Coave Therapeutics announced the nomination of its lead gene therapy program, CoTx-101, for the treatment of retinal vascular diseases, such as wet age-related macular degeneration and diabetic macular edema. With the use of Coave’s proprietary suprachoroidal vector (coAAV-SCS), CoTx-101 aims to deliver durable vision gains via an in-office procedure.

Coave presented data in October at the European Society of Gene and Cell Therapy Congress 2025 showing that its suprachoroidal vector demonstrated high transduction efficacy of retinal pigment epithelium and photoreceptors in non-human primate studies, as well as evasion from the immune system, enabling safe, effective treatment and suggesting the potential for second-eye treatment.

Anti-VEGF biologics, the current standard of care for retinal vascular diseases, require injections every 4 to 12 weeks, often for life. This results in a significant treatment burden, with more than 40% of patients discontinuing treatment after the first year, leading to uncontrolled disease progression and further vision loss.

The Company plans to complete Total Testing Process-validating non-human primate studies of CoTx-101 in 2026, with the goal to submit an Investigational New Drug application in 2027.