MaxCyte, Inc. announced the signing of a strategic platform license (SPL) with Catamaran Bio, Inc., a biotechnology company developing novel, off the-shelf chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-NK cell therapies to treat a broad range of cancers, with a primary focus on solid tumors.
Under the terms of the agreement, Catamaran obtains non-exclusive clinical and commercial rights to use MaxCyte’s Flow Electroporation technology and ExPERT platform. In return, MaxCyte will receive platform licensing fees and program-related revenue.
“The ability to leverage synthetic biology to engineer cell therapies will help drive innovative solutions for solid tumor cancer treatment. At MaxCyte, we are passionate about driving the discovery, development and manufacturing of next-generation, cell-based medicines to tackle complex diseases and cancer,” said Doug Doerfler, President and CEO of MaxCyte. “We are excited to support Catamaran with the advancement of their pipeline of differentiated CAR-NK cell therapies into and through the clinic.”
Catamaran is currently using synthetic biology and non-viral cell engineering to develop highly potent allogeneic, cryopreserved CAR-NK cell therapies capable of treating challenging cancers, including solid tumors, by combining new functional attributes with the inherent cancer-fighting properties of NK cells. The company has developed its TAILWIND platform, an integrated suite of technologies, to engineer, expand and process NK cells into safe and effective, off-the-shelf cell therapy products for multiple cancer types.
MaxCyte’s ExPERT instrument portfolio is the next generation of leading, clinically-validated electroporation technology for complex and scalable cell engineering. By delivering high transfection efficiency, seamless scalability and enhanced functionality, the ExPERT platform delivers the high-end performance essential to enabling the next wave of biological and cellular therapeutics. The Catamaran agreement is MaxCyte’s 19th SPL overall.