24 February 2023 - - US-based gene therapy company Lacerta Therapeutics, a specialist in the development of adeno-associated virus technologies for the treatment of central nervous system diseases, has inked a new AAV capsid licensing and research collaboration agreement with US-based pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly and Company's (NYSE: LLY) Prevail Therapeutics subsidiary, the company said.

The collaboration will focus on the discovery and development of novel AAV capsids for CNS diseases.

As a part of the collaboration, Prevail will receive rights to utilize one of Lacerta's novel AAV capsids for select undisclosed CNS targets.

In addition, Lacerta's proprietary AAV capsid platform will be utilized to discover and develop novel AAV capsids that are optimized to target desired CNS tissues and cell types.

The collaboration will leverage Lacerta's established expertise in AAV technologies and Prevail's development and clinical capabilities, with the goal of accelerating development of gene therapies for patients with neurodegenerative disorders.

Lacerta will lead capsid discovery, screening, and validation, while Prevail will complete preclinical and Investigational New Drug-enabling studies with therapeutic payloads.

Prevail will be responsible for all manufacturing, clinical development, and commercialization.

Under the terms of the agreement, Lacerta will receive an upfront payment and will be eligible for development and commercial milestones, as well as tiered royalties on future net sales of products that incorporate capsids covered under the collaboration.

Lilly will also provide Lacerta with new financing under the terms of a convertible promissory note agreement.

Lacerta Therapeutics is a fully-integrated gene therapy company that is focused on leveraging its proprietary capsid technology and scalable manufacturing platforms to advance adeno-associated virus based therapies via three primary approaches: gene replacement, gene modulation and novel vectorization of antibodies.