Abeona Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: ABEO) announced the activation of Cincinnati Children's as the seventh Qualified Treatment Center for ZEVASKYN (prademagene zamikeracel), a gene-modified cellular sheet therapy for wounds in patients with recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (RDEB).

RDEB is a rare genetic skin disorder in which patients lack functional type VII collagen, causing the skin to blister and form wounds that can lead to life-threatening complications. ZEVASKYN incorporates a functional copy of the COL7A1 gene into a patient's own skin cells to produce the missing protein in treated wounds.

Cincinnati Children's is described in the press release as one of the largest epidermolysis bullosa centers in the United States.

"As one of the centers caring for a large number of patients with RDEB, we see firsthand the profound impact this condition has on patients and their families," said Dr. Kalyani S. Marathe, professor at the UC Department of Pediatrics and UC Department of Dermatology.

ZEVASKYN received FDA approval as a single-application autologous cell sheet-based gene therapy for adult and pediatric RDEB patients. Abeona's manufacturing facility for ZEVASKYN is located in Cleveland, Ohio.

Reported side effects associated with ZEVASKYN include procedural pain and itching, with a potential long-term risk of cancer development requiring lifelong patient monitoring, according to the company's prescribing information.