CNM-Au8, Clene’s lead drug candidate, is an aqueous suspension comprising catalytically active, clean-surfaced and faceted gold nanocrystals. The company explained in a statement that the therapy’s catalytically active nanocrystals fuel “critical cellular energy” that ultimately produce brain reactions enabling neurorepair and remyelination. This is reportedly accomplished via increases in neuronal and glial resilience to stressors relevant to neurologic diseases.