BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics shares slide after drug developer details mid-stage study

Shares of BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics sank Monday before markets opened and after jumping 58 percent on Friday as investors awaited results from a study of the small drug developer's potential treatment for Lou Gehrig's disease.

The New York-based company said Monday that the drug, NurOwn, was safe and well-tolerated in a study that enrolled 14 patients with early stages of the neurodegenerative disease also known as ALS or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

BrainStorm also said a single dose of NurOwn slowed the disease's progression for most of the patients in the midstage study. The company said it would next plan to see if the results can be amplified and extended by administering several doses.

BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics Inc. focuses on developing treatments for neurodegenerative diseases using adult stem cells derived from bone marrow.

Researchers have given NurOwn to more than 30 patients in studies conducted in Israel. The treatment also is being studied in a U.S. clinical trial.

Company shares dropped about 14 percent, or $1.04, to $6.46 shortly before markets opened.

The shares had soared to close 2014 at $4.76 after ending the previous year at only 18 cents. Much of the stock's gain for 2014 came last month.