CELL AND GENE THERAPY
Gamma Biosciences | October 13, 2022
Gamma Biosciences, a leading provider of tools and technologies for cell and gene therapy manufacturing, through their BioMagnetic Solutions business announced a strategic collaboration with Lonza. Under the multi-year agreement, BioMagnetic Solutions will supply its proprietary research and cGMP manufacturing grade FerroSelect™ reagents to Lonza for use in developing CAR-T and other immunotherapeutic products using Lonza's Cocoon® Platform.
"We are looking forward to working together with the team at Gamma Biosciences to offer cell and gene therapy developers added cell selection functionality on the Cocoon® Platform. The BioMagnetic Solutions ferrofluid technology provides efficient, high-performance cell selection reagents for research, clinical, and commercial-scale cell separations in a workflow that can be easily integrated into our automated, closed-system Cocoon® manufacturing platform. This collaboration speaks to Lonza's commitment to expanding the flexibility and functionality of our automated manufacturing technology to address a broader range of needs for the cell therapy industry."
Adam Bryan, Vice President of Personalized Medicines at Lonza
"We are thrilled to collaborate with Lonza in further developing and adapting FerroSelect reagents for use with the Cocoon® Platform," said Phil Vanek, Chief Technology Officer at Gamma Biosciences. "The Lonza platform can be an alternative to our FerroSelect Array cell selection platform, demonstrating that our proprietary reagents can be applied to other automated manufacturing technologies. The agreement gives BioMagnetic Solutions technical direction on new applications, and access to some of the best process developers in the industry. In return, Lonza gains early access to certain BioMagnetic Solutions FerroSelect reagents to complement the growing demand for their Cocoon® Platform technology."
Ted Liberti, Chief Commercial Officer at BioMagnetic Solutions concluded, "This is an exciting time for us. In late 2021, we achieved ISO 9001:2015 and 13485:2016 certification for our Quality Systems through NQA and have been working steadily to build out an extensive repertoire of cell specific antibodies. The alignment with Lonza helps both companies contribute to expanding access to therapeutic cell selection capabilities across the market with space to grow to meet evolving customer needs."
The collaboration between Gamma Biosciences and Lonza provides a framework for additional clinical grade reagents to be developed. It also opens up the possibility of other collaborations as Gamma Biosciences expands its portfolio of tools and technologies supporting the bioprocessing, vaccine, cell and gene therapy industries.
About BioMagnetic Solutions
BioMagnetic Solutions develops advanced ferrofluid-based immunomagnetic cell selection systems for clinical and commercial applications. BioMagnetic Solutions' product platform leverages proprietary magnetic ferrofluids that enable superior performance as compared to existing immunomagnetic cell separation systems.
About Gamma Biosciences
Gamma Biosciences is a leading life sciences company providing products and services to support the development and manufacturing of advanced biologic therapies. Our operating companies are committed to advancing the science and art of bioprocessing by delivering market-ready innovation and expertise that helps our customers. Gamma Biosciences encompass biopharmaceutical companies, contract developers and manufacturing companies. Our goal is to safely bring therapies to patients quickly and efficiently. Gamma is a global company with offices and major manufacturing facilities in North America, the U.K. and Belgium.
About Lonza
Lonza is the preferred global partner to the pharmaceutical, biotech and nutrition markets. We work to enable a healthier world by supporting our customers to deliver new and innovative medicines that help treat a wide range of diseases. We achieve this by combining technological insight with world-class manufacturing, scientific expertise and process excellence. Our unparalleled breadth of offerings enables our customers to commercialize their discoveries and innovations in the healthcare industry.
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INDUSTRIAL IMPACT
Gilead and MacroGenics | October 18, 2022
Gilead Sciences, Inc. and MacroGenics announced an exclusive option and collaboration agreement to develop MGD024, an investigational, bispecific antibody that binds CD123 and CD3 using MacroGenics’ DART® platform, and two additional bispecific research programs. The collaboration agreement grants Gilead the option to license MGD024, a potential treatment for certain blood cancers, including acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic syndromes.
A leader in the bispecific antibody space, MacroGenics has extensive experience applying its proprietary DART platform to develop novel therapeutics. MGD024 is a next-generation, bispecific that incorporates a CD3 component that is designed to minimize cytokine-release syndrome a potentially life-threatening toxicity, while increasing the magnitude of antitumor activity with a longer half-life to permit intermittent dosing.
“MacroGenics’ bispecific expertise naturally complements Gilead’s portfolio strengths in immuno-oncology and our growing hematology franchise. We believe MGD024, with its potential to reduce CRS and permit intermittent dosing through a longer half-life, could translate to more patient-friendly dosing and enhanced clinical outcomes for people living with AML and MDS. This partnership is the latest in our efforts to develop and advance transformative new cancer therapies as we deepen our portfolio across oncology indications.”
Bill Grossman, MD, PhD, Senior Vice President, Oncology Clinical Development, Gilead Sciences
Scott Koenig, MD, PhD, President, and CEO, MacroGenics said, “Rapid advances over the last decade have made CD123 a very promising target in oncology research. Advancing our bispecific DART molecule, MGD024, through a strategic collaboration with the team at Gilead will accelerate our ability to drive further development of MGD024 to the potential benefit of people living with blood cancers.”
MacroGenics will be responsible for the ongoing Phase 1 study for MGD024 during which Gilead may elect to exercise its option to license the program at predefined decision points. The Phase 1 study will include a dose escalation segment and an expansion segment that is intended to evaluate MGD024 as monotherapy and in combination with other therapies across multiple indications.
About MacroGenics, Inc.
MacroGenics is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing innovative monoclonal antibody-based therapeutics for the treatment of cancer. The company generates its pipeline of product candidates primarily from its proprietary suite of next-generation antibody-based technology platforms, which have applicability across broad therapeutic domains. The combination of MacroGenics' technology platforms and protein engineering expertise has allowed the company to generate promising product candidates and enter into several strategic collaborations with global pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.
About Gilead Sciences
Gilead Sciences, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company that has pursued and achieved breakthroughs in medicine for more than three decades, with the goal of creating a healthier world for all people. The company is committed to advancing innovative medicines to prevent and treat life-threatening diseases, including HIV, viral hepatitis, and cancer. Gilead operates in more than 35 countries worldwide, with headquarters in Foster City, California.
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MEDTECH
Neumora | October 12, 2022
Neumora Therapeutics, Inc. a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering precision medicines for brain diseases through the integration of data science and neuroscience, today announced the close of a $112 million Series B financing. The Series B syndicate includes both new and existing investors, such as Abu Dhabi Growth Fund Altitude Life Science Ventures, Amgen, ARCH Venture Partners, Exor Ventures, F-Prime Capital, Invus, Mubadala Capital, Newpath Partners, Polaris Partners and other undisclosed investors. The funding will support the advancement of a broad clinical and preclinical pipeline of novel precision medicine candidates for neuropsychiatric disorders and neurodegenerative diseases and the development of the company's precision neuroscience platform.
“This Series B financing reflects Neumora’s continued progress in building a best-in-class neuroscience company, including assembling a world-class team, scaling up an industry-leading data science and translational neuroscience platform, and advancing a broad and growing pipeline of seven development programs, including our internal discovery efforts and business development activities. This considerable amount of progress in such a short period of time reflects our urgency to address the relative lack of progress and innovation in neuroscience with our data-driven, precision medicine approach.”
Paul L. Berns, co-founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Neumora
Neumora continues to advance a broad and growing pipeline of clinical and preclinical programs, including a balance of both clinically validated and novel approaches targeting a broad range of underserved neuropsychiatric disorders and neurodegenerative diseases. The company recently completed enrollment in a Phase 2a clinical trial for its most advanced product candidate, NMRA-140, a kappa opioid receptor antagonist in development for the treatment of major depressive disorder. Neumora is also progressing NMRA-511, a clinical-stage vasopressin 1a receptor antagonist in development for neuropsychiatric disorders, and NMRA-266, an M4 muscarinic receptor positive allosteric modulator being advanced toward initiation of Phase 1 development for schizophrenia in 2023. The company’s earlier-stage pipeline includes multiple first-in-class opportunities in preclinical development, including neurodegeneration programs focused on Parkinson’s disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
“We are pleased to have the support of this leading group of both new and existing investors that share our vision and excitement with our progress to date,” said Joshua Pinto, Ph.D., chief financial officer of Neumora. “With this Series B financing, we have successfully raised approximately $650 million in capital, resulting in a very strong financial position to continue advancing our broad pipeline through multiple near-term value-creating milestones.”
Neumora was founded to pioneer a new era of precision neuroscience medicines by using patient enrichment strategies to help potentially improve clinical development success rates. The company’s proprietary approach leverages recent advances in data science and translational neuroscience to cut through the heterogeneity inherent in brain disease. By approaching patient enrichment and clinical development strategies through this lens, Neumora aims to match the right patient populations to the right targeted therapeutics, thereby driving innovation and the potential for clinical development success in this field and, ultimately, providing better therapies to patients.
In connection with the completion of the Series B financing, Alaa Halawa, partner and head of U.S. Ventures at Mubadala Capital, joined Neumora’s board of directors. Mr. Halawa said, “We are proud to partner with Neumora in helping advance the company’s efforts to build the precision neuroscience company of the future. The integration of technology, namely AI/ML, and proprietary clinical data is helping us develop a deeper understanding of the complex drivers of brain disease to develop novel treatments for neuropsychiatric disorders and neurodegenerative diseases - we are humbled to be part of their journey.”
About Neumora
Neumora Therapeutics, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering precision medicines for brain diseases through the integration of data science and neuroscience. Neumora is redefining neuroscience research and development with a data-driven precision neuroscience platform to cut through brain disease heterogeneity to match the right patient populations to targeted therapeutics. Neumora is relentless in its commitment to discovering, developing and commercializing targeted therapies for people living with brain diseases.
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