CAMBRIDGE, Mass.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Aviceda Therapeutics, a private clinical-stage biotech company focused on developing next-generation immunomodulators by harnessing the power of glycobiology to alleviate chronic, non-resolving inflammation, announced today the formation of its European Clinical Advisory Board (CAB) made up of top internationally recognized thought leaders in retina to provide strategic consultation on the company’s clinical development of its lead asset, AVD-104, for the treatment of geographic atrophy (GA) secondary to age-related macular degeneration (AMD). The Company also announced that Tarek S. Hassan, MD will serve as Chair of the European and US CABs.
Inaugural members of the European CAB include:
Frank Holz, MD
- Professor and Chair, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Bonn, Germany
- Co-founder, German Research Foundation Priority Program for AMD & GRADE Reading Center
- Board of the German Ophthalmological Society
- Past President, EURETINA
Ursula Schmidt-Erfurth, MD
- Professor and Chair, Department of Ophthalmology and Optometry, Medical University of Vienna, Austria
- Strategical Head, Vienna Reading Center
Jordi Monés, MD, PhD
- Director, Institut de la Màcula, Barcelona, Spain
- Director, Principal Investigator and Founder of the Barcelona Macula Foundation: Research for Vision
Anat Loewenstein, MD, MHA
- President, Israeli Ophthalmology Society
- Vice Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and Sidney Fox Chair of Ophthalmology, Tel Aviv University, Israel
- Chairman, Ophthalmology Sourasky Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel
- President-elect, EURETINA
Usha Chakravarthy, FRCOphth, PhD, CBE
- Professor of Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences, Royal Victoria Hospital and Queens University of Belfast, Northern Ireland
- Awarded Commander of the British Empire (CBE) for services to ophthalmology
Adnan Tufail, MB, BS, MD, FRCOphth
- Professor of Ophthalmology, University College London
- Consultant Ophthalmologist, Medical Retina Service, Moorfields Eye Hospital, London, United Kingdom
“We are honored to welcome such outstanding renowned experts in clinical and academic retina to support and guide expansion of our clinical programs with AVD-104 to Europe and across the globe to bring next-generation efficacy and safety to patients with GA secondary to AMD,” said Tarek S. Hassan, M.D., Aviceda’s Chief Development Officer.
“We are excited that results from Part 1 of the US Phase 2/3 SIGLEC trial demonstrated functional and anatomic improvement in eyes with GA secondary to AMD after a single injection of AVD-104,” said Mohamed Genead, M.D., Aviceda’s Co-founder and CEO. “With the contributions and support of this esteemed panel—and with Dr. Hassan as its chair—we look forward to bringing our clinical efforts to Europe later this year.”
About Aviceda Therapeutics and AVD-104
Aviceda is a clinical-stage biotech company focused on developing novel glyco-immune therapeutics by harnessing the body’s natural immune system to modulate inflammation by using highly selective ligands designed to have maximum specificity towards target immune cells and diseases. Aviceda’s lead clinical-stage ophthalmic candidate, AVD-104, was developed from the Company’s proprietary HALOS™ nanotechnology platform and is under investigation for the treatment of GA secondary to AMD. AVD-104 is a promising intravitreal glycan-coated nanoparticle with a dual mechanism of action that modulates critical inflammatory cellular and complement pathways through 1) direct inhibition of damaging phagocytic/inflammatory macrophages, resolution of neovascular VEGF-producing macrophages, and repolarization of activated microglia to their neuroprotective resolution state; and 2) inhibition of complement cascade amplification. Topline results from Part 1 of the Company’s Phase 2/3 SIGLEC trial, which is evaluating AVD-104 in patients with GA secondary to AMD, have been released and can be read here. Part 2 of SIGLEC, which is a double-masked, randomized, active comparator trial, is actively enrolling patients, with topline data expected in 2024 and early 2025. Part 2 of SIGLEC will enroll approximately 300 patients across the United States.
