Neuren Pharmaceuticals (ASX:NEU) has announced it has received a Notice of Allowance from the US Patent and Trademark Office for a new patent that covers NNZ-2591 to treat autism.
Neuren is developing two new drug therapies to treat multiple serious neurological disorders that emerge in early childhood, none of which have any approved medicines.
The company said the term of the patent, titled 'Bicyclic compounds and methods for their use in treating autism', extends to July 2034. Similar claims have previously been granted in Europe and Japan.
Neuren is currently developing NNZ-2591 to treat Phelan-McDermid, Angelman, Pitt Hopkins and Prader-Willi syndromes, four serious lifelong neurological disorders that emerge in early childhood.
CEO Jon Pilcher said, “We have seen that the mechanism of action of NNZ-2591 appears to have broad utility in neurodevelopmental disorders. Given that autism is estimated to affect one in 160 children, the grant of this important US patent could potentially enable a very large future opportunity as more becomes known about the causes of autism.”