With rezpegaldesleukin (rezpeg) phase IIb data in alopecia areata holding strong over time, backers of Nektar Therapeutics Inc. are hopeful that the biologic can do for the hair loss market what Dupixent (dupilumab, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc./Sanofi SA) did in atopic dermatitis.
Tr1x Inc. was founded with a simple but ambitious goal: to change how autoimmune and inflammatory diseases are treated, moving away from chronic treatment and toward durable cures. “We are trying to flip the script on regulatory T cells (Tregs),” Tr1x CEO David de Vries told BioWorld. “The goal is to reset the immune system rather than continuously suppress it, and we believe we have a unique technology to do that.”
Marking an important day for those with atopic dermatitis, shares of two biopharmas surged on clinical data suggesting new biologics are on their way to help address 40% of patients with uncontrolled disease.
As the many challenges facing cell therapies are being addressed, the CAR T field continues to evolve beyond its original design of T cells engineered to target hematological malignancies. During the 32nd Annual Congress of the European Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ESGCT), held in Seville Oct. 7-10, several studies showed how this technology is being redefined as programmable and adaptable immune cells with expanded functional versatility.
Japanese-founded Regcell Inc. has raised $45.8 million and is redomiciling to the U.S. to accelerate clinical development of its pioneering regulatory T-cell (Treg) platform for autoimmune diseases and transplantation.
Regulatory T-cell specialist Quell Therapeutics Ltd. has sealed a potential $2 billion agreement under which Astrazeneca plc is taking rights to two autologous Treg cell therapies for treating inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and type 1 diabetes. Quell will receive $85 million up front, the majority of which is in cash, with a modest (undisclosed) equity investment. Reaching the $2 billion headline figure will involve a series of development and commercial milestones and royalties on sales.
Trex Bio Inc., which kicked off 2022 with a big pharma partnership, is back at it again, starting the new year with a potential $1.1 billion agreement with original backer Eli Lilly and Co. targeting immune-mediated diseases. Under the terms, Trexbio gets $55 million up front, with Lilly picking up an exclusive worldwide license for candidates from three programs.
LONDON – Quell Therapeutics Ltd. has raised $156 million in an oversubscribed series B, enabling it to start a phase I/II trial of its engineered T regulatory (Treg) cell therapy for promoting long-term immune tolerance in liver transplant patients, averting the need for chronic immunosuppression.
Merck & Co. Inc. is paying $1.85 billion, or $60 per share, to acquire Pandion Therapeutics Inc. on the back of early stage data in human volunteers for its lead program, PT-101, an engineered interleukin-2 mutein fused to an Fc backbone, which is designed to stimulate targeted expansion of regulatory T cells for use in autoimmune disease indications.
