Applied Genetic Technologies gets $2M for gene therapy
Applied Genetic Technologies, an Alachua, Fla., gene-therapy developer, received a $2 million milestone payment from Genzyme.
The two companies are jointly developing a gene therapy for treating a form of blindness called age-related macular degeneration. The treatment uses an adeno-associated virus designed to deliver a gene to eye cells that, when activated, will disrupt a protein called VEGF that stimulates the growth of leaky blood vessels that contribute directly to blindness.
The milestone payment covered the successful transfer of AGT’s adeno-associated virus production technology to Genzyme. The gene-therapy treatment doesn’t appear to be ready for clinical trials yet.
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About the Author, David P. Hamilton
David Hamilton has been writing for VentureBeat LifeScience since April 2007. He formerly spent 14 years as a reporter for the Wall Street Journal in its San Francisco and Tokyo bureaus. Prior to that, he spent several years as a reporter at Science Magazine and as a reporter/researcher for the New Republic, both in Washington.
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