News

An examination of the spinal cords of mice that lack the PPT1 protein, the underlying cause of infantile Batten disease, revealed the loss of specific neurons, evidence of inflammation, and walking abnormalities that started early during spinal cord development, a study reports. …

Abeona Therapeutics and Taysha Gene Therapies have entered into agreements concerning ABO-202, an investigative gene therapy for infantile Batten disease. The agreements give Taysha worldwide exclusive rights to intellectual property developed by researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) and Abeona,…

Same But Different, a U.K. nonprofit that uses the arts to bring communities together, is holding a calendar photography competition to raise awareness for rare diseases. Under the theme “A Glimmer of Hope,” the competition is a means to “visually express the hope that exists for people affected by…

The EveryLife Foundation for Rare Diseases has launched a scholarship fund in the U.S. to support individuals with rare disorders who are pursuing personal goals through training and education. The initial phase of the five-year, $1-million #RAREis Scholarship Fund will include 32 scholarships — each totaling $5,000 —…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted orphan drug designation to a gene therapy being developed by Neurogene for the treatment of CLN7 Batten disease. This marks the second Neurogene gene therapy for Batten disease to receive orphan drug designation from the FDA this summer.

When the COVID-19 pandemic forced the postponement of a rare disease film festival originally slated for May, its organizers set out to find a new way to bring the films to an audience. Co-founders Daniel DeFabio and Bo Bigelow, who are both fathers of children…

A case report has described a rare case of a newborn diagnosed with CLN2 disease, or late infantile Batten disease, after a genetic analysis confirmed a disease-causing mutation in the TPP1 gene. The case-study, “A Case with Neonatal-onset Type 2 Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinosis: A Novel Mutation,” was published in the…