Boehringer Ingelheim, the UK Cystic Fibrosis Gene Therapy Consortium (GTC), Imperial Innovations, and Oxford BioMedica have formed a partnership for development of an inhaled therapy designed to introduce a healthy copy of the CFTR gene into lung cells. Boehringer Ingelheim will finance the development and has acquired the option to license exclusive global development, manufacturing, and commercialization rights to the gene therapy for an undisclosed amount.
The GTC – which includes teams from Oxford University, Imperial College London, and the University of Edinburgh – will work with Boehringer Ingelheim on formulation, pre-clinical, and early clinical development. Oxford BioMedica will manufacture the replication-deficient lentiviral vector that will be used to deliver the gene. Technology transfer services are being provided by Imperial Innovations, the technology transfer office of Imperial College London.
GTC Coordinator Professor Eric Alton of Imperial College London, commented, “It is with great pleasure that we now join forces with two world-class organizations. Boehringer Ingelheim will provide its multinational industry expertise, including a rich heritage in the respiratory field, to drive the product towards the clinic, whilst Oxford BioMedica is the acknowledged leader in the field of lentiviral vector manufacturing. The GTC believes that this partnership provides CF patients with the optimal chance to establish gene therapy as routine clinical practice, relevant to all patients, irrespective of their mutation status, and in due course to both prevent lung disease as well as treat established problems.”
Oxford BioMedica CEO John Dawson said, “This novel three-way partnership brings together an unparalleled combination of clinical, scientific, manufacturing and commercial skills in an effort to develop new treatments and make a major contribution to the lives of patients affected by cystic fibrosis. The GTC has been working determinedly for over 15 years to get to this exciting point of forming a partnership with Boehringer Ingelheim, a global pharmaceutical company with respiratory expertise. Our contribution to this partnership reaffirms our leading position in the development and manufacturing of lentiviral vector gene therapy products at large scale. We look forward to working with our new academic and industry partners.”
Boehringer Ingelheim Senior Corporate VP, Discover Research Clive R. Wood said, “Through this collaboration, we are joining forces with some of the top talents in this disease space to propel treatment advances forward. Bringing together our existing expertise as a leader for nearly a century in the discovery and development of therapies that have advanced patient care in respiratory diseases with the gene therapy knowledge of our partners, we aim to unlock unprecedented opportunities for patients with this devastating disease, who are desperately waiting for better treatment options.”
Read the Boehringer Ingelheim press release.
