ABCA subfamily

SAN DIEGO, April 29, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Belite Bio, Inc. (NASDAQ: BLTE), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical drug development company focused on advancing novel therapeutics targeting degenerative retinal diseases that have significant unmet medical needs, today announced that the Company will give two poster presentations at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) Annual Meeting being held May 4–8, 2025, in Salt Lake City, Utah. The presentations will highlight baseline patient characteristics from the ongoing DRAGON trial and pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties from the ongoing DRAGON II trial, both in Stargardt disease. Poster Presentations: Title: Baseline Characteristics of Adolescent Stargardt Disease Subjects Participating in a Phase 3 Study of Tinlarebant (DRAGON Trial)Presenting Author: Dr. Ruifang SuiPresentation Number: 1463Session Number: 215Session Title: Retinitis Pigmentosa and IRD ISession Date/Time: Monday, May 5, 8:30-10:15 a.m. MDT Title: Pharmacokinetic and Pharmacodynamic Properties of an Oral Investigational Treatment for Stargardt Disease in Adolescent Japanese PatientsPresenting Author: Dr. Kaoru FujinamiPresentation Number: 1431Session Number: 215Session Title: Retinitis Pigmentosa and IRD ISession Date/Time: Monday, May 5, 8:30-10:15 a.m. MDT About Tinlarebant (a/k/a LBS-008)Tinlarebant is a novel oral therapy that is intended to reduce the accumulation of vitamin A-based toxins (known as bisretinoids) that cause retinal disease in Stargardt Disease type 1 (STGD1) and also contribute to disease progression in geographic atrophy, or advanced dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Bisretinoids are by-products of the visual cycle, which is dependent on the supply of vitamin A (retinol) to the eye. Tinlarebant works by reducing and maintaining levels of serum retinol binding protein 4 (RBP4), the sole carrier protein for retinol transport from the liver to the eye. By modulating the amount of retinol entering the eye, Tinlarebant reduces the formation of bisretinoids. Tinlarebant has been granted Fast Track Designation and Rare Pediatric Disease designation in the U.S., Orphan Drug Designation in the U.S., Europe, and Japan, and Sakigake Designation in Japan for the treatment of STGD1. Stargardt Disease (STGD1)STGD1 is the most common inherited macular dystrophy (causing blurring or loss of central vision) in both adults and children. The disease is caused by mutations in a retina-specific gene (ABCA4), which results in progressive accumulation of bisretinoids leading to retinal cell death and progressive loss of central vision. The fluorescent properties of bisretinoids and the development of retinal imaging systems have helped ophthalmologists identify and monitor disease progression. Currently, there are no FDA approved treatments for STGD1. Importantly, the appearance of bisretinoids, followed by retinal cell death, and progressive loss of vision is also observed in geographic atrophy (GA) patients. Therefore, Belite Bio is evaluating safety and efficacy of Tinlarebant in GA patients in a 2-year Phase 3 study (PHOENIX). About Belite BioBelite Bio is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical drug development company focused on advancing novel therapeutics targeting degenerative retinal diseases that have significant unmet medical needs, such as Stargardt disease type 1 (STGD1) and Geographic Atrophy (GA) in advanced dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD), in addition to specific metabolic diseases. Belite’s lead candidate, Tinlarebant, an oral therapy intended to reduce the accumulation of toxins in the eye, is currently being evaluated in a Phase 3 study (DRAGON) and a Phase 2/3 study (DRAGON II) in adolescent STGD1 subjects and a Phase 3 study (PHOENIX) in subjects with GA. For more information, follow us on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook or visit us at www.belitebio.com. Media and Investor Relations Contact:Jennifer Wu ir@belitebio.com Julie Fallonbelite@argotpartners.com

