Abeona Therapeutics announces dedication of commercial gene therapy manufacturing facility in Cleveland, Ohio.
Abeona Therapeutics Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel gene and cell therapies for life-threatening rare diseases, announced the ground-breaking of the first anticipated commercial gene therapy manufacturing facility in Ohio.
The Cleveland-based facility, named The Elisa Linton Center for Rare Disease Therapies, will have the capacity to produce advanced gene and cell therapies to treat serious and debilitating rare diseases. The dedication and ground-breaking ceremony was held October 4.
“We are very excited to announce the creation of The Elisa Linton Center for Rare Disease Therapies, which will be a global resource for production of gene therapies with the potential to bring new treatments to rare disease patients around the world,” said Timothy J. Miller, Ph.D., President and CEO of Abeona Therapeutics. “It is especially fitting that this center is named for Elisa Linton, who was born with Sanfilippo syndrome, a rare terminal disease. The memory of Elisa and courage of her family continue to be a great inspiration to all members of the rare disease community.”
The Elisa Linton Center for Rare Disease Therapies will initially be used to produce ABO-101 and ABO-102, investigational gene therapies currently in development at Abeona for the treatment of patients with Sanfilippo syndrome, and EB-101, an investigational autologous cell therapy for the treatment of recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (RDEB), a rare and devastating skin disorder.
The center will also house Abeona’s expanded viral-vector lab, which will develop and produce unique and proprietary vectors used for the delivery of gene therapies. The 6,000 square foot center will be built-out and validated over the next 12 months.
“The Epidermolysis Bullosa Medical Research Foundation, along with the EB Research Partnership, is a longtime supporter of research that may help patients living with EB including the development of EB-101. The development of EB-101 is a great example of the progress we are making in EB research today,” said Paul Joseph, Chief Financial Officer of the Epidermolysis Bullosa Medical Research Foundation. “We are very pleased to support Abeona taking steps to establish a world-class gene therapy production facility that will bring new hope to people living with EB and other serious diseases and conditions.”
Several leaders from local government and life sciences were scheduled to attend the dedication ceremony of the center, including representatives from United States Senator Sherrod Brown’s office, Case Western Reserve University, BioEnterprise, MidTown Cleveland, Inc. and JumpStart Inc.
“(The) groundbreaking celebration represents another successful investment in Ohio innovation and manufacturing,” said Senator Brown. “It’s exciting to see investments in gene therapy treatments for rare diseases happening right here in Cleveland, helping to cement Ohio’s leadership in the healthcare and technology industries. (It) is another step forward for the health of rare disease patients and for the strength of the region’s economy.”
“We applaud Abeona’s decision to open a state-of-the-art gene therapy facility in Cleveland’s Health-Tech Corridor,” said Aram Nerpouni, President and CEO of BioEnterprise. “The Cleveland bioscience industry has grown remarkably in the past decade and Abeona’s investment is a potent example of our region’s momentum. We look forward to our ongoing relationship with Abeona and other emerging bioscience companies that continue to grow and strengthen our local economy.”
(Source: Abeona Therapeutics Inc.)
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