Eyestem’s Eyecyte RPE therapy aims to replace lost or damaged retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells
Eyestem, a cell therapy company has received approval from India’s Central Drugs Standards Control Organisation (CDSCO) to commence human trials for Eyecyte RPE, aimed at combating geographic atrophy arising from dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
Dr Jogin Desai, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Eyestem said, “The commencement of human trials represents a significant and proud moment for all of us at Eyestem. Being a purpose-driven company, our commitment is to ensure that Eyecyte RPE reaches a much larger patient base than most cell and gene therapies worldwide. Our cell therapy platform has the ability to create products of the highest quality at scale, and we look forward to validating this hypothesis with our flagship product.”
“We are delighted to be part of this pioneering effort in this area from our country. The LVP team is solidly behind this project and are optimistic about its success,” commented Dr Gullapalli N Rao, Chairman, Founder, L. V. Prasad Eye Institute, Hyderabad.
Dry AMD, a leading cause of vision loss in the ageing population of people over 50, has long been a challenge due to the limited availability of effective treatments and the high costs associated with emerging therapeutic options. However, Eyestem’s Eyecyte RPE therapy aims to replace lost or damaged retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells and preserve and potentially improve sight for patients in the early stages of dry AMD and arrest vision loss for those in the later stages.
“It is not every day that one can be associated with a true innovation that goes from bench to bedside. Today is a momentous day for us as we take the first iPSC-derived cell therapy solution from India onwards into the clinic,” added Dr Rajarshi Pal, Chief Scientist, Eyestem.
“There is no treatment for GA secondary to dry AMD anywhere in the world that can offer the potential of improvement in vision. I am hopeful that we will be able to demonstrate safety/efficacy for our product and eventually bring succour to millions of patients in India and abroad,” remarked Dr Rajani Battu, Chief Medical Officer, Eyestem.
- Advertisement -