On February 22, 2021 Wugen Inc., a biotechnology company developing novel, universal allogeneic cellular therapies, reported that it has entered into an exclusive license agreement with Washington University in St. Louis, one of the world’s leading research institutions, for the development of Wugen’s Memory Natural Killer (NK) Cell program (Press release, Wugen, FEB 22, 2021, View Source [SID1234576287]).

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While currently approved autologous cellular therapies have been shown to effectively treat B cell cancers, there remains significant unmet need for treating other cancers, including solid tumors. Memory NK cells have been demonstrated in the clinic to be safe and effective, with several significant advantages over existing therapies. By dovetailing its extensive experience in developing "off-the-shelf" CAR-T with Memory NK cells, Wugen will be able to rapidly deliver its off-the-shelf Memory NK platform to patients.

Todd Fehniger, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Medicine, Oncology Division, at Washington University and a cellular therapy and transplantation specialist, will be leading these efforts. "Wugen’s Memory Natural Killer (NK) Cell-based therapy program will open up new avenues to explore treatment options for incurable and intractable diseases such as Acute Myeloid Leukemia and Multiple Myeloma, for which current treatment options have limited or no benefit," said Dr. Fehniger. "I look forward to partnering with Wugen to advance these NK cell programs and deliver these much-needed solutions to patients worldwide, and to also expand the impact of memory NK cells to solid tumor immunotherapy."

"This agreement expands our ongoing collaboration with one of the leading research institutions to develop cutting edge cell therapies to treat solid and hematological cancers," said John McKearn, Ph.D., CEO of Wugen. "Our innovative approach is aimed to treat patients who currently lack therapeutic options."