Nanoscope Therapeutics Enhances Vision Restoration Therapy with CatCh Technology License
Key Insights
Nanoscope Therapeutics (search) has licensed the CatCh (search) technology from Max Planck Innovation (search) to boost the light sensitivity of its MCO-010 gene therapy.
MCO-010, a tri-protein fusion complex, targets inherited retinal degenerative diseases like retinitis pigmentosa (search) and Stargardt disease (search), showing promise in clinical studies.
The CatCh (search) technology, integrated into MCO-010, enhances its light-activated properties, potentially improving vision restoration in various settings.
Nanoscope Therapeutics (search) Inc. has secured a license for the CatCh (search) technology from Max Planck Innovation (search), a move poised to enhance its MCO-010 gene therapy for inherited retinal diseases. This patented technology is designed to increase the light sensitivity of MCO-010, a tri-protein fusion complex, which Nanoscope is developing to restore vision in patients with genetically-caused visual impairments.
Nanoscope has already conducted successful clinical studies on MCO-010 for retinitis pigmentosa (search) (RP) and Stargardt disease (search), two leading inherited retinal degenerative diseases. The company is now seeking approval for the therapy and plans to expand its application to broader therapeutic indications.
MCO Platform and CatCh Technology
Dr. Samarendra Mohanty, Co-Founder & President of Nanoscope Therapeutics (search), highlighted the potential of the enhanced MCO platform, stating, "Our agreement with Max Planck Innovation (search) allows us to transform groundbreaking scientific discoveries into effective therapeutic solutions...we are on the cusp of treating patients with high unmet needs and sustainably improving their quality of life."
Dr. Mareike Göritz, Patent and Licensing manager at Max Planck Innovation (search), added, "The advanced properties of CatCh (search) in combination with Nanoscope's proprietary technology make this a very promising approach for gene therapy treatment of retinitis-related visual impairments."
The CatCh (search) (calcium-transporting channelrhodopsin) technology, developed by Prof. Ernst Bamberg and colleagues at the Max Planck Institute for Biophysics, is a mutant of Channelrhodopsin-2 with improved properties, offering faster kinetics and increased blue light sensitivity.
Therapeutic Application and Clinical Testing
The licensed CatCh (search) technology has been integrated by Nanoscope Therapeutics (search) as one of three subunits of the MCO-010 fusion protein. The MCO platform is also being tested in non-human primates with geographic atrophies (GA) secondary to advanced age-related macular degeneration (search) (AMD).
Nanoscope Therapeutics (search) is actively reviewing the development and approval pathway for MCO-010 and is in discussions with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to explore possible accelerated pathways to market.