8/5/2004
Advanced Vision Therapies, Inc. Awarded Three Phase I SBIRs From NIH To Develop Therapies for Sight-Threatening Eye Diseases
BIOWIRE2K
ROCKVILLE, Md.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Aug. 5, 2004–Advanced Vision Therapies, Inc. (AVT) a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development and commercialization of novel therapies for the treatment of major sight-threatening eye diseases, announced today that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have awarded three independent Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) grants totaling $687,000. This support will advance AVT’s proprietary gene transfer technology toward clinical application for the treatment of prevalent eye diseases including age-related macular degeneration (AMD), diabetic retinopathy (DR), and retinitis pigmentosa (RP).
“We are extremely excited about these awards which validate our technology and demonstrate that our programs can stand up to rigorous peer review,” commented Michael Kaleko, MD, Ph.D., AVT’s President and CSO. Dr. Kaleko continued, “After cancer, blindness is the disease Americans fear most. AVT’s breakthrough technologies and therapeutic strategies have the potential to revolutionize the treatment of these diseases.”
The company’s core technology is a proprietary gene transfer system that is capable of delivering therapeutic proteins to the retina. Most importantly, a single treatment will provide sustained and potentially life-long therapy. The company’s first product will deliver a novel anti-angiogenic factor to eliminate the defective blood vessels that cause wet AMD and DR. The second product will deliver a newly discovered, first-in-class retinal nurturing factor to prolong the life of retinal cells to treat RP and dry AMD. AVT is uniquely positioned to successfully develop a strong pipeline of products for a broad spectrum of ocular diseases. The company has established proof of concept for its gene transfer technology and is rapidly moving towards clinical application.
AVT is located in the Maryland Technology Development Center, in Rockville, MD. In addition to the three SBIR awards, the company has received funding from Montgomery County, MD, the Maryland Technology Development Corporation, and the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development. Additional information on AVT is available at www.avtxinc.com.