ALAMEDA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Science Corporation (“Science”), a leader in brain-computer interface (“BCI”) technology and the developer of the Science Eye, has acquired the IP and related assets for the PRIMA retinal implant, developed by Pixium Vision SA (“Pixium”) of France, a bioelectronics BCI technology company.
The transaction was announced in a Science blog post by CEO and co-founder Max Hodak, who said: “The PRIMA retinal implant, developed by Pixium and based on research done at Stanford University, shows great promise. The early clinical trial results we’ve seen are impressive. Together with the work being done at Science on the Science Eye, we now have two great opportunities to develop BCI technology for the potential restoration of vision in certain patients with severe vision loss. We are committed to bringing meaningful restoration of vision to patients as quickly as possible.”
Lloyd Diamond, outgoing CEO of Pixium, added: “I am thrilled to see our projects at Pixium going to Science, and in the hands of the outstanding scientists and engineers who are part of their team. I believe deeply in our past achievements and am grateful the PRIMA retinal implant will now have a home with people equally skilled and dedicated to helping patients. I know they are committed to seeing this work through and am especially thankful for the people who are part of the clinical trials.”
The acquisition was approved as part of a proceeding in the Paris Commercial Court, after Pixium was placed in liquidation. The terms of the deal were not announced.
Pixium’s PRIMA system features a miniaturized, wireless, subretinal implant (originally developed at Stanford University) paired with a pocket computer, and glasses. Pixium has three ongoing clinical studies: two feasibility trials, in France and in the United States, as well as the PRIMAvera pivotal study (NCT04676854) in Europe, for patients with severe vision loss due to retinal degeneration caused by the dry atrophic form of age-related macular degeneration, for which up till now there is no treatment available.
The Science Eye, the company’s first flagship product in development, is a combination device that uses an optogenetic gene therapy targeted at the cells of the optic nerve (the retinal ganglion cells) in conjunction with an implanted flexible thin-film, ultra-dense micro-LED display panel inserted directly over the retina. The Science Eye is being developed for patients with serious blindness due to retinitis pigmentosa (RP) and dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD), two forms of serious blindness without good options for patients.
Science CEO Hodak continued: “Science is now developing advanced innovative products using two very different modalities. This transaction significantly expands our IP portfolio, and while we were strongly motivated in this acquisition by the potential of the PRIMA implant, we also felt that the patients enrolled in the Pixium clinical trials could not be left hanging. Now, we will be able to provide continuity and a future for the program. We look forward to working with them.”
About Science Corporation:
Science Corporation develops advanced medical technologies at the frontier of our capabilities and understanding. As these technologies mature, they hold the potential to profoundly reshape the human condition. Today Science is focused on helping those with debilitating conditions for which there are no treatment options. Its first product in development, the Science Eye, deploys brain-computer interface technology with the goal of restoring vision to blind patients with retinitis pigmentosa and dry age-related macular degeneration. Headquartered in Alameda, California, the company also operates the Science Foundry, a MEMS foundry facility in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina.
