Bayer and Regeneron to develop VEGF Trap for neovascular eye diseases

German pharmaceutical firm Bayer Healthcare, which is part of the Bayer group, and US drugmaker Regeneron Pharmaceuticals say they have entered into an agreement to develop the latter's vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) trap as a treatment for eye diseases. The deal, which also covers the agent's commercialization in all regions outside the USA, will seek to create locally administered-therapies for a range of indications, including wet age-related macular degeneration, diabetic eye disease and other neovascular disorders.

VEGF Trap targets angiogenesis

Bayer explained that the agent is a fully-human soluble protein that binds VEGF and prevents its interaction with cell surface receptors, thereby reducing the abnormal development of fragile new blood vessels at the back of the eye. Such vessels are thought to be involved in the gradual vision loss that is associated with a number of ocular conditions. The firm added that, at present, it is thought that around three million people worldwide suffer from wet AMD.