Genother is a biocluster dedicated to accelerating the development of gene therapy drugs. It is one of the five winners of the “Biocluster” call for expressions of interest under the France 2030 Plan, as announced today by the French President, Emmanuel Macron. This labeling will strengthen France’s leadership in the field of gene therapy, largely supported by the AFM-Telethon and of which Genethon is one of the world leaders.
Genother has 7 founders actively supported by 29 organisations and local authorities, including the Institute of Myology. The biocluster is the result of the will of founders who represent the avant-garde and excellence of gene therapy research and, with the many stakeholders involved, a unique strike force: 2,000 researchers and clinicians, 10,000 publications, more than 2,000 patents and more than 40 licensing agreements, 50 clinical programmes, 15 spin-offs in this field.
“For thirty years, we have been taking up the challenge of gene therapy: we finance hundreds of researchers in this field in France and abroad, we have created a dedicated R&D laboratory, Genethon, and a bioproduction platform, Yposkesi. Gene therapy is now experiencing a real acceleration: 24 drugs have been approved in the United States and Europe. Many of them are the result of innovative French research, but almost all of them were developed abroad due to the lack of a favourable ecosystem, weakening their availability to patients. The labelling of Genother, driven by our laboratory Genethon, finally responds to the desire, fiercely supported by our association for nearly a decade, to have the means to develop and market these innovative medicines on our territory. This biocluster allows France to have the basis of a sector of excellence from fundamental research to the provision of treatments. This is a major asset for securing our country’s health independence and creating thousands of skilled jobs in this sector at a time when we know that 20% of new medicines by 2025 will be derived from gene therapy” declared Laurence Tiennot-Herment, President of AFM-Téléthon, following the announcement by the French President.
Download the AFM-Téléthon press release,16 May 2023 (in French) L’AFM-Téléthon se félicite de la labellisation du Biocluster Genother, impulsé par son laboratoire Généthon #France2030
Download the Généthon press release, 19 May 2023 (in French) Genother, l’excellence en thérapie génique, labellisé Biocluster du Plan France 2030
