– KRIYA-586 is designed to be a one-time treatment delivered by focal peribulbar injection, that encodes an antibody blocking the Insulin-Like Growth Factor 1 Receptor (IGF-1R), a clinically validated drug target in Thyroid Eye Disease (TED) –
– Kriya expects its TED gene therapy candidate to enter the clinic in 2025 –
PALO ALTO, Calif. and RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C., Jan. 05, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kriya Therapeutics, Inc., (Kriya) a biopharmaceutical company developing gene therapies for common diseases affecting millions of people around the world, today announced its gene therapy program for thyroid eye disease (TED), a debilitating autoimmune condition resulting in proptosis and diplopia, medical terms describing bulging of the eyes and double vision respectively, due to inflammation of the muscles and fat tissue behind the eye. TED affects approximately one million people in the United States and the European Union.
Kriya is developing KRIYA-586, a one-time, adeno-associated virus (AAV) gene therapy that drives durable expression of a monoclonal antibody that blocks IGF-1 receptors. The therapy is designed for in-office administration by peribulbar injection into the fat surrounding the eye, where cells are engineered to locally produce and secrete an antibody that blocks IGF-1 receptors on myocytes, adipocytes and fibroblasts. IGF-1R blockade has been established as a clinically validated mechanism of action, as evidenced by teprotumumab, the first and only FDA-approved therapy for TED. KRIYA-586 has been evaluated in multiple large animal species, and the company plans to present data from these studies at upcoming medical conferences.
"We believe that an in-office, focally administered gene therapy for TED would meaningfully improve the quality of life of people with TED, with the potential to durably address the disease following one-time injection,” said Shankar Ramaswamy, M.D., Co-Founder and CEO of Kriya. “Together with our gene therapy for geographic atrophy, today’s public announcement of our TED program reflects our deep commitment to advancing the field of ophthalmology by developing transformational gene therapies aimed at addressing common causes of vision loss and blindness.”
Kriya has designed its TED gene therapy candidate with the following goals:
- One-time, in-office peribulbar injection may minimize the treatment burden for patients
- Localized antibody expression in extraocular muscles and fat tissue may limit the potential for side effects that can be observed with systemically administered therapies
- Durable AAV-mediated antibody expression may deliver sustained improvements in proptosis and diplopia as well as other key manifestations of TED
Dr. Ramaswamy will present an overview of Kriya’s pipeline and platform at the J.P. Morgan 42nd Annual Healthcare Conference on Tuesday, January 9th at 9:00 AM PT in San Francisco, California.
About Thyroid Eye Disease (TED)
TED is an autoimmune disease that causes inflammation and enlargement of the muscles and fat tissue behind the eye. This results in proptosis and diplopia which can significantly impact quality of life of patients with TED. Teprotumumab is the only FDA approved therapy for the treatment of TED, and is an intravenously administered monoclonal antibody that works by blocking IGF-1 receptors. However, many patients who receive this systemically administered therapy experience severe side effects such as hearing loss and hyperglycemia as well as a loss of durability of effect despite initial responses. There is a need for safe and durable treatments that can address the approximately one million patients in the United States and the European Union who have TED.
About Kriya Therapeutics
Our mission is to revolutionize medicine, with the ultimate goal of eliminating human suffering and enabling people to live without the burden of disease. Kriya is a biopharmaceutical company developing gene therapies to address common diseases affecting millions of people around the world. With operations in Palo Alto, California and Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, Kriya has raised over $600 million, which will be used to advance a broad pipeline of gene therapies for ophthalmology, metabolic disease, and neurology. For more information, please visit www.kriyatx.com and follow us on LinkedIn and X.
