- Nano cap Conatus Pharmaceuticals (CNAT) is up 19% premarket on robust volume in response to its announcement that the FDA has designated lead product candidate emricasan for Fast Track review for the treatment of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).
- Fast Track status provides for more frequent interactions with the FDA review team and a rolling review of the New Drug Application (NDA).
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Emricasan inhibits a family of enzymes that modulate essential cellular functions called caspases. The functions include those involved in apoptosis and inflammation. Caspases 3 and 7 are major players in apoptosis. These enzymes cleave a key protein called CK18 (cytokeratin-18), part of which is the small fragment cCK18, which correlates to the magnitude of hepatocyte apoptosis. Emricasan inhibits apoptosis regardless of the stimuli that causes it.
- Previously: Conatus shares up 40% premarket on emricasan results in Phase 2 NAFLD/NASH study (March 26, 2015)