Vanda Pharmaceuticals shares jumped 28.1% to $9.01 at 1:38 p.m. ET on Wednesday after the company said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Nereus to prevent vomiting induced by motion. Vanda said the oral drug is a neurokinin-1 receptor antagonist — meaning it blocks a receptor involved in nausea signaling — and called it the first new pharmacologic motion-sickness treatment in more than four decades. In late-stage Phase 3 trials — the final stage before approval — vomiting rates were about 10%–20% on Nereus versus 38%–44% on placebo, and Vanda said it expects to launch the drug in coming months. PR Newswire
