New Treatments For Major Depression On There Way

NEW YORK - June 30, 2016 - PRLog -- Major depression is a significant healthcare burden in the developed world. Patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) experience poor quality of life and often battle debilitating symptoms, including depressed mood, apathy, insomnia, fatigue, dementia, agitation, and suicidal ideation. Despite the availability of dozens of blockbuster pharmaceutical products, MDD remains a challenging medical condition to treat. Treatment-resistant MDD, a condition that affects 10-30% of all MDD patients, is a key focus of NASDAQ-listed VistaGen Therapeutics, Inc. (VTGN).

Several pharmaceutical companies are developing drugs that target the NMDA receptor, including behemoths Johnson & Johnson and Allergan. VistaGen is developing AV-101, an oral prodrug that has demonstrated impressive antidepressant effects and safety in preclinical and Phase 1 studies. AV-101 is a glycine B (GlyB) receptor antagonist that negatively modulates the N-Methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA) receptor and may induce synaptogenesis.

Investigators at the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) are currently studying AV-101 in a Phase 2a clinical trial. It's a fundamentally different pathway from standard antidepressants and similar to the glutamatergic AMPA-dependent pathway of ketamine; but, without the potential negative side effects of NMDA ion channel blocking. If successfully commercialized, AV-101 has peak sales of approximately $1.3 billion in the U.S. and $1.95 billion worldwide.

VistaGen recent secured $10 million in cash through a public offering in May 2016. The company is now well-capitalized to advance AV-101 into late-stage clinical studies. There is minimal risk of dilution over the next several months. Valuation comparable analysis suggests the company is worth $171 million today. Traditional valuation methodology using industry average multiples and historical rates of success suggest a similar valuation for the company at around $197 million. This puts the stock fairly valued at a range between $21 and $24 per share, resulting in over 500% upside from today.

In this article, I look at the depression market, what recent understanding on the mechanism for ketamine and NMDA receptor antagonism means for investors, and how VistaGen's AV-101 could become a significant player in this market in the next twelve months.

Read the article here >> http://www.bionapcfa.com/2016/06/vistagens-av-101-is-pote...