Allergan plc, a leading global pharmaceutical company headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, announced that it has acquired substantially all of the assets of Wayne State University startup RetroSense Therapeutics LLC.
RetroSense Therapeutics LLC is a privately held clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on novel gene therapy, RST-001, aimed at restoring vision in patients suffering from blindness caused by retinitis pigmentosa.
The acquisition by Allergan in a $60 million agreement offers RetroSense potential regulatory and commercialization milestone payments related to its lead development program.
RetroSense has led clinical trials of RST-001 in patients with RP with the goal of restoring some vision in patients with this genetic condition that leads to the progressive degeneration of rod and cone photoreceptors - light-sensing cells found in the retina - resulting in severe vision loss and blindness. Approximately 100,000 people living in the United States and 14 to 33 per 100,000 people worldwide have the disorder, according the Foundation for Fighting Blindness and the National Center for Biotechnology Information of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.
The technology is a result of research by early pioneers in optogenetics for vision restoration, including Zhuo-Hua Pan, Ph.D, the Edward T. and Ellen K. Dryer Endowed Professor, professor of Ophthalmology and of Anatomy and Cell Biology, and scientific director of the Ligon Research Center of Vision/Kresge Eye Institute at Wayne State University's School of Medicine, and Richard Masland, Ph.D., at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary.
"The acquisition of RetroSense's assets and its RST-001 program by Allergan illustrates the significance of the technology developed by Dr. Pan," said Joan Dunbar, Ph.D., associate vice president for Technology Commercialization at Wayne State University. "Without the efforts of Sean Ainsworth, RetroSense's chief executive officer, this technology would not have been in the clinical trial stages. This important research has tremendous potential to impact the lives of many, and we look forward to the vital work of Allergan that will give ophthalmology professionals around the world improved treatment options that have the potential to improve or even restore vision in RP patients."
To view the full news release from Allergan and RetroSense, visit http://www.allergan.com/news/news/thomson-reuters/allergan-acquires-gene-therapy-company-retrosense.