Novartis drops presbyopia drug acquired with Encore Vision

Novartis has abandoned development of its drug to treat presbyopia, a common age-related loss of near distance vision, after it failed a phase 2b trial.

The eyedrop formulation of UNR844 (lipoic acid/choline ester chloride) was acquired as part of the group’s buyout of privately-held ophthalmology biotech Encore Vision for $375 million upfront in 2017, and was designed to work by restoring the elasticity of the eye’s lens that declines with age.