BioLight Life Sciences Investments Ltd and Aerie Pharmaceuticals Affiliates Announce a Collaboration for Continued Development
November 06 2012 - 2:30PM
ViSci Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of BioLight Ltd. (TASE:BOLT)
entered into an option agreement with Novaer LLC, an affiliate of
Aerie Pharmaceuticals Inc., to license the Eye-DTM technology for
further development of a sub-conjunctival drug implant for the
controlled release of ophthalmic medications.
Non-compliance with medical therapy is a significant and costly
global health concern. This also applies to Glaucoma, which is the
second leading cause of blindness in the world. The majority of
glaucoma patients are treated with drugs that are locally
administered using eye drops. It is often challenging for patients
to take their eye drops daily as prescribed. Despite the
availability of effective drug therapies, poor compliance occurs in
an estimated 25 to 60% of patients, especially when those drugs
need to be administered more than once daily. A small ocular drug
implant, like Eye-D, that can be placed with a simple procedure,
works to deliver a glaucoma drug for months and thus avoid the need
for daily administration of eye drops. It would offer a potential
compliance and convenience solution for many glaucoma patients
According to the agreement ViSci will get a worldwide exclusive
option for an exclusive license for use of the implant technology,
when the option is exercised.
The new technology will be part of BioLight's Ophthalmic
cluster, currently comprising of one other company - IOPtima Ltd.,
a developer, manufacturer and distributer of a novel CO2 laser,
minimally-invasive surgical device for glaucoma.
Suzana Nahum Zilberberg, BioLight's CEO said: "The collaboration
with Aerie Pharmaceuticals and its affiliate Novaer LLC, is another
important step in the creation of BioLight's Ophthalmic cluster.
The new collaboration adds extensive knowledge and development
experience, as well as contacts with global key opinion leaders,
researchers and investors. It creates real added value to the
cluster and its current and future technologies".
Keren Leshem, Head of BioLight's Ophthalmic Cluster said, "I'm
excited to be able to take this promising technology further along
the development path into human trials.
Thomas van Haarlem, M.D., President and Chief Executive Officer
of Aerie Pharmaceuticals, commented, "We are pleased to collaborate
with Biolight and ViSci through our affiliate, Novaer LLC, to
enable first clinical testing of our Eye-DTM technology. This
controlled-release drug delivery technology was discovered by
Aerie's scientists and has achieved pre-clinical proof-of-concept
for long term reduction of intraocular pressure."
About Biolight Life Science Investments
Ltd.
BioLight Israeli Life Sciences Investments Ltd., a public
company traded in the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE), is a unique
Biomedical firm engaged in the management and commercialization of
Biomed innovation by introducing a new approach of value creation
through knowledge synergies.
The company creates value by forming clusters of companies
around defined medical conditions which enable knowledge synergies
thus enhancing innovation in research and commercial realization.
At present, BioLight's portfolio includes 10 technologies divided
into two disease-oriented clusters one of which focuses on cancer
diagnostics and the other cluster focused on glaucoma & Dry Eye
syndrome.
For more information please visit the Company's website at
www.bio-light.co.il
CONTACT: ViSci Ltd.
Keren Leshem
Keren@bio-light.co.il
+972 54 4564999