AAVantgarde to Participate in ARVO 2026, with Presentations at Key Pre-events and New Clinical Data from the LUCE Phase 1/2 Study

MILAN, April 23, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AAVantgarde Bio (AAVantgarde), a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering next-generation gene therapies for inherited retinal diseases (IRDs) has today announced its participation in the upcoming Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) Annual Meeting 2026, taking place May 3-7 in Denver (CO).

The Company will present preliminary safety and efficacy data from all participants (n=15) in the LUCE-1 Phase 1/ 2 Clinical Trial, alongside key pre-event presentations at Eyecelerator and the Foundation Fighting Blindness’s Retinal Therapeutic Innovation Summit (RTIS) on May 1, 2026.

ARVO Presentation details:

Date and Time: Sunday 3^rd May 2026; 2:00 – 3:45 p.m.
Session: Stem cell and gene therapy
Location: Exhibit Hall
Poster 0636: Interim analysis of the LUCE-1 trial: a Phase I/II Trial investigating AAVB-081 gene therapy in Usher Syndrome Type1B (USH1B) caused by biallelic mutations in the MYO7A gene
Presenter: Francesco Testa, MD, PhD

EYECELERATOR @ ARVO 2026 Presentation details:

Location: Bluebird Ballroom, The Colorado Convention Center, Denver, CO
Session: Breakout: Durable Retina Therapeutics – Gene Therapy & Drug Delivery
Location: Room 403
Date: 1^st May 2026
Time: 1.30 pm
Presenter: Dr. Natalia Misciattelli, CEO

RTIS Presentations details:

Location: Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel; 1550 Court Place; Denver, CO 80202
Date: 1^st May 2026

Presentation 1:
Session: Sponsor Presentation
Time: 3.25 pm
Presenter: Dr. Natalia Misciattelli, CEO

Presentation 2:
Session: Session 7 - Retinal Gene Augmentation: Clinical
Title: Design and Early Clinical Insights from LUCE: Dual-Vector MYO7A Gene Therapy in Usher Syndrome Type 1B
Time: 4.00 pm
Presenter: Dr. Jayashree Sahni, CMO

About the AAVB-081 program
AAVB-081 is an intra-retinal AAV8-based dual hybrid product targeting MYO7A-associated Usher syndrome (USH1B). AAVantgarde’s dual hybrid platform uses two AAV8 vectors, each containing one half of an expression cassette encoding for the MYO7A gene and works at the cell nucleus level, recombining the two halves of the transgene back into a single transgene within the cell. This proprietary technology translates into an efficient recombination that has been shown to generate high therapeutically effective protein levels in both small and large animal models.

About the LUCE-1 Trial
LUCE-1 is a Phase 1/2 multicenter, open-label, 15 patient dose escalation study investigating safety, tolerability and preliminary efficacy of 3 dose levels of dual AAV8.MYO7A (AAVB-081) administered subretinally in subjects with retinitis pigmentosa associated with USH1B.

About Usher syndrome type 1B
Usher syndrome type 1B (Usher1B) is an inherited disease that affects the retina and the inner ear. Usher1B is caused by mutations in the MYO7A gene. The therapeutic gene to treat Usher1B is 6.7 kb long and is therefore too large to fit inside a standard AAV vector which can be overcome using AAVantgarde proprietary platform technology. Approximately 9,000 patients in the U.S. and EU5 have Usher1B. These children are born deaf, have vestibular dysfunction, and begin to progressively lose vision in their first decade of life. Although there are surgical treatments available to treat deafness in these patients, there are no treatments available to treat progressive vision loss and blindness in these patients. With our AAVB-081 program we can deliver the full-length protein to the retina of these subjects, addressing the root cause of the disease.

About AAVantgarde
AAVantgarde is a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering the development of best-in-class genetic therapies for patients with inherited retinal diseases. The company’s proprietary platforms power a robust pipeline, led by programs targeting Stargardt disease and retinitis pigmentosa secondary to Usher syndrome type 1B —two severe genetic retinal conditions that currently have no approved treatment options. Driven by a deep commitment to translational science and clinical excellence, AAVantgarde leverages cutting-edge genetic medicine to bring transformative treatments to patients.
For more information, please visit: www.aavantgarde.com

Media Contact:
Barnaby Pickering – Director, 59 North Communications
Barnaby.Pickering@59north.bio