14 February 2018 - - South San Francisco, California-based biotechnology company Genentech, a member of the Roche Group (SIX: RO) (OTCQX: RHHBY) has released encouraging results from the Phase II BOULEVARD study of RG7716 for the treatment of diabetic macular edema (DME), the company said.
In people with vision loss from DME, treatment with intravitreal RG7716 resulted in clinically meaningful and statistically significant improvements in visual acuity gains compared with ranibizumab alone.
Key secondary and exploratory anatomical outcomes, reduction of central retina thickness and improvements in diabetic retinopathy severity scores, were supportive of the primary outcome.
RG7716 is the first known bispecific, monoclonal antibody specifically designed for the eye that simultaneously binds to and inactivates vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A) and Angiopoietin-2 (Ang-2). In DME, Ang-2 works synergistically with VEGF to drive biological pathways that cause vessel permeability and inflammation; both contribute to vascular instability which results in vision loss.
BOULEVARD assessed two doses of RG7716 (1.5 mg and 6 mg) versus ranibizumab standard of care (0.3 mg) given as monthly intravitreal injections.
Genentech is researching and developing new treatments for people living with a range of eye diseases that cause significant visual impairment and blindness, including neovascular age-related macular degeneration, diabetic macular edema, diabetic retinopathy, geographic atrophy and other retinal diseases. Genentech is also investigating platforms for sustained ocular drug delivery.