Allele Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals in San Diego, California, today announced the signing of a MOU with Cellatoz Therapeutics, a South Korean corporation, to form a business relationship on areas of mutual interest in the field of cell therapy.
iPSC-based cell therapy utilizes pluripotent stem cells that are generated by reprogramming patients’ cells obtained from a small skin punch or a tiny amount of blood. This Nobel prize winning technology not only allows ethical use of stem cells but also facilitates personalized medicine and holds great promise in developing effective therapies for numerous incurable human diseases. Recently, stem cell therapy has become a highly valued area in biomedicine and has gained great traction among investment community, with even preclinical stage programs starting to attract transactions in hundreds of millionsto billions of dollars.
Allele Biotech has been involved in developing innovative solutions and products in the fields of stem cells and immunotherapy for over a decade. Allele’s core capabilities include its proprietary and patented technologies utilizing mRNA for generating footprint-free iPSCs, and their derivatives, in its state-of-the-art commercialization-ready GMP facility. The FDAregistered, California Tissue Bank accredited, GMP facility supports Allele’s cell therapy programs and CDMO business, besides being the first to offer clinical-grade iPSC banking for the public as a commercial service.
Cellatoz Therapeutics is a biotech company with strong expertise in translational research and process development. Equipped with its proprietary cells and commercialization-ready GMP facility in Korea, Cