The acquisition of Audentes Therapeutics by Astellas could give Audentes’ gene therapy program a boost. Audentes filed a US Investigational New Drug application (IND) for AT845 earlier this year. This was an important step before moving this treatment for Pompe disease toward clinical trials. Once that application works its way through the FDA, this development should provide Audentes with additional resources to move into a Phase 1/2 study.
“Recent scientific and technological advances in genetic medicine have advanced the potential to deliver unprecedented and sustained value to patients, and even to curing diseases with a single intervention,” said Kenji Yasukawa, President and CEO, Astellas. “Audentes has developed a robust pipeline of promising product candidates which are complementary to our existing pipeline, including its lead program AT132 for the treatment of X-Linked Myotubular Myopathy (XLMTM). By joining together with Audentes’ talented team, we are establishing a leading position in the field of gene therapy with the goal of addressing the unmet needs of patients living with serious, rare diseases.”
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