MeiraGTx (MGTX) $200M deal with Hologen AI for Parkinson's therapy

 

 

 

 

 

 

IPO: June 8, 2018

Hologen AI commits up to $430M to help take MeiraGTx's Parkinson's gene therapy through phase 3 and beyond

MeiraGTx will partner with Hologen AI to leverage its multimodal generative AI (genAI) models to accelerate Phase III development of the biotech's AAV-GAD gene therapy for Parkinson’s disease. 

The therapy, dubbed AAV-GAD, delivers a gene that codes for the enzyme that makes the neurotransmitter GABA, which is implicated in the characteristic motor dysfunction of Parkinson’s. A small-scale phase 2 readout last October showed that AAV-GAD was able to improve patients' motor ability and quality of life.

Details of the agreement 

MeiraGTx will receive an upfront cash payment of $200 million from Hologen, and together, the partners will launch a joint venture called Hologen Neuro AI. The genAI firm will also contribute $230 million in funding for the JV, which will shepherd AAV-GAD through development to commercialisation. The capital will help support other early-stage clinical programmes targeting the central nervous system (CNS), such as AAV-BDNF for genetic obesity. 

MeiraGTx will retain 30% ownership in Hologen Neuro AI and take the lead on all clinical development and manufacturing. It will form exclusive clinical and commercial manufacturing supply agreements with the JV. 

In turn, Hologen will use its genAI tech to optimise MeiraGTx's manufacturing practices, while gaining a minority stake in the manufacturing subsidiary and contributing to annual funding. 

About Hologen 

Hologen Limited is a world-leading developer of generative AI capabilities for clinical medicine and pharmaceutical drug development. 

The company emerged as a spin-out from University College London and Kings College London. It is privately held.

For more information, please visit www.hologen.ai