The FINANCIAL — Bayer HealthCare has entered into an exclusive collaboration with Inception Sciences, Inc. and Versant Ventures, according to Bayer AG.
Inception Sciences and Bayer will jointly conduct early research in the area of ophthalmology, in a newly created company called “Inception 4”. The goal of this new alliance is to develop treatment options, focused on a novel target and pathway, for patients with eye diseases, such as wet age-related macular degeneration and geographic atrophy.
“We are excited to collaborate with Inception Sciences on the development of novel therapeutic agents in ophthalmology,” said Prof. Andreas Busch, Head of Global Drug Discovery and Member of the Executive Committee of Bayer HealthCare. “Bayer is strongly committed to expanding its research efforts in the area of ophthalmology. In addition to this collaboration, numerous substances addressing retinal eye diseases are currently investigated in early research stages at Bayer. Furthermore, we are working on a promising novel drug candidate with an alternative mode of delivery as an eye drop. If successfully developed and later on approved, this could provide a convenient treatment option for patients suffering from wet age-related macular degeneration,” he addded.
“We are looking forward to partnering with Bayer and we share their enthusiasm for pursuing new pathways to address important medical needs in the field of ophthalmology,” said Peppi Prasit, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer at Inception Sciences. “Our partnership exemplifies the Build-to-Buy model for collaboration between Versant, Inception, and pharma partners for translating academic discoveries,” Prasit added.
Under the collaboration agreement the partners will pursue an early research project by leveraging Inception Science’s capabilities and combining scientific expertise in the newly created company Inception 4 with the aim to jointly develop novel therapeutic agents in the area of ophthalmology. Versant Ventures will provide equity funding to Inception 4 and Bayer will support the collaborative project through milestone payments. In addition, Bayer will have an exclusive option to acquire Inception 4 under certain conditions as part of the Build-to-Buy model, according to Bayer AG.
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