Prothena Corp. PLC said it will reduce its workforce by about 57% following the discontinuation of its rare drug development program in April.
The Dublin-based biotechnology company said it implemented the reorganization, which will cut its staff to 63 positions, to focus on its neuroscience research and to advance its discovery and clinical-stage pipeline.
Prothena also updated its full-year guidance to account for the restructuring. It expects its 2018 net cash burn from operating and investing activities to be $40 million to $50 million, including $110 million of cash from operating activities associated with its Celgene Corp. collaboration. It expects to end the year with about $421 million in cash at the midpoint.
It anticipates an estimated net loss of $170 million to $185 million, including $80 million to $85 million of operating expenses associated with the drug development program it canceled and with the reorganization.
At year-end 2017, for comparison, the company had expected the full year 2018 net cash burn from operating and investing activities to be $175 million to $230 million, and it expected to end the year with approximately $218 million in cash at the mid-point. It anticipated a net loss of $200 million to $260 million.
