The S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries Index (ASX) closed at 3,482.30 on Wednesday, August 5, gaining 80.50 points or 2.37%.
The index has risen 170.20 points, or 5.14%, over the past 5 trading days.
While it's still quiet for small cap newsflow, companies across the healthcare, critical minerals and gold sectors provided updates on clinical development, project advancement, metallurgical studies and corporate appointments. You can read about the following and more throughout the day.
Actinogen Medical outlines Xanamem Alzheimer’s program
Actinogen Medical Ltd (ASX:ACW, OTC:ATGGF) will today present an update on the development of oral Alzheimer’s disease treatment Xanamem at the annual Bioshares Biotech Summit in Queenstown, New Zealand.
The 12-minute presentation, titled Advancing Oral Xanamem in Alzheimer’s disease, outlines the scientific rationale and clinical development pathway for Xanamem, also known as emestedastat.
Xanamem is an oral enzyme inhibitor designed to control elevated levels of cortisol, commonly referred to as the stress hormone, in the brain.
Cortisol is produced from inactive cortisone in brain tissue by the enzyme 11β-HSD1, which is the therapeutic target of Xanamem.
Actinogen said there was a strong rationale for controlling cortisol production in Alzheimer’s disease through the inhibition of 11β-HSD1.
Actinogen’s first pivotal Alzheimer’s trial, involving 247 participants, is scheduled to report final topline results in November 2026.
Askari Metals appoints company secretary and CFO
Askari Metals Ltd (ASX:AS2, FRA:7ZG) has appointed Tim Slate as company secretary and chief financial officer, effective August 6, 2026.
Slate has more than 15 years of experience in accounting and company secretarial roles.
His previous work has included roles with multinational corporations, smaller Perth-based companies, ASX- and London Stock Exchange-listed entities, private businesses and high-net-worth individuals.
Mount Ridley identifies rare earth-bearing phosphate minerals
Mount Ridley Mines Ltd (ASX:MRD) has completed its first automated mineralogy study on material from the Grass Patch Complex, about 25 kilometres north of the deep-water port of Esperance in Western Australia.
The TIMA study provided the first direct evidence of how rare earth elements are hosted within the deposit, information the company considers important for developing its beneficiation strategy ahead of ongoing Phase 1 metallurgical testwork.
Testing confirmed that the rare earths at Grass Patch are hosted in phosphate minerals.
Three distinct rare earth-bearing phosphate mineral groups were identified across the sample: xenotime, crandallite group phosphates and monazite-rhabdophane.
Mount Ridley said the results indicated there may be a pathway to concentrate the rare earth-bearing minerals before leaching.
Such a process could reduce the volume of material entering the Phase 1 metallurgical testwork program and potentially improve overall processing efficiency.
The phosphate minerals occur within the shallow, free-dig regolith profile characteristic of Grass Patch.
The company has fast-tracked liberation and flotation testwork to assess the potential beneficiation opportunity before undertaking further metallurgical studies.
American Tungsten & Antimony begins US operating review
American Tungsten & Antimony Ltd (ASX:AT4, OTCQB:ATALF, FRA:4VZ) has begun ramp-up and expansion planning at the Del Sol Refinery in Nevada and the White Spar Antimony Mine in Arizona.
Chief executive officer Casper Adson and the Del Sol operating team have visited both sites, although the assets remain subject to completion of the acquisition announced on July 28, 2026.
Subject to the transaction completing, AT4 intends to begin restarting the Del Sol antimony flake circuit using White Spar feedstock during the September quarter of 2026.
The company plans to collect operating data from the refinery to support expansion studies and potential applications for US Government funding, including programs administered by the Defense Logistics Agency.
Requests for proposal have been issued to international engineering firms for work covering an expansion of antimony flake capacity.
The proposed studies will also examine the addition of circuits to produce Regulus II antimony metal, antimony trisulphide, sodium antimonate and ammonium paratungstate.
AT4 has also held a pre-application meeting with the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection.
The meeting was intended to confirm the requirements for a formal application to increase permitted capacity at Del Sol from 18,500 short tons of feed per year to about 100,000 short tons, while adding ammonium paratungstate production.
The company cautioned that all proposed work remains conditional on completion of the Del Sol and White Spar acquisition.
Perpetual Resources appoints US strategic adviser
Perpetual Resources Ltd (ASX:PEC) has appointed Washington DC-based strategic advisory firm GreenMet Mineral Holdings Inc to support the advancement of its recently acquired Nevada Scheelite Tungsten Project.
GreenMet will assist Perpetual with engagement involving the US Government and other strategic stakeholders.
The advisory firm specialises in government engagement, strategic policy, funding programs and financing initiatives for critical minerals companies operating in the United States.
Perpetual said the appointment was intended to position Nevada Scheelite within developing US Government initiatives focused on strengthening domestic critical minerals supply chains.
The project is in Mineral County, Nevada, and provides Perpetual with exposure to tungsten, a mineral used across defence, manufacturing and industrial applications.
Albion Resources clears milestone for Gidgee drilling
Albion Resources Ltd (ASX:ALB) has received approval for its Programme of Work covering the company’s maiden drilling campaign at the 100%-owned Gidgee Gold Project in Western Australia.
The approval from the Western Australian Department of Mines, Petroleum and Exploration clears a key regulatory milestone ahead of the planned program.
Initial drilling will test the high-priority German Well South gold target, with a broader campaign also planned across several newly identified gold anomalies.
Drilling is expected to begin in late August 2026, subject to the availability and mobilisation of the company’s preferred contractor.
Albion plans to release a detailed overview of the drilling program and target pipeline during the week beginning August 10, once the final program has been confirmed.
Since acquiring Gidgee, the company has completed ultrafine soil geochemistry, reinterpreted historical drilling data and undertaken geological reviews, field reconnaissance and surveys.
Albion said this work had refined its understanding of the project and helped prioritise multiple drill-ready targets within the Gum Creek Greenstone Belt.