ISEE vs MRK

IVERIC bio Inc.

IVERIC bio, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, develops novel therapies to treat ophthalmic diseases with a focus on age-related and orphan inherited retinal diseases (IRDs). The company is developing Zimura, an inhibitor of complement factor C5 comprising GATHER1, which has completed Phase 2/3 clinical trial; and GATHER2 that is in Phase 3 clinical trial for the treatment of geographic atrophy (GA) secondary to dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD). It is also developing STAR or OPH2005 that is in Phase 2b clinical trial for the treatment of leber congenital amaurosis type 10 (LCA10) and autosomal recessive stargardt disease (STGD1); IC-500, a high temperature requirement A serine peptidase 1 protein inhibitors for the treatment of GA and other age-related retinal diseases; IC-100 for the treatment of rhodopsin-mediated autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa; and IC-200 for the treatment of IRDs associated with mutations in the BEST1 gene. In addition, the company develops OPH2001 that has completed Phase 1/2a clinical trial of various doses of Zimura monotherapy for the treatment of GA; OPH2000, which has completed Phase 1/2a clinical trial of various doses of Zimura administered in combination with Lucentis for the treatment of wet AMD; OPH2007 that has completed Phase 2a clinical trial for the treatment of wet AMD; and OPH2002, which has completed Phase 2a clinical trial for the treatment of idiopathic polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy. Its discovery and research programs include miniCEP290 program for LCA10; miniABCA4 Program for STGD1; and miniUSH2A Program for usher syndrome type 2A-Related IRDs. The company was formerly known as Ophthotech Corporation and changed its name to IVERIC bio, Inc. in April 2019. IVERIC bio, Inc. was incorporated in 2007 and is based in New York, New York.

Merck & Company Inc.

Merck & Co., Inc. operates as a healthcare company worldwide. It operates through two segments, Pharmaceutical and Animal Health segments. The Pharmaceutical segment offers human health pharmaceutical products in the areas of oncology, hospital acute care, immunology, neuroscience, virology, cardiovascular, diabetes, and women's health, as well as vaccine products. The Animal Health segment provides discovers, develops, manufactures, and markets a range of veterinary pharmaceuticals, vaccines, and health management solutions and services, as well as a suite of digitally connected identification, traceability, and monitoring products. The company has collaborations with AstraZeneca PLC; Bayer AG; Eisai Co., Ltd.; and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics. It serves drug wholesalers and retailers, hospitals, and government agencies; managed health care providers, such as health maintenance organizations, pharmacy benefit managers, and other institutions; and physicians and physician distributors, veterinarians, and animal producers. The company has collaboration agreement with Gilead Sciences, Inc. to co-develop and co-commercialize long-acting investigational treatment combinations of Lenacapavir and Islatravir in HIV; Amathus Therapeutics to develop treatments for neurodegenerative diseases; and Linnaeus Therapeutics, Inc. to evaluate LNS8801 in combination with KEYTRUDA for patients with advanced cancer. It also has a collaboration with Biomed X Gmbh for building on ongoing research projects in the fields of oncology (DNA damage response and RNA splicing) and autoimmunity (intestinal epithelial barrier in autoimmune diseases); and a collaboration agreement with NGM Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. to focus primarily on the development of novel medicines for unmet patient needs in retinal and CVM diseases, including heart failure. Merck & Co., Inc. was founded in 1891 and is headquartered in Kenilworth, New Jersey.