MeiraGTx Holdings has entered into a licensing agreement with Eli Lilly that could exceed $475 million, granting Lilly global rights to its experimental gene therapy for a rare inherited disorder that causes severe vision loss from birth.
Following the announcement, MeiraGTx shares rose 12.5% to $9.55 in premarket trading on Monday.
Under the deal, MeiraGTx will receive $75 million upfront, with the potential to earn over $400 million in milestone payments, along with tiered royalties on future licensed products. The agreement reflects Lilly’s continued push into ophthalmology and gene therapy, following its recent acquisition of Adverum Biotechnologies in a deal valued at up to $261.7 million.
MeiraGTx’s investigational treatment, AAV-AIPL1, targets one of the most severe forms of Leber congenital amaurosis type 4 (LCA4), caused by mutations in the AIPL1 gene. Delivered via subretinal injection in children, the one-time therapy is engineered to deliver a functional copy of the AIPL1 gene directly to retinal photoreceptors to help restore vision.
As part of the agreement, Lilly also gains exclusive global rights to MeiraGTx’s gene therapy technologies for ophthalmology, along with specific rights to its proprietary riboswitch technology for gene editing applications in the eye.
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