Per the agreement, the companies will co-develop and co-commercialize sustained pharmaceutical therapies and surgical devices for the treatment of glaucoma.
The agreement states that the two companies will conduct joint research for intraocular products using compounds from within DWTI’s ROCK (Rho Kinase) inhibitor library. There is potential for new compound synthesis for this collaboration.
DWTI will receive an upfront technology access fee and research support fees from Glaukos. If more compounds are identified, Glaukos holds the right to develop intracameral and topical products using the discovered drug candidates.
According to a press release on Glaukos’ website, Thomas Burns, CEO and president of Glaukos, said, “We are excited to commence the initial phase of the collaborative research effort to explore potential new compounds that may be used in our novel iDose drug delivery system in order to expand and improve the treatment of glaucoma.” Glaukos would not provide further comment.
iDose is a titanium implant filled with a formulation of travopost and capped with a membrane designed for continuous, controlled drug elution.
Glaucoma is a progressive and irreversible disease causing vision loss due to optic nerve damage. Currently, there are 5.4 million individuals in the US with Glaucoma.