Benzinga's Small Cap Movers for Tuesday February 26 2013

Below are highlights from Benzinga's daily coverage of small cap securities making big moves: MediciNova Shares of MediciNova MNOV, the San Diego, CA biopharmaceutical company, rose 39% Tuesday on 175 times average volume. MediciNova announced Monday that it has received Fast Track designation from the FDA for MN-166 for the treatment of methamphetamine dependence. "We are very pleased that MN-166 has received Fast Track designation and believe this validates its potential to address unmet medical needs in this devastating and life-threatening disease," Dr. Yuichi Iwaki, President and CEO of MediciNova commented. "We look forward to initiating the NIDA-funded Phase 2 outpatient clinical trial of MN-166 for the treatment of methamphetamine addiction with UCLA investigators." MediciNova closed at $2.98 on Tuesday. Arrowhead Research Arrowhead Research ARWR, the Pasadena, CA targeted therapeutics company, rose 4.78% Tuesday on 17 times average volume. Arrowhead Research announced Tuesday the publication of data demonstrating multi-log reductions in hepatitis B viral DNA and proteins lasting over 30 days after a single injection in animal models. This suggests that Arrowhead's RNAi-based candidate ARC-520 has the potential to treat chronic hepatitis B virus infection in a fundamentally different manner, with the goal of achieving a functional cure. The paper, entitled “Hepatocyte-targeted RNAi therapeutics for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B virus infection,” by Wooddell et al, was published online ahead of print in the journal Molecular Therapy. Arrowhead Research closed at $2.19 on Tuesday. China Mobile Games and Entertainment Group Shares of China Mobile Games and Entertainment Group CMGE, the China-based mobile game company, rose 65% Tuesday on 20 times average volume. There was no company issued news to account for the move on Tuesday. China Mobile Games and Entertainment Group closed at $9.59 on Tuesday. The information in this article is taken from public sources, press releases, and websites that cannot always be verified. Please note that investing in microcap stocks is highly speculative. The companies mentioned here are for information purposes only. Benzinga makes no claim as to the suitability of these stocks as an investment. Neither Benzinga nor its staff recommend that you buy, sell, or hold any security. We do not offer investment advice, personalized or otherwise. Benzinga recommends that you conduct your own due diligence and consult a certified financial professional for personalized advice about your financial situation.