InvestorPlace Blogs is powered by Marketocracy. Marketocracy has authorized Investor Place Blogs as an official registrar for voting through Marketocracy's Investment Research Rating service. Registered members of InvestorPlace Blogs are linked with a Marketocracy account to establish voting power based on their performance of trading and posting on stocks.
Elan Corporation is a neuroscience based biotechnology company located in Ireland and the U.S. ELN operates in two segments,Biopharmaceuticals and Elan Drug Technologies.The biopharmaceuticals segment is engaged in the research of drugs for the treatment of Alzheimers,Parkinsons,multiple sclerosis,Cronh's disease,and chronic pain. The Elan segment is involved in drug optimization and clinical trial management.
Before we delve into ELNs latest entry bapineuzumab,to fight Alzheimer's disease,I would like to show what is involved in bringing a drug from the discovery to when the new drug may be marketed.
After a new drug is discovered the first step is preclinical studies to establish a scientific basis to show the drug is reasonably safe and that it may be effective in treating a particular disease. Then the drug enters Phase I which is the first time the drug is administered to humans and this phase is just to test for risks and possible side effects. Phase I will usually have less than 100 volunteers. Phase II usually enrolls several hundred volunteers with the actual condition to set dosage requirements and to look for signs of effectiveness on the condition. Phase III trials enroll several hundred to several thousand volunteers at different sites to test the effectiveness and safety of the drug and this data is what the FDA will use in deciding to approve a drug.Phase IV is used after a drug is approved for marketing to monitor the health of the individuals using the new drug and to monitor how effective the drug has been on the treatment of the condition.
ELNs new drug bapineuzumab has just entered Phase III and may not be marketed until 2010. Although ELN has several drugs on the market,bapineuzumab has the potential to be a blockbuster for ELN. Currently in the U.S. there are 5.2 million Alzheimer sufferers and over 26 million worldwide and this number is projected to grow to over 106 million by 2050. The Alzheimer's Association reports there are currently 150 clinical studies on Alzheimer's being conducted.
Even though ELNS new drug has had mixed results,the stock hit a 52 week high of $35.96 Friday. It is my opinion based on Lens current drug portfolio and the fact that bapineuzumab may not be on the market until 2010 I would not be an investor in ELN at this time. My view is that ELN is at a 52 week high and between now and the marketing of bapineuzumab in 2010 or so ELN will be going for less than the current $36 price. I would also say that bapineuzumab may very well be a blockbuster for ELN as we near 2010 but I would put my capital to work in other places for now and keep a close eye on ELN and bapineuzumab for results on the Phase III trials.
| 
RSS 2.0
