The Israeli company, which in-licensed the drug earlier this year, announced that it had successfully completed the pre-clinical development of the
anti Hep C drug, and that a phase I/II is planned to begin in
Europe during the first quarter of 2013.
Unlike the vast majority of Hep C drugs under development, BL-8020 is not a protease or polymerase inhibitor. In fact, this drug doesn't directly target the hepatitis virus at all, but instead, targets the host cell.