Biotech Values

[oc631]

Thanks, Peter. Guess the last point will interest oc631 who was interested/concerned about 7977 resistance.

At a conference last week GILD management belatedly cleared the air on the resistance issue. In reference to Peter's post: It's too early to say that GS-7977/Riba won't encounter resistance issues in the absence of interferon (especially if longer treatment durations are tested). The nuke class has an enviable resistance profile yet testing a oral combination, which lacks potency, beyond 12-weeks seems like a good way to draw-out resistant variants in nulls.


GILD seems reserved to the fact that they need a third agent added to the existing combo in nulls (if they want to be first to market in this subgroup). Company talk of longer durations of clinical testing is usually in response to analyst's questions and I feel it's not the underlying strategy. I don't expect late-stage oral clinical testing going beyond 12-weeks in any subgroup or genotype (excluding follow-up).

We may even see 8-week durations for GT2/GT3 patients using the existing two drug combo.