(Sharecast News) - N4 Pharma announced a significant development through its subsidiary Nanogenics on Tuesday, after Nanogenics inked a contract to initiate the formulation and sequence selection work for its ECP105 product, aimed at pre-clinical studies at King's College, London.
The AIM-traded firm said ECP105, designed for the post-surgical treatment of glaucoma, has a proprietary siRNA sequence designed to silence the fibrotic gene MRTF-B.
For glaucoma patients who had not responded to conventional medication and required surgery to lower intraocular pressure, fibrosis at the surgery site could be a recurring issue.
That fibrosis often results in the failure of the initial surgery, necessitating additional surgical procedures.
ECP105 offered a potential solution, the company claimed, by being administered via injection into the ocular cavity, effectively switching off the gene responsible for fibrosis.
Importantly, ECP105 distinguishes itself from current off-label treatments involving toxic chemotherapy drugs as it is designed for repeat use to prevent the need for further surgeries.
The upcoming work would revolve around the development and testing of a novel formulation containing Nanogenics' proprietary siRNA sequence.
It said the work aimed to undertake a proof-of-concept in-vivo study demonstrating that a single dose of ECP105 could match the anti-fibrotic effects achieved by the current post-surgical treatment using Mitomycin C, but without the associated cytotoxic side effects.
The advancement held promise for improved treatment outcomes for glaucoma patients and potentially paves the way for a safer and more effective approach to post-surgical care in this field.
"We are very excited for the potential of ECP105, which is a unique product for an unmet clinical need in the ophthalmology market," said chief executive officer Nigel Theobald.
"More than 75 million people worldwide are affected by glaucoma and the total glaucoma treatment market size in 2021 exceeded $5.5bn and is growing.
"A novel product in this space alone represents a good opportunity for Nanogenics and importantly the antifibrotic siRNA sequence can also be used to investigate other fibrotic treatments for liver and lung fibrosis."
At 1308 GMT, shares in N4 Pharma were down 15.78% at 0.95p.
Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.
N4 Pharma Plc (N4P)