A dramatic auction failure dominated the health and bio small-cap space, with BSF Enterprise losing nearly half its market value after its high-profile T-Rex leather handbag failed to sell. Elsewhere, patent and regulatory milestones drove modest gains at Cizzle Biotechnology and GSK.
BSF Enterprise handbag fails at auction, shares halve
BSF Enterprise (AIM:BSFA) saw its shares collapse 43.75% to 1.125p after its T-Rex leather handbag, one of the company's flagship exotic materials products, failed to find a buyer at auction. The company said the item is now being prepared for private sale to a select group of high-net-worth collectors and institutions, a route it hopes will ultimately realise value from the asset.
Cizzle Biotechnology secures US patent for CIZ1B test
Cizzle Biotechnology Holdings (AIM:CIZ) was granted a US patent by the USPTO for its CIZ1B technology, sending the shares up 7.3% to 2.95p. Chief Scientific Officer Dawn Coverley said the grant strengthens the company's patent portfolio at a timely moment, describing it as "perfectly aligned with recent efforts to take the CIZ1B ELISA test format to market" with US partner Cizzle Bio. The patent reinforces the commercial position of the lung cancer biomarker test as the company pursues its US commercialisation strategy.
GSK wins orphan drug status for momelotinib in VEXAS syndrome
GSK (LSE:GSK) secured orphan drug designations in both the US and Europe for momelotinib in VEXAS syndrome, a rare and severe inflammatory blood disorder for which no approved treatments currently exist. The shares edged up 1.1% to 1,984.5p on the news. VEXAS syndrome affects tens of thousands of patients worldwide and carries a five-year mortality rate of between 30% and 40%, making the designations, which confer development incentives and market exclusivity provisions in both jurisdictions, commercially and clinically significant for GSK's haematology pipeline.
