Competition
The biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries, including the gene therapy field, are characterized by intense and rapidly changing competition to develop new
technologies and proprietary products, and any product candidates that we successfully develop and commercialize will have to compete with existing therapies and new therapies that may become available in the future. While we believe that our
proprietary technology estate and scientific expertise in the gene therapy field provide us with competitive advantages, we face potential competition from many different sources, including larger and better-funded pharmaceutical, specialty
pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, as well as from academic institutions and governmental agencies and public and private research institutions that may develop potentially competitive products or technologies.
Currently there are no approved products for any of our lead orphan ophthalmology indications of ACHM and XLRP. We are aware of a number of companies focused
on developing gene therapies in various indications, including Adverum Biotechnologies Inc., Akous, Allergan plc, Apic Bio, Inc., Axovant, Biogen Inc., bluebird bio, Inc., Decibel Therapeutics, Editas Medicine, Inc., 4D Molecular Therapeutics,
GenSight Biologics S.A., Gyroscope Therapeutics Limited, Hemera Biosciences, Limelight Bio, Inc., MeiraGTx Limited (partnered with Janssen Pharmaceuticals ), IVERIC bio, Oxford Biomedica plc, Passage Bio, Prevail Therapeutics, ProQR Therapeutics
N.V., REGENXBIO Inc., the Roche Group (acquiring Spark Therapeutics), Ultragenyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and uniQure N.V., as well as several companies addressing other methods for modifying genes and regulating gene expression. Any advances in gene
therapy technology made by a competitor may be used to develop therapies that could compete against any of our product candidates. For XLRP, 4D Molecular Therapeutics, MeiraGTx and Biogen are developing
AAV-based gene therapies and MeiraGTx also has competing programs in ACHM-B3 and ACHM-A3. We believe that these companies and
others could be planning to initiate clinical trials in the future that have the potential to be competitive with AGTCs programs. We further believe that the key competitive factors that will affect the success of our product candidates, if
approved, are likely to be their efficacy, safety, convenience of administration and delivery, price, the level of generic competition, market exclusivity and the availability of reimbursement from government and other third-party payors.
Government Regulation
Biological products, including
gene therapy products, are subject to regulation under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, or FD&C Act, and the Public Health Service Act, or PHS Act, and other federal, state, local and foreign statutes and regulations. Both the FD&C
Act and the PHS Act and their corresponding regulations govern, among other things, the testing, manufacturing, safety, efficacy, labeling, packaging, storage, recordkeeping, distribution, reporting, advertising and other promotional practices
involving biological products. Before clinical testing of biological products may begin, we must submit an IND which must go into effect, and each clinical trial protocol for a gene therapy product candidate is reviewed by the FDA. FDA approval of a
BLA also must be obtained before marketing of biological products in the United States. The process of obtaining regulatory approvals and the subsequent compliance with appropriate federal, state, local and foreign statutes and regulations require
the expenditure of substantial time and financial resources and we may not be able to obtain the required regulatory approvals.
Within the FDA, the
Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, or CBER, regulates gene therapy products. CBER works closely with the NIH, both of which may engage in a public discussion of scientific, safety, ethical and societal issues related to proposed and
ongoing gene therapy protocols. The FDA and the NIH have published guidance documents with respect to the development and submission of gene therapy protocols. The FDA also has published guidance documents related to, among other things, gene
therapy products in general, their preclinical assessment, observing subjects involved in gene therapy studies for delayed adverse events, potency testing, and chemistry, manufacturing and control information in gene therapy INDs, and gene therapy
products for rare diseases and retinal disorders.
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