Eyestem Submits An IND Application For Its Product To Treat Geographic Atrophy

Eyestem Research has announced that it has submitted an Investigational New Drug (IND) application to the Central Drugs Standards Control Organisation, India (CDSCO) to begin the first in-human trials of Eyecyte-RPE for subjects with medium- to late-stage geographic atrophy secondary to dry age-related macular degeneration (dry AMD). "We are excited to begin human trials for Eyecyte-RPE," said Dr Rajani Battu, Chief Medical Officer at Eyestem Research. Dry AMD is a huge disease burden, and this therapy has the potential to make a significant difference in the lives of our patients."

Dry AMD is the largest cause of incurable blindness in the world for patients over 50 years. 170 million people suffer from this disease around the world, 25 million of which are in India. These numbers will unfortunately increase in the coming decades as our population ages. The more severe version of dry AMD is geographic atrophy, and no therapy is available to arrest or reverse this loss of vision. Dr Jogin Desai, Chief Executive Officer, Eyestem Research, concluded, “Most cell and gene therapy products under development in the West are estimated to cost over $ 200,000. Our vision is to democratise access to such treatments at a fraction of these costs and begin disruption of the current status quo with our Eyecyte-RPE product.”