AviadoBio will have the option to exclusively license UGX-202, a vision-restoring gene therapy for the rare eye condition retinitis pigmentosa.
Joining the train of Western companies turning to China for novel therapies is London-based AviadoBio, which on Thursday entered into an exclusive option and license agreement with UgeneX Therapeutics for an investigational gene therapy for a rare eye condition.
Under the terms of the agreement, AviadoBio will commit up to $413 million, a sum that includes an upfront payment as well as R&D and sales milestones. Its Shanghai-based partner, meanwhile, will also be eligible to royalties on net sales. The deal, according to AviadoBio CEO Lisa Deschamps, speaking in the company’s statement, opens up “a clear opportunity for next-generation approaches” in the field of optogenetics.
In exchange for its investment, AviadoBio will have the option to gain a worldwide exclusive license to UgeneX’s UGX-202, which works by delivering a light-sensitive protein to retinal cells. This mode of action reprograms certain dormant cells in the retina to function like photoreceptors, in turn restoring vision “irrespective of the underlying genetic cause,” according to the Thursday release.
AviadoBio’s worldwide license would exclude countries in the Greater China area.
UGX-202 is delivered using an AAV viral vector which, alongside its transgene payload and accompanying regulatory sequences, has been “optimized for potential best-in-class performance,” the companies claimed. The gene therapy is being developed for retinitis pigmentosa (RP) and another undisclosed indication, for which the asset is set to enter clinical development before the end of the year.
Afflicting around 1.5 million people worldwide, RP refers to a group of rare and progressive eye diseases that cause visual defects such as tunnel vision and night blindness and, ultimately, total blindness. RP is caused by a wide variety of genetic mutations, each of which leads to the degeneration of the rod and cone photoreceptors in the retina. There is no cure for RP.
Thursday’s deal adds to the growing list of China-facing deals biopharma companies have signed this year in an effort to build out their development pipelines. Earlier this week, for instance, Boston-based Zenas BioSciences inked a licensing deal with Beijing’s InnoCare Pharma for access to multiple autoimmune drugs, including one that is in late-stage development for multiple sclerosis. Zenas put $2 billion on the line in this agreement.
Big Pharma has been leading the way in buying into the innovation of Chinese biotechs. In May, Pfizer fronted $1.25 billion and pledged up to $4.8 billion in milestones to collaborate with 3SBio on a PD-1/VEGF blocker for solid tumors. Meanwhile, AstraZeneca in March joined hands with Habour BioMed to work on oncology and immunology indications in a $4.5 billion pact. The pharma in June then made a $5.3 billion AI play with Heibei-based CSPC Pharmaceutical.
