FDA puts Geron's spinal cord drug trial on hold

Geron Corp (GERN) shares, which dropped as much as 15 percent earlier today, declined over 10 percent by midday trading after regulators delayed clinical trials on its spinal cord injury treatment.

The stem cell research company today announced that the FDA has placed a clinical hold on its investigational new drug application for GRNOPC1, an embryonic stem cell therapy for spinal cord injury. The FDA employs this when it wishes delay a proposed trial or to suspend an ongoing one. The FDA wants to first review new nonclinical animal study data submitted by the company.