Finnish drugmaker Orion Corp. said Tuesday its experimental insomnia drug failed a mid-stage clinical trial, days after investment giant BlackRock Inc. cut its stake in the company.
Orion disclosed in a regulatory filing that BlackRock's holding fell below the 5% notification threshold on Sept. 26, just one day after another filing showed it had crossed above that level.
On Tuesday, Orion announced it would discontinue development of the drug, ODM-105, for insomnia.
The decision came after a Phase 2 study showed the candidate did not significantly improve the time to fall asleep or sleep duration compared with a placebo, according to the company.
Orion said the drug was generally safe and well tolerated.
“We are disappointed that our study did not meet its primary goal,” said Outi Vaarala, Orion’s Executive Vice President of Innovative Medicines and Research & Development.
“We will focus our efforts and resources on advancing our other assets both in research and clinical phases.”
The trial failure marks a setback for Orion's pipeline, though the company has recently seen strong growth driven by its blockbuster prostate cancer drug, Nubeqa.
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