Novartis and GenVec gene therapy enters Phase I/II
Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS; SIX:NOVN) has dosed the first patient in a Phase I/II trial of CGF166 to treat severe hearing loss. The trial start triggers a $3 million milestone payment to GenVec Inc. (NASDAQ:GNVC), which granted Novartis exclusive, worldwide rights to GenVec's preclinical hearing loss and balance disorders program in 2010 (see BioCentury, Jan. 10, 2010).
Including the latest milestone, GenVec has received $10.6 million in upfront and milestone payments from Novartis and is eligible for an additional $203 million in remaining milestones, plus royalties. The next milestone payment would be triggered by the start of a Phase IIb trial of CGF166. The product is atonal homolog 1 ( ATOH1; HATH1) delivered to the inner ear using adenovector technology. ...