Taysha Gene Therapies Receives Rare Pediatric Disease and Orphan Drug Designations for TSHA-105 for the Treatment of Epilepsy Caused by SLC13A5 Deficiency

Taysha Gene Therapies, Inc. (Nasdaq: TSHA), a patient-centric gene therapy company focused on developing and commercializing AAV-based gene therapies for the treatment of monogenic diseases of the central nervous system in both rare and large patient populations, today announced that it has received both rare pediatric disease and orphan drug designations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for TSHA-105, an AAV9-based gene therapy in development for SLC13A5-related epilepsy.

“There are no approved therapies for epilepsy caused by SLC13A5 that address the underlying cause of this disease,” said RA Session II, President, Founder and CEO of Taysha. “We are encouraged by the early evidence of TSHA-105’s disease-modifying approach and believe these designations will help us potentially accelerate the development of this exciting program. We look forward to working with the FDA to make TSHA-105 available to patients as expeditiously as possible.”

SLC13A5 is a form of infantile epilepsy caused by mutations in the SLC13A5 gene. The disorder is an autosomal recessive disorder, so two copies of the mutated gene must be inherited to affect an infant. This rare form of epilepsy manifests as developmental delay, and seizures beginning within the first few days of life.

“We are pleased that the FDA recognizes TSHA-105’s potential as an innovative therapeutic option for SLC13A5 deficiency,” said Rachel Bailey, Ph.D., Assistant Professor in Pediatric Neurology at UT Southwestern. “This disease is a debilitating form of genetic epilepsy in children that significantly impacts movement, motor control, cognition and quality of life, and there remains a need to alter the course of this disease early in life.”

“As a mother of two children with SLC13A5 deficiency, I have witnessed firsthand the devastating impact that numerous seizures and comorbidities accompanying the disease has on those affected by this disease,” said Kim Nye, Founder of TESS Research Foundation. “Taysha’s commitment to developing a potentially life-changing gene therapy for SLC13A5 deficiency is greatly welcomed by our patient community.”

The FDA grants rare pediatric disease designation for serious and life-threatening diseases that primarily affect children ages 18 years or younger and fewer than 200,000 people in the United States. The Rare Pediatric Disease Priority Review Voucher Program is intended to address the challenges that drug companies face when developing treatments for these unique patient populations. Under this program, companies are eligible to receive a priority review voucher following approval of a product with rare pediatric disease designation if the marketing application submitted for the product satisfies certain conditions, including approval prior to September 30, 2026 unless changed by legislation. If issued, a sponsor may redeem a priority review voucher for priority review of a subsequent marketing application for a different product candidate, or the priority review voucher could be sold or transferred to another sponsor.

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