Eli Lilly Secures $1.12 Billion Deal with Hearing Impairment Gene Therapy Company

Eli Lilly has entered into a strategic partnership worth up to $1.12 billion with Seamless Therapeutics to develop therapies for hearing loss, Pharmaphorum reports. This marks the first major pharmaceutical partner for the Germany-based biotech firm.

Seamless, founded three years ago in Dresden, will collaborate with Eli Lilly to develop therapies targeting various conditions associated with hearing impairment.

The Seamless platform utilizes recombinase enzymes that can bind to specific DNA sequences through a dual-targeting mechanism. According to the company, this significantly increases precision and practically eliminates unintended off-target changes.

Unlike other gene-editing technologies such as CRISPR, recombinase enzymes directly excise and ligate DNA without relying on cellular repair mechanisms, which can lead to unwanted mutations.

Under the agreement, Seamless will develop and program enzymes capable of correcting changes in several genes associated with hearing loss. Eli Lilly will receive a license for these developments and will assume responsibility for further clinical development and commercialization.

The deal comes amid heightened interest in genetic therapies for hearing impairment. Eli Lilly already has experience in this field. In 2022, the company acquired Akouos for $487 million upfront, gaining a therapy targeting the OTOF gene. It is currently in Phase 2 clinical trials after reporting positive preliminary Phase 1/2 results in 2024.

Seamless CEO Albert Seymour stated that Eli Lilly shares the company’s vision for developing new genetic therapies for patients with limited treatment options. According to him, the partnership is a recognition of the gene-editing platform’s potential and an opportunity to apply the technology toward creating new therapies for hearing loss.