Research Setback Reported by CoCensys

Research headaches continue at CoCensys Inc. The Irvine developer of experimental treatments for neurological and psychiatric disorders said recently that its drug ganaxolone had no “statistically significant” effect in relieving pain for acute-migraine sufferers in a clinical trial that included 325 patients at 19 clinics across the nation.

Analysts at the Berkeley-based Medical Technology Stock Letter, which tracks CoCensys, said the clinical results mark a setback for a company that has only enough cash to last until the end of the first quarter next year.

In one bright spot, CoCensys did find that the drug provided significant pain relief for a subset of patients: Forty-five women given the drug within five days of starting their menstrual cycles.

The generally discouraging findings have prompted the company to seek corporate partners to help develop the drug to treat epilepsy and prevent migraine, analysts said.