Investors & Media

LONDON and NEW YORK, Oct. 16, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- MeiraGTx Holdings Plc (NASDAQ:MGTX), a vertically integrated, clinical stage gene therapy company, today announced that it has entered into a research collaboration and evaluation agreement with Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Janssen), one of the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson. The agreement was facilitated by Johnson & Johnson Innovation LLC. As part of the agreement, MeiraGTx will use their proprietary riboswitch technology to engineer regulatable gene therapy constructs encoding proprietary gene sequences from Janssen. Evaluation of the performance of these constructs will determine the utility of this approach in future product development.

MeiraGTx’s gene regulation platform is a potentially transformative technology that incorporates an on/off switch for gene expression into the gene therapy vector which can then be activated using a small molecule. In this way, gene therapies can be switched on and off according to the patients’ need and the dosing requirements of the therapy. Temporal control overlaying spatial regulation of gene expression has the potential to increase the utility and flexibility of gene therapy.

“We are excited to collaborate with the Janssen team on the next stage of development of our riboswitch technology, which has the potential to transform the field of gene therapy. Our gene regulation platform, based on RNA structure, was invented and developed entirely in-house at MeiraGTx and is a reflection of our commitment to ground-breaking science,” said Alexandria Forbes, Ph.D., president and chief executive officer of MeiraGTx.

Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

About MeiraGTx
MeiraGTx (NASDAQ:MGTX) is a vertically integrated, clinical stage gene therapy company with four ongoing clinical programs and a broad pipeline of preclinical and research programs. MeiraGTx has core capabilities in viral vector design and optimization and gene therapy manufacturing, as well as a potentially transformative gene regulation technology. Led by an experienced management team, MeiraGTx has taken a portfolio approach by licensing, acquiring and developing technologies that give depth across both product candidates and indications. MeiraGTx’s initial focus is on three distinct areas of unmet medical need: inherited retinal diseases, severe forms of xerostomia and neurodegenerative diseases. Though initially focusing on the eye, salivary gland and central nervous system, MeiraGTx intends to expand its focus in the future to develop additional gene therapy treatments for patients suffering from a range of serious diseases.

For more information, please visit www.meiragtx.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements contained in this press release that do not relate to matters of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding our development of regulatable gene therapy constructs with gene sequences from Janssen, as well as statements that include the words “expect,” “intend,” “plan,” “believe,” “project,” “forecast,” “estimate,” “may,” “should,” “anticipate” and similar statements of a future or forward-looking nature. These forward-looking statements are based on management’s current expectations. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, our incurrence of significant losses; any inability to achieve or maintain profitability, acquire additional capital, identify additional and develop existing product candidates, continue operating as a going concern, successfully execute strategic priorities, bring product candidates to market, build-out the manufacturing facility and processes, successfully enroll patients in and complete clinical trials, accurately predict growth assumptions, recognize benefits of any orphan drug designations, retain key personnel or attract qualified employees, or incur expected levels of operating expenses; failure of early data to predict eventual outcomes; failure to obtain FDA or other regulatory approval for product candidates within expected time frames or at all; the novel nature and impact of negative public opinion of gene therapy; failure to comply with ongoing regulatory obligations; contamination or shortage of raw materials; changes in healthcare laws; risks associated with our international operations; significant competition in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries; dependence on third parties; risks related to intellectual property; litigation risks; and the other important factors discussed under the caption “Risk Factors” in our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended June 30, 2018 as such factors may be updated from time to time in our other filings with the SEC, which are accessible on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. These and other important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by the forward-looking statements made in this press release. Any such forward-looking statements represent management’s estimates as of the date of this press release. While we may elect to update such forward-looking statements at some point in the future, unless required by law, we disclaim any obligation to do so, even if subsequent events cause our views to change. Thus, one should not assume that our silence over time means that actual events are bearing out as expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release.

Contacts

Investors:
MeiraGTx
Investors@meiragtx.com

or

Media:
W2O pure
Kelly Boothe, Ph.D. (415) 946-1076
kboothe@w2ogroup.com

Source: MeiraGTx