Orphazyme Shrinks Workforce Following FDA Response on Arimoclomol

By Matt Grossman

Orphazyme AS is reducing its workforce by about two-thirds following a recent U.S. regulatory finding that more data was needed before its principal drug could be approved.

The Copenhagen-based company said the cost savings would help it continue to pursue regulatory approval in Europe for arimoclomol as a treatment for Niemann-Pick disease type C. The company will also assess a path forward in the U.S.

The layoffs would reduce the company's operations to people supporting essential activities.

Earlier in June, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said it needed more information beyond the single Phase 2/3 clinical trial that Orphazyme had conducted. Chief Executive Christophe Bourdon said at the time that he was disheartened by the outcome.

Neimann-Pick disease is a rare and debilitating neurovisceral disease affecting about 1,800 people in the U.S. and Europe, Orphazyme said.

Orphazyme's American depositary receipts traded on Nasdaq were down 1% at $7.77 in premarket trade Monday and have lost 27% for the year to date.

Write to Matt Grossman at matt.grossman@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 28, 2021 06:51 ET (10:51 GMT)

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