PolyActiva is collaborating with RareSight, Inc. to develop targeted therapeutics specifically designed for rare pediatric retinal diseases with no currently-approved treatments.
First, a look at RareSight.
This ophthalmic-based life sciences company is focused on accelerating the diagnosis of inherited retinal diseases (IRDs).
How: By exploring new treatment approaches in areas with not-yet-approved therapies via physician and “drug delivery innovator” partners.
- The goal: To design effective and practical therapies for pediatric patients that prevent early vision loss and enable life-long sight maintenance.
Interesting … now to PolyActiva.
PolyActiva is a clinical-stage ophthalmology company with a portfolio of investigational, next-generation ocular implants.
Intended for use as “safe and effective, fully biodegradable” therapies for a wide range of ocular diseases, these implants include:
- Latanoprost acid ocular implant (PA5108) for intraocular pressure (IOP) reduction caused by open-angle glaucoma (OAG) and ocular hypertension (OHT)
- Lead asset and new chemical entity (more on that later) designed for sustained IOP control up to 6 months with repeat dosing; currently undergoing phase 2b evaluation
- Levofloxacin ocular implant for reducing the risk of endophthalmitis following ocular (cataract) surgery
The purpose: To eliminate the need for daily eye drops.
And what technology are these implants based on?
That would be the company’s proprietary drug delivery platform, dubbed PREZIA.
What it does: Utilizes covalent bonding to attach therapeutic agents to a polymer— allowing for a precise, consistent, and fully customizable drug release over extended periods of time (think: 1 week to 1 year or more).
A couple of notes:
- Thanks to rapid biodegradation, the implant administration process can be repeated
- The technology enables single or multiple drug combinations tailored to a clinical indication
- Its adaptability also allows for therapies to be formulated as rod-shaped implants, injectable gels, or topical film
Check out a visual of this in action.
Now to this collaboration.
The companies’ agreement will reportedly utilize the PREZIA platform to provide “first-of-its-kind, new chemical entity (NCE)-eligible drug candidates” for patients with blinding ocular conditions.
To note: An NCE refers to a novel drug compound containing no active moiety (a molecule or ion responsible for a drug’s actions) that has previously received FDA approval
- This differs from the re-use of an existing drug for a different disease, a re-formulation of an existing drug, or a novel combination of existing drugs
So what do we know about these NCE-eligible drugs?
They'll be designed for intravitreal (IVT) administration as sustained-release, zero-order treatments intended directly for the retina (targeting IRDs).
Importantly, the companies emphasized that this approach will not require patient administration—a component described as “a key benefit for children and their caregivers.”
- The intent, as RareSight CEO and founder Carmen Caricchio noted, is advancing “a new class of long-acting pharmacologic therapies to address early-onset vision loss.”
Nice! And what’s the timeframe for the drugs’ clinical development?
Excellent question—and one we asked the companies.
PolyActiva shared plans to reach first-in-human milestones within approximately 2 years, pending completion of preclinical and regulatory readiness activities.
As for a specific target indication:
While the company isn't currently disclosing those details at this stage, it noted that its lead clinical program "targets a rare inherited retinal disease with supporting clinical evidence and a well-defined rare disease regulatory pathway—exactly the kind of area where our approach can make a real difference."
As always, stay tuned for updates on this!