The Boston Globe

Acceleron drug candidate gets fast-track designation

Acceleron Pharma Inc., a privately held Cambridge biopharmaceutical company, said it has been granted fast-track designation for a potential treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

The Food and Drug Administration gives fast-track status to expedite the review of new drugs that are intended to treat serious or life-threatening conditions and that demonstrate the potential to address unmet medical needs, Acceleron noted in its press release.

The drug candidate granted fast-track designation is Acceleron's ACE-031, a protein therapeutic being developed to increase muscle mass and strength.

Duchenne muscular dystrophy is a fatal neuromuscular disease in which patients suffer from the progressive loss of muscle mass and strength, the company's press release said.