New Eye Disease Treatments to be Developed and Marketed by Allergan, Molecular Partners Combo

US-based Allergan and Switzerland's Molecular Partners announced Tuesday their exclusive alliance to develop and market eye disease treatments worth up to 1.4 billion dollars (1.1 billion euros).

In addition to $62.5 million in upfront payments, Molecular Partners "is eligible to receive additional success-based payments, including up to $1.4 billion" for meeting development, regulatory and sales goals, as well as royalties on sales, the companies said in a statement.

Eye Pain - Symptom Evaluation
Eye pain usually follows trauma, eye infection or inflammation of the eye and the surrounding structures. The cause of eye pain can be diagnosed based on the type of pain and associated symptoms.

A first agreement is for cooperation on developing a treatment for age-related macular degeneration, a common cause of vision loss.

A second agreement is for the development of similar compounds that could treat other ophthalmic diseases.

Allergan will have three options to exclusively licence compounds developed out of their collaboration, paying Molecular Partners a fee and taking over further development and marketing.

Dry Eye - Symptom Evaluation
Dry eye may be due to a decrease in tear production, alteration of the tear consistency, or faster evaporation of the tears.

Zurich-based Molecular Partners is a privately-owned biotech company focusing on the research, development and commercialisation of small proteins called DARPins.

Allergan, the maker of the popular anti-wrinkle treatment Botox, has more than 10,000 employees in more than 100 countries.

LASIK Eye Surgery
LASIK is a type of laser procedure performed on the eye to correct refractive errors and presbyopia by reshaping the cornea.

Source-AFP

Routine Eye Examination
A comprehensive eye exam can take an hour or more, depending on the doctor and the number and complexity of tests required to fully evaluate vision and the health of the patient’s eyes.