Sarepta patient death could bring greater scrutiny, says William Blair

William Blair keeps a Market Perform rating on Sarepta (SRPT) following reports that a patient in the Phase I clinical trial for SRP-9004, a gene therapy for the treatment of limb-girdle muscular dystrophy, has died from acute liver failure. While this is the first patient death reported in a limb-girdle muscular dystrophy trial, it is the third death reported by Sarepta this year across its gene therapy programs, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Blair points out Sarepta did not disclose the third patient death in its recent business update. It views the as “unfortunate and concerning, particularly since it occurred with one of the company’s other gene therapies.” Although development of SRP-9004 has been discontinued, the death could lead to greater scrutiny of SRP-9003’s safety profile, contends the firm.