Stopping corneal transplant rejection with BDRK-401 gene therapy
Official title: Prevention of corneal transplant rejection using AAV-BDRK-401 therapy
Funded at Bedrock Therapeutics, INC. · NIH-11180103 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A one-time gene treatment is applied to donor corneas to help people at high risk keep their corneal transplants from being rejected.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Bedrock Therapeutics, INC. NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Chapel Hill, United States) |
| Project start | September 30, 2020 |
| Project end | August 31, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $793,930 |
| NIH project number | 5R42EY031625-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11180103 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are people undergoing high-risk allogeneic corneal transplants, for example those with inflamed or vascularized corneas or prior graft failures.
✕Less likely to help
Patients who do not need a corneal transplant, who are having low‑risk grafts, or who cannot receive AAV-based treatments are unlikely to benefit directly.
What this research studies
If you need a cornea transplant, doctors would treat the donor cornea once with a modified virus (AAV) carrying BDRK-401 before surgery to protect it from the recipient's immune system. The treatment is designed to reduce blood vessel growth into the graft and locally suppress immune responses that drive rejection. The team completed Phase I milestones and showed treated corneas were fully protected from acute rejection in rabbit models, and they refined a process that could be used in hospitals. This Phase II effort moves the approach toward use in people and prepares for clinical testing in corneal transplant patients.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could reduce corneal graft rejection and lower the need for prolonged systemic immunosuppression after high-risk transplants.
How similar studies have gone: AAV-based gene therapies have worked for other eye conditions and this approach completely prevented acute rejection in rabbit cornea models, but using AAV-treated donor corneas in humans is novel.
Where this research is happening
-
Bedrock Therapeutics, INC.
Chapel Hill, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Gilger, Brian C — Bedrock Therapeutics, INC.
- Study coordinator: Gilger, Brian C
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.