What happened
Shares of the gene-editing pioneer Intellia Therapeutics (NTLA -1.11%) rose by 17.5% through the first three and a half days of trading this week, according to data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence. The biotech's stock perked up in response to the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) clearance of NTLA-2002's Investigational New Drug application as a treatment for hereditary angioedema (HAE).
NTLA-2002 is an in vivo genome-editing candidate designed to inactivate the gene underlying HAE attacks. HAE is a rare, yet life-threatening inherited condition characterized by swelling of various parts of the body, hands, feet, or face. There are currently eight medications approved by the FDA to prevent and/or treat HAE attacks. NTLA-2002, however, could be the first genetic medicine for this indication (depending on its ongoing clinical trials).
So what
NTLA-2002 is the first in vivo gene-editing treatment to get clearance for human trials in the United States. The company plans on using this historic green light to advance the therapy into phase 2 testing.
Intellia was previously trialing the gene-edited therapy in the Netherlands, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. Preliminary phase 1 data from this international trial suggested that NTLA-2002 may be efficacious in this setting.
Now what
Is Intellia stock a buy on this news? Intellia stands a good chance at being one of the top gene-editing companies in the world by 2030. The biotech's platform has started to yield promising data, and some of its chief competitors are falling behind. So, if you're willing to hold this growth stock for an extended period (five to 10 years), Intellia may indeed be worth buying right now.
