Novartis to Buy Gyroscope Therapeutics, Securing Ocular Gene Therapy

Novartis announced that it will acquire the UK-based ocular gene therapy company Gyroscope Therapeutics, giving Novartis a one-time gene therapy for geographic atrophy (GA), a leading cause of blindness.

The purchase deal will include an upfront payment of $800 million and potential additional milestone payments of up to $700 million.

Gyroscope is developing GT005, an investigational gene therapy for GA secondary to age-related macular degeneration (AMD). The disease, which leads to progressive and irreversible vision loss., affects about 8 million people and has no approved treatments, making it one of the most significant unmet needs remaining in retinal diseases, Novartis said.