Mesoblast was the top gainer on the ASX today; Let’s find out...

Mesoblast was the top gainer on the ASX today; Let’s find out why
• Kunal Sawhney
• Jul 06, 2020 AEST

Summary
• Mesoblast was the top gainer on the S&P/ASX200 index on 6 July 2020, with ~11% increase in its share price.
• The Company disclosed that an EAP commenced in the US for the compassionate application of remestemcel-L for treating COVID-19 infected children having cardiovascular and other complications.
• EAP was filed with the FDA and offered doctors with access to remestemcel-L for treating an intermediate-size patient population under existing IND application of Mesoblast.

COVID-19 turmoil is a public health crunch, with staggering fatalities and human suffering beyond words. This unprecedented crisis is being deemed as the Great Virus Crisis (GVC). With more than 11.12 million confirmed cases and over 528k deaths so far, as reported to the WHO as of 12:59 PM CEST, 5 July 2020, the crisis continues to haunt the globe.

The novel coronavirus infection is known to generate severe life-threatening complications in humans such as lung infections, sepsis, pneumonia, septic shock, kidney damage as well as organ damage in some. People who are suffering from preexisting comorbidities are highly vulnerable to the virus.
During these unprecedented times, when multiple healthcare sector companies are gearing up to find out a safe and effective vaccine for combating this deadly virus, some sector players are playing a pivotal role in finding out a suitable treatment to reduce the signs of COVID-19 in the infected patients.

The healthcare companies are working on developments to combat COVID-19 could be planned into three distinct groups:

Across the world, there are many healthcare companies which are engaged in developing a treatment for this deadly virus. One such ASX-listed healthcare sector player is Mesoblast Limited (ASX:MSB) which is also in the race of finding an effective treatment for COVID-19.
On 6 July 2020, S&P/ASX 200 Health Care Sector settled at 42,850.1, indicating a drop of 1.79% as compared to the previous close and the benchmark index S&P/ASX 200 closed at 6,014.6 down by 0.71%.

Mesoblast was the top gainer in the S&P/ASX200 index with ~11% increase in its share price. MSB stock last quoted at A$3.750, up 11.276%. The market capitalisation of MSB stood at A$1.97 billion, with nearly 583.95 million outstanding shares on the ASX. The 52-weeks high and low price of MSB stock was noted at A$4.450 and A$1.020, respectively.

Let us delve deep and find out the reason why MSB was flying high on the ASX today:
About Mesoblast Limited
ASX-listed healthcare sector player Mesoblast Limited is a leader across the world in manufacturing off-the-shelf medicine. The proprietary mesenchymal lineage cell therapy technology program of Mesoblast is establishing a comprehensive commercial products portfolio as well as late-stage product candidates. Moreover, Mesoblast has a robust and broad global IP portfolio with protection through at least 2040 in all key markets. The Company has its operations in the United States, Australia, and Singapore.

EAP Commenced for Application of Remestemcel-L in Treatment of Children having COVID-19

On 6 July 2020, Mesoblast disclosed that an EAP (expanded access protocol) had been started in the US for compassionate application of its allogeneic mesenchymal stem cell drug candidate remestemcel-L for treating COVID-19 infected children having cardiovascular and other complications in multisystem inflammatory syndrome (MIS-C).
Infected people aged between 2-months to 17 years might receive one or two doses of remestemcel-L within 5-days of referral under the expanded access protocol

The EAP was filed with the US FDA and offered doctors with access to remestemcel-L treatment for an intermediate-size patient population under existing Investigational New Drug (IND) application of Mesoblast.

As per the FDA, expanded access is a potential path for a patient having life-threatening situation or severe disease or disorder to obtain access to an investigational therapeutic product to treat outside of clinical studies when comparable or suitable alternative treatment possibilities are not available.

Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children is a life-frightening complication of coronavirus infection in healthy children as well as in adolescents that includes mammoth simultaneous inflammation of several critical organs and their vasculature.
In almost 50% of cases, this inflammation is linked with considerable complications in the cardiovascular system that directly affect the heart muscle and can result in diminished cardiac function. Moreover, the virus can cause dilation of coronary arteries without any known future concerns.

Bottomline:
Challenging the COVID-19 turmoil, the operations of Mesoblast remains unscathed. With a robust product pipeline and drug candidates under clinical investigation, the Company is well-placed to develop a safe and effective COVID-19 treatment. Now with this expanded access protocol, Mesoblast is assessing the use of remestemcel-L for treatment of COVID-19 infected children having cardiovascular and other complications.

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