche B loan. This was intended to support the costs of commercializing DX-88.