Auritec receives funding for the development of intravitreal corticosteroids
Pasadena, CA. March 7, 2006
Auritec Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is pleased to announce the receipt of a Phase 1 Small Business Innovation Research grant sponsored by the National Institutes of Health. The grant will fund work to reduce or eliminate blindness due to diseases of the back of the eye.
The long term goal of this research is to reduce or eliminate blindness due to diseases of the back of the eye by developing sustained release intravitreal injectable formulations for anti-inflammatory drugs. In previous work, supported in part through SBIR Phase 1 and 2 funding, the PI has developed the Vitrasert® sustained release implant approved by the FDA for the treatment of CMV retinitis in 1995, and the Retisert™ sustained release implant currently under NDA review by the FDA .
The specific aims of this proposal are to formulate sustained release suspensions of fluocinolone acetonide, test the in vitro release characteristics of these formulations into buffer, and test the in vivo pharmacokinetics and the safety of the formulations after intravitreal injection in the rabbit.
Auritec is pleased to continue its collaboration with Dr. Roger Jelliffe, MD. Dr. Jelliffe is a Professor of Medicine and the Director of the Applied Pharmacokinetics Laboratory at the University of Southern California. He is the primary author and developer of the USC*PACK Clinical Pharmacokinetics Computer Program. He has published extensively on clinical pharmacokinetics. Dr. Jelliffe is on the editorial boards of journals in the fields of therapeutic drug monitoring and computers in medicine. He was Chairman of the Pharmacometrics Section of the American Society for Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics and is a recipient of the Award for Research Achievement in Clinical Medicine from the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists.
Auritec is pleased to continue its collaboration with Brian Gilger DVM, MS, DACVO. Dr Gilger is a Professor of Ophthalmology at North Carolina State University. His areas of expertise are ocular immunology, inflammation and ocular drug delivery. He has published extensively in these fields and has collaborated with the principal investigator in the past to develop the cyclosporine intraocular implant, which has demonstrated efficacy in equine recurrent uveitis. He will advise on basic aspects of immunology.
Auritec Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a small company based in Pasadena, California, specializing in innovative, extended release drug delivery systems. Auritec was founded by Thomas J Smith, MD and Gary Ransom. Dr Smith was previously Medical Director and Chairman at Control Delivery Systems, Inc. (CDS), where he was the co-founder, PI on key patents and remains a significant shareholder. Dr Smith is joined on Auritec's management team by Gary Ransom, a seasoned international business executive, who focuses on strategy, marketing and business development.
Auritec has developed a novel approach to extended release drug delivery with implications so far for indications including schizophrenia, Parkinson’s disease, arthritis, herpes and HIV/AIDS. Auritec’s primary objective is to develop and test the use of its Plexis platforms in a wide range of drug classes, and subsequently license the technology to key partners to continue development, trials and eventual commercialization.