Exegenesis Bio and Modalis Therapeutics have entered a research collaboration and license agreement to advance MDL-201, an investigational program for Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
The agreement takes effect Sept. 14, 2026. The companies did not disclose financial terms. Modalis said the collaboration is not expected to materially affect its financial results for the current fiscal year and did not revise its earnings forecast.
Under the agreement, Modalis will receive rights to use Exegenesis Bio’s EMC181 engineered adeno-associated virus capsid for the MDL-201 program. The capsid is designed for delivery to muscle tissue and to limit delivery to the liver.
MDL-201 combines Exegenesis Bio’s delivery technology with Modalis’ CRISPR-GNDM epigenome-editing platform. The program is designed to increase expression of utrophin, a protein related to dystrophin, in muscle tissue without creating double-strand DNA breaks.
Duchenne muscular dystrophy is caused by mutations affecting dystrophin, a protein needed for muscle function. The companies said increasing utrophin expression could help compensate for a lack of dystrophin.
The program is designed to be mutation-agnostic, meaning it could potentially be used for patients with different dystrophin-gene mutations. The companies plan to advance MDL-201 toward nonclinical and clinical development.
Exegenesis Bio will contribute its AAV delivery technology, while Modalis will provide the CRISPR-GNDM technology and development work for the program.
MDL-201 remains in development and has not been approved by regulators.
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