The US company has innovated a novel nanotechnology drug platform for the development of a new class of orally administered neurotherapeutic drugs. The platform enables the creation of clean-surfaced, catalytically-active nanocrystals, such as CNM-Au8, the company’s lead drug candidate.

In June 2022, Clene’s shares increased by more than 43% following the announcement of improved survival in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients initially treated with CNM-Au8 compared to initially placebo-treated participants during the long-term open-label extension of its RESCUE-ALS trial.

This drug is currently also being evaluated for several other neurological disorders, including multiple sclerosis and Parkinson's disease.

The firm is commonly known as Clene Nanomedicine, though the parent company goes by Clene Inc.