Idera Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: IDRA) shares crumbled on Wednesday after BioCryst Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: BCRX) announced that it terminated their merger agreement.

Ultimately the cause of this termination was the BioCryst stockholders’ failure to approve the adoption of the merger agreement at the BioCryst special meeting of stockholders.

In accordance with the terms of the merger agreement, BioCryst will reimburse Idera for transaction-related expenses of $6 million.

Jon P. Stonehouse, BioCryst’s president and CEO, commented:

We respect and understand the views of our stockholders and are moving forward fully-focused on executing our business plan as a standalone company. The BioCryst Board and management team remain confident in BCX-7353 and our ability to execute on our plan and advance our programs.

Robert A. Ingram, BioCryst board chair, added:

We are focused on serving the interests of all stockholders in their desire for BioCryst to pursue a standalone strategy and continue our path to treating patients with rare and serious diseases. The Board and management are steadfast in our commitment to capitalize on the opportunities in [BioCryst’s] current portfolio and advance the promising candidates in the Company’s pipeline to generate stockholder value.

Shares of Idera were last seen down about 9% at $1.25, with a consensus price target of $4.25 and a 52-week trading range of $1.12 to $2.87.

BioCryst shares were up about 2% at $6.29, with a consensus price target of $9.17 and a 52-week range of $3.95 to $6.67.

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