The German startup revealed the alliance this past Wednesday. The collaboration is intended to create and market therapies for auditory impairment utilizing its Seamless gene editing platform.
The agreement allows Lilly access to its exclusive Seamless technology, empowering it to engineer specialized enzymes to rectify particular genetic mutations linked to hearing deficiencies.
These enzymes, referred to as programmed recombinases, are crafted to execute substantial and accurate alterations to DNA at rigorously specified locations without involving the cell’s inherent DNA mending processes.
Lilly will spearhead the advancement of the pharmaceuticals, spanning from preclinical assessments to their market launch.
“This provides an opportunity for us to collaborate on a platform with a partner, while concurrently furthering our own internal initiatives,” Seamless CEO Albert Seymour expressed to Reuters during an interview, noting that the business is receptive to analogous collaborations beyond the Lilly engagement.
Seymour indicated that the firm has secured in excess of $40 million in investment and, coupled with a preliminary payment from Lilly, possesses ample capital to usher its initial experimental medication into the laboratory by year’s end. The $1.12 billion transaction encompasses an initial sum, funding for research and development endeavors, and prospective remunerations upon achieving specified developmental and commercialization milestones.
Lilly has consistently been augmenting a collection of genetic pharmaceuticals for addressing diverse ailments via acquisitions and partnerships, aiming to expand growth beyond its leading weight management and diabetes solutions — Zepbound and Mounjaro.
The preceding year, the corporation allocated $1.3 billion to procure Verve Therapeutics to innovate gene-editing treatments geared towards diminishing cholesterol concentrations in individuals afflicted with cardiovascular disease.
Furthermore, in 2022, Lilly acquired Akouos for $487 million, gaining entry to its gene therapy prospect for hearing impairment. In 2024, the therapy exhibited auditory restoration in youngsters during an initial-to-intermediate-stage clinical study.
Source: Reuters