March 12, 2012 (Research Triangle Park, North Carolina) –The Drug Discovery Center of Innovation (www.ddcoi.org), the Foundation Fighting Blindness (www.blindness.org), and the National Neurovision Research Institute (www.nnri.info) today announced the completion of a strategic Master Services Agreement. Under the agreement, the Drug Discovery Center of Innovation will provide pharmaceutical development oversight and strategic expertise to support IND-enabling drug development activities for MitoChem Therapeutics, LLC. MitoChem Therapeutics, LLC is supported in part by a Small Business Award from the Foundation Fighting Blindness. “We are delighted to be funding development of MitoChem’s novel therapeutic compounds for retinal diseases, as well as DDCOI’s critical guiding role in the project,” says Stephen Rose, Ph.D., chief research officer, Foundation Fighting Blindness. “We have a great opportunity to bring a vision-saving treatment to people affected by a broad range of inherited retinal diseases.”
The Drug Discovery Center of Innovation (DDCOI) is a non-profit company established to provide cost-effective pharmaceutical, regulatory, and program management expertise to accelerate the translation of discoveries into therapeutics. DDCOI’s services can be engaged at any point in the development timeline, and include comprehensive preclinical drug development program planning, program management and regulatory submissions administration.
The Foundation Fighting Blindness is a national nonprofit driving research that will lead to preventions, treatments and cures for retinitis pigmentosa, macular degeneration, Usher syndrome and the entire spectrum of retinal degenerative diseases that affect more than 10 million Americans. In its 40-year history, the Foundation has raised more than $450 million as the leading non-governmental funder of retinal research. Breakthrough Foundation-funded studies using gene therapy have restored significant vision in children and young adults who were previously blind, paving the way for using this method to treat a variety of retinal degenerative diseases, and proving a cure is in sight. With a network of 50 chapters, the Foundation also provides support, education and resources to affected individuals and their families in communities across the country.
