Aerpio Pharma up big on funding of razuprotafib study in COVID-19

Nano cap Aerpio Pharmaceuticals(NASDAQ:ARPO)jumps52%premarket on robust volume in reaction its announcement that the U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command's Medical Technology Enterprise Consortium has agreed to provide up to $5.1M to support a Phase 2 clinical trial evaluating razuprotafib for the prevention and treatment of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in adult patients with moderate-to-severe COVID-19. The company will contribute $2.8M to the study. The trial should be completed by Q1 2021.

Razuprotafib (AKB-9778) inhibits an enzyme called vascular endothelial protein tyrosine phosphatase (VE-PTP) that down-regulates a protein called Tie2. Decreased Tie2 activity is associated with vascular instability in many diseases so inhibiting VE-PTP helps maintain a high activity level of Tie2.

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