• Study found OV329 cleared and remained undetectable in the retina, eye, and brain tissues of mice, unlike vigabatrin which has repeatedly shown to preferentially accumulate in mouse retinas, eyes, and other tissues
• OV329's potency, mechanism of inhibition, short half-life, rapid tissue elimination and prolonged pharmacodynamic effect suggests it delivers a differentiated ocular safety and efficacy profile from vigabatrin
• A Phase 1 trial evaluating OV329 in healthy volunteers is on-track for completion in late 2024 and will evaluate safety and two biomarkers for target engagement and evidence of clinical effect
  

NEW YORK, Sept. 26, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ovid Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:OVID), a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to improving the lives of people affected by rare epilepsies and brain conditions presented the results of a head-to-head animal study evaluating whether OV329 could be found to accumulate in mouse retinas and brains, as has been previously shown to occur with vigabatrin (VGB) the only FDA-approved GABA-aminotransferase (GABA-AT) inhibitor.

The findings, which were presented via a poster at the Epilepsy Pipeline Conference, found that OV329 cleared and remained undetectable in the retinas, eyes, and brains of mice after 48 hours of continuous exposure via a sub-cutaneous osmotic pump, suggesting a lack of accumulation. In contrast, ocular accumulation of VGB was confirmed within this period. Full results from the head-to-head animal study will be presented at the 2024 American Epilepsy Society conference in December.

These results replicate previously published findings that indicate VGB preferentially and rapidly accumulates within mouse tissue and plasma, including retina, visual cortex, and brain at subtherapeutic doses (70 mg/kg).1,2 In contrast, a therapeutic dose of OV329 in animals (5 mg/kg) did not show signs of ocular accumulation in the same study design. These results complement previously presented studies which showed that therapeutic doses of OV329 (3 mg/kg) did not result in retinal tissue pathology at 45 days in Sprague Dawley rats, an animal model that investigates structural and functional ocular toxicity.3 In contrast, VGB did show retinal cell degradation at the therapeutic dose in animals of 300 mg/kg at 45 days.