Novartis has agreed to acquire the eye-drug company, Encore Vision, a privately held firm in Fort Worth, Texas focused on therapies for presbyopia, commonly known as farsightedness.

With this acquisition, Novartis boosts its ophthalmology pipeline, gaining a disease-modifying topical treatment for presbyopia, Encore Vision’s lead investigational product, EV06. The compound is currently in Phase I/II clinical studies.

The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approval. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.

Novartis’s ophthalmology portfolio consists of therapies that treat both front and back-of-the-eye conditions, including retina diseases, glaucoma, dry eye, and other external eye diseases. In 2016, Novartis combined its retina medicines business with its Alcon pharmaceuticals business, which now operate as one ophthalmology franchise under Novartis Pharmaceuticals.

Source: Novartis