Santen Pharmaceutical and Arctic Vision have signed a commercial collaboration agreement for the ARVN001 suprachoroidal injectable suspension, a treatment for uveitic macular oedema (UME) and other ocular conditions.
The agreement grants Santen exclusive commercialisation rights in China, excluding Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.
Arctic Vision will obtain up to $85m in upfront and milestone payments. The partnership aims to combine the strengths of both companies to serve UME patients and expand in the Chinese ophthalmology market.
Santen Pharmaceutical chief operating officer and board director Rie Nakajima said: “Through this partnership with Arctic Vision, an ophthalmic biotech company that continues to pioneer new developments, we will be able to bring this potentially first reimbursable UME treatment to patients in China.
“This partnership has the potential to create new opportunities for Santen to address unmet needs related to the posterior segment eye diseases in China.”
ARVN001, formulated for administration into the suprachoroidal space, is a suspension of triamcinolone acetonide.
Under the brand name XIPERE, it has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for UME treatment making it the first and only approved suprachoroidal therapy for this indication.
Bausch + Lomb holds the exclusive license for developing and commercialising XIPERE in Canada and the US regions.
Arctic Vision, which licensed ARVN001 from Clearside BioMedical for the Asia-Pacific regions, is currently under investigation for additional ocular retinal diseases.
ARVN001’s new drug application (NDA) is under review in Singapore and Australia for treating UME.
Arctic Vision founder, chair, and CEO Dr Eddy Wu said: “ARVN001 is the first and only suprachoroidal space injection therapy for UME in China, and Arctic Vision has made great efforts moving the programme from clinical trial to NDA [new drug application] stage.”
The patented suprachoroidal space Microinjector technology from Clearside Biomedical is crucial for delivering the drug to the suprachoroidal space, allowing for better dispersion and long-lasting effects while reducing the damage to other eye parts.
Uveitis is caused by the inflammation of the uveal tract, which can lead to impaired vision.
