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New spin-out company to develop precision treatments
CERA’s newest spin out company Adara Bio is forging key partnerships to support its work to develop precision treatments for blindness caused by inherited retinal disease (IRD).
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Adara Bio was founded by CERA’s Head of Genetic Engineering Research Professor Guei-Sheung (Rick) Liu in collaboration with ophthalmology company Medic Vision AI Australia, the Australian subsidiary of Medigen, a listed Taiwanese pharmaceutical company.
The company is now aiming to translate Professor Liu’s next generation gene therapy research into an RNA-editing platform with the potential to create precision gene therapies for inherited retinal diseases.
The work will be conducted in Professor Liu’s genetic engineering laboratory at CERA in Melbourne.
This week at BIO Asia the company announced a collaboration with viral vector manufacturer TFBS Bioscience to support its pre-clinical research.
This collaboration combines Adara Bio’s expertise in innovative gene therapy development with TFBS Bioscience’s extensive experience in viral vector development and GMP manufacturing.
Adara Bio Chair Mr Jitto Arulampalam said Adara Bio looked forward to developing its proprietary gene therapy platform to help restore sight for patients with an inherited retinal disease (IRD).
“We believe this collaboration will help accelerate the commercialisation of Adara Bio’s gene therapy products, enabling us to bring meaningful benefits to patients sooner,’’ he said.
Pictured above (L-R): Australian representative in Taipei, Robert Fergusson; Adara Bio Chair Jitto Arulampalam; Chairman and CEO TFBS Bioscience Dr Tatung Yuan, and Director of Biotechnology and Pharmaceutical Industies Promotion Office Dr Michael Huang.
RNA editing and IRDs
Globally more than 4 million people are living with IRDs which are the leading cause of blindness among working age adults.
Until recently, these diseases were considered incurable but advances in gene therapy research have provided great potential for new treatments to prevent blindness and restore sight.
The traditional approach to ocular gene therapy involves replacing a missing or defective gene which causes blindness, with a correct copy delivered via an injection to the eye in a safe viral vector.
However, the vast genetic diversity of inherited retinal diseases – with more than 300 gene mutations known to cause blindness – has slowed down the pace at which new treatments can be developed.
There is also the added challenge that many large genes – such as those that cause Usher syndrome and some forms of retinitis pigmentosa – do not fit into the viral vectors that are used in traditional gene therapy.
Adara Bio aims to overcome these challenges by creating a RNA editing platform, EDITRA – which can target multiple gene mutations with one core editor.
Professor Liu said Adara’s EDITRA platform is capable of correcting nearly a quarter of the point mutations known to cause inherited retinal diseases.
“Because we are editing RNA rather than replacing whole genes, the size of the gene will not be a barrier to developing a treatment,’’ he said.
Commitment to translation
CERA Managing Director Professor Keith Martin is the Chief Medical Officer of Adara Bio.
He said the establishment of CERA’s latest spin out company exemplified its approach to innovation and translating research from the lab to clinic.
“We are proud to support the establishment of Adara Bio and accelerate new treatments to people living with inherited retinal diseases,’’ he said.
“Adara Bio is the latest spin out company to be incubated at CERA and reflects commitment to making a difference for people living with eye disease.”