LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - Neuroscience artificial intelligence (AI) company Ixico has been awarded a contract by a new biopharmaceutical client to support its phase 1 multiple system atrophy clinical trial, it announced on Wednesday.
The AIM-traded firm described multiple system atrophy (MSA) as a rare condition of the nervous system that causes gradual damage to nerve cells in the brain.

Conducted across investigator sites within the United States, it said the clinical trial would enrol patients with the parkinsonian subtype of MSA, MSA-P, to assess the safety, tolerability, and preliminary efficacy of GDNF gene therapy for the rapidly-progressing condition.

For the study, Ixico would provide advanced neuroimaging solutions involving structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), FDG-PET and DaT scans.

The study would be worth more than $0.5m over four years.

"Ixico is delighted to be awarded the contract for this MSA clinical trial reflecting Ixico's expertise in rare neurological indications," said chief commercial officer Lammert Albers.

"MSA is a rare neurodegenerative disorder afflicting up to 17,000 individuals in the US and an estimated 23,000 in the European Union.

"New cases of MSA in the US are estimated at 1,900 per year, and the disorder affects men and women equally."

At 1221 BST, shares in Ixico were up 5.06% at 83p.

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