ALPHARETTA, Ga., July 09, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Clearside Biomedical, Inc. (NASDAQ:CLSD), a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing treatments that restore and preserve vision for people with serious eye diseases, today announced its entry into a worldwide licensing agreement with Aura Biosciences for the use of Clearside’s Suprachoroidal Space (SCS) Microinjector™ to deliver Aura’s proprietary drug candidates into the SCS for the potential treatment of certain ocular cancers, including choroidal melanoma.
Aura is developing a novel class of therapies, viral nanoparticle conjugates, designed to selectively bind and eliminate cancer cells without damaging surrounding normal tissues. Aura is licensing Clearside’s proprietary SCS Microinjector as a potential non-surgical alternative to intravitreal delivery of Aura’s proprietary anti-cancer drug candidates, which may enable the delivery of higher concentrations using a lower dose to the choroid and adjacent areas. If the collaboration proves successful following preclinical and proof-of-concept studies, Aura may utilize the SCS Microinjector for certain future development programs.
“Clearside is committed to expanding the global reach of our SCS injection platform, and this collaboration with Aura broadens the use of our technology into the ocular oncology space,” said George Lasezkay, Pharm.D., J.D., Interim Chief Executive Officer and Board Member of Clearside. “Drug delivery to the SCS potentially offers several key advantages compared to intravitreal, periocular or subretinal injections, including repeatable, non-surgical drug administration to the SCS and target tissues in the retina and choroid, avoidance of non-targeted tissues, and strong bioavailability and durability. We believe Aura is an ideal partner for our targeted SCS Microinjector that has the potential to optimize dosing and administration of their ocular anti-cancer drug candidates, with the goal of bringing promising new treatments to patients suffering from ocular cancers such as choroidal melanoma.”
Pursuant to the licensing agreement, Clearside is eligible to receive payments related to pre-specified development, regulatory and sales milestones, as well as royalties on product sales that utilize the SCS Microinjector.
About Clearside Biomedical
Clearside Biomedical, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing treatments that restore and preserve vision for people with serious eye diseases. Clearside’s proprietary Suprachoroidal Space (SCS) Microinjector™ offers unprecedented access to the back of the eye where sight-threatening disease often occurs. The Company’s SCS injection platform is an inherently flexible, in-office, non-surgical procedure, intended to work with established medications, new formulations of medicines, as well as future therapeutic innovations such as gene therapy. Clearside is headquartered in Alpharetta, GA. For more information, please visit www.clearsidebio.com.
