OliX Pharmaceuticals said on Wednesday that it completed the first patient registration for phase 1 clinical trials of the dry and wet macular degeneration treatment OLX301A and will soon administer the drug to patients.

OliX Pharmaceuticals said on Wednesday that it completed the first patient registration for phase 1 clinical trials of the dry and wet macular degeneration treatment OLX301A and will soon begin to administer doses to patients.
OliX Pharmaceuticals said on Wednesday that it completed the first patient registration for phase 1 clinical trials of the dry and wet macular degeneration treatment OLX301A and will soon begin to administer doses to patients.

OliX is the first Asian company to advance its proprietary RNA interference (RNAi) technology platform into the clinic to treat skin, eye, and lung diseases.

In August, OliX received approval from the FDA for the phase 1 clinical trial plan of OLX301A. The phase 1 trial will include up to 60 patients with severe senile macular degeneration at multiple designated clinical trial sites in the U.S. The company plans to check the safety and drug resistance of OLX301A after administering the therapeutic substance once or repeatedly to patients.

Generally, phase 1 clinical trials aim to evaluate the safety and tolerability of the substance in healthy patients. However, due to the nature of the treatment, which requires the therapeutic substance to be administered intraocularly, the phase 1 trial will be conducted in patients who have already been diagnosed with senile macular degeneration and have received intraocular injection therapy, an OliX official explained.

In 2020, OliX signed a contract to transfer global copyrights, excluding Asia-Pacific to Théa Open Innovation, a French ophthalmology company, for eye disease treatment programs, including OLX301A, for up to 900 billion won ($709 million). Accordingly, OliX received milestone technology fees -- the fees exclusive of sales and other taxes for the development of a project deliverable -- for the entry of OLX301A into phase 1 clinical trials from Théa in September.

"As it has shown excellent efficacy in preclinical tests, we also expect good results in clinical trials," OliX CEO Lee Dong-ki said. “We look forward to successfully completing the U.S. clinical trial of OLX301A, which is expected to provide new treatment alternatives for patients around the world suffering from dry and wet macular degeneration."

 

 

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