Date: 2016-03-07
Type of information: Company acquisition
Acquired company: Genable Technologies (Ireland)
Acquiring company: Spark Therapeutics (USA - PA)
Amount: undisclosed
Terms: * On March 7, 2016, Spark Therapeutics announced that it has acquired Dublin, Ireland-based Genable Technologies, a private gene therapy innovator with which Spark has collaborated since 2014 in the development of Genable's therapeutic program targeting one of the most prevalent forms of inherited retinal disease (IRD). The consideration paid to Genable shareholders consisted of $6 million in cash and 265,000 shares of Spark common stock. Additional financial terms were not disclosed.
Details: With the acquisition, Spark acquires RhoNova™, a potential treatment targeting rhodopsin-linked autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa (RHO-adRP). Using an adeno-associated virus (AAV) vector developed and manufactured at Spark, RhoNova™ is designed to both suppress the expression of a faulty gene and deliver normal copies of the RHO gene to restore normal expression. RhoNova™ has been granted Orphan Drug Designation in both the U.S. and Europe in addition to the Advanced Therapy Medicinal Product designation from the European Medicines Agency. There is currently no approved pharmacologic treatment for RHO-adRP, which affects an estimated 12,000 patients in the United States and the five major European markets (EU5).
Related: Gene therapy Ophtalmological diseass