Seven years into its existence, Character Biosciences is ready to enter the clinic with a pair of experimental medicines targeting a bustling area of ophthalmology. The New Jersey biotech aims to treat age-related macular degeneration, a key driver of blindness in older adults, based on insights from genetic and imaging data that it collected from more than 6,500 people in an observational study. To get its first candidates into Phase 1 this year, Character announced Tuesday that it raised a $93 million Series B. The biotech previously raised $28 million in funding, including an $18 million Series A in 2022. The financing should take the 30-employee startup through Phase 2 testing for both intravitreal drug candidates, CEO and co-founder Cheng Zhang told Endpoints News . Investors are aMoon, Luma Group, Bausch + Lomb, Jefferson Life Sciences (an affiliate of Jefferson River Capital), Innovation Endeavors, Catalio Capital Management, S32 and KdT Ventures. Character is the second private biotech to announce a funding round on Tuesday after Hillstar Bio revealed its $67 million debut . It’s rare right now to see more than one venture funding round announcement per day, according to a Stifel report on Sunday. The average number of biotech venture rounds per month has slid 10% from two years ago and cratered 40% from the vibrant market of four years ago, according to the Stifel bankers. Character chose its drug targets based on the patient data from the observational study, and the startup believes that wealth of data can also give it a better shot at clinical success because it can hone in on the patients most likely to respond to treatment. Plus, the company worked with more than 150 ophthalmology centers for the observational study, and it plans to use some of those sites for upcoming clinical trials. “It’s been a long journey. It’s taken seven years, in fact, but we didn’t want to make any shortcuts,” Zhang said. “We wanted to build a rigorous company that is rooted in the fundamental science of patient data.” The company is exploring CTX114 as a treatment to slow the progression of geographic atrophy in advanced dry AMD, an increasingly popular category for drugmakers. Astellas and Apellis Pharmaceuticals both received FDA approval for geographic atrophy therapies in 2023 but have since faced regulatory setbacks. Last year, Astellas withdrew its application in Europe, and Apellis’ treatment was rebuffed by the bloc’s regulators, who raised questions about clinical benefit and safety. Like Astellas’ Izervay and Apellis’ Syfovre, Character is also pursuing the complement pathway with CTX114 but is tackling a “different genetically supported” part, according to Zhang. CTX114 is an engineered version of FHL-1, or factor H-like protein 1, a negative regulator of complement activation. Izervay is a complement 5 inhibitor and Syfovre is a C3 inhibitor. The company hopes CTX114 can also offer a less-frequent dosing schedule than Izervay and Syfovre, which are dosed monthy and every 25 to 60 days, respectively. As part of its due diligence on Character, aMoon investors talked with practicing ophthalmologists about the GA landscape, including Izervay and Syfovre. “They said, ‘Look, the risk-benefit for both of these drugs is just not amazing,'” aMoon partner Reut Shema said in an interview. “They said, ‘But we have nothing else. So if you give me something that’s similar efficacy, but just a little bit safer, it’s a multibillion-dollar drug.'” Meanwhile, with CTX203, Character hopes to thwart a patient’s progression to advanced AMD. CTX203 is an apolipoprotein A1 mimetic peptide that aims to stabilize ABCA1 expression. Character is also working with Bausch + Lomb to create new medicines for AMD. The duo began collaborating early last year and announced that work in January. Financial terms have’t been disclosed. “We would love, at a certain time, to move from incidence-driven drug development into a population-specific drug development,” Bausch + Lomb chief medical officer Yehia Hashad said in an interview. Character wants its platform to decipher which patients will be responders from the outset — before even going into clinical studies. “The more we are able to predict patients and treat them prior to getting to the late-stage part of the disease, the better,” Hashad said. The Bausch + Lomb tie-up does not involve Character’s CTX114 or CTX203. “Those could be highly competitive assets,” aMoon’s Shema said, “and because there’s so much interest from pharma companies, we wanted to make sure that this was open territory for different pharmas to bid for those because we think both of them have potential to be multibillion-dollar drugs.” Shema pointed out that Character also has datasets in glaucoma, which could form the basis for additional partnerships.

Character Biosciences, a biotechnology startup developing treatments for vision loss, said Tuesday it raised $93 million in a Series B round.The financing will help Character bring its two most advanced programs into clinical testing. One, dubbed CTX114, is being tested in geographic atrophy, a common eye condition and an advanced stage of age-related macular degeneration, or AMD. The other, CTX203, is designed to halt progression in people with intermediate AMD, so they dont develop geographic atrophy or other forms of advanced disease. Both drug prospects should begin Phase 1 trials this year.In geographic atrophy, Character aims to challenge two marketed drugs Apellis Pharmaceuticals Syfovre and Astellas Pharmas Izervay. Both can slow the growth of the patchy, map-like eye lesions that create blind spots in people with geographic atrophy. However, testing hasnt clearly shown that doing so preserves vision. And in rare cases, Syfovre has been associated with severe side effects.Like Syfovre and Izervay, CTX114 works on the complement system, an arm of the bodys immune system. According to Character co-founder and CEO Cheng Zhang, CTX114 does so differently, mimicking the function of a protein that stops the complement system from overactivating, but that malfunctions in AMD. Preclinical testing has suggested the approach may be more effective, though that hasnt been proven in humans.Characters second drug is being developed for people who dont yet have advanced AMD and arent typically treated. CTX203 is designed to stabilize expression of a protein called ABCA1 thats involved in lipid transport by retinal cells. Lower ABCA1 levels are associated with an abnormal buildup of lipids that can lead to AMD progression.While there are many medications for wet AMD, drugmakers have had less success with the dry form that accounts for the bulk of the estimated 200 million people worldwide with the disease. Zhang says a big reason why is the diseases heterogeneity and varied progression, which makes it difficult to design clinical trials. Character has collected a trove of AMD patient data to help design its drugs and identify the specific groups of people it intends to enroll in studies.What gives us comfort is that we have mapped out those challenges, we have a deeper understanding of how we might mitigate those risks, Zhang said. We can subtype patients, understand those patients who are more likely to respond to our therapy, and have a drug that has more applications in the first place.Characters Series B round was led by aMoon and Luma Group, and involved Bausch + Lomb, Jefferson Life Sciences and four other investors. Bausch + Lomb also announced a collaboration with the biotech in January.Characters patient-first approach is unique in its ability to identify those who are most likely to benefit from therapy, and we look forward to seeing the clinical impact of this approach with the use of proceeds from this financing, Jamie Kasuboski, a partner and head of research at Luma Group, said in a statement.Character was formerly known as Clover Therapeutics, which was launched in 2019 by the health insurance firm Clover Health. The company previously raised an $28 million in funding, Zhang said. '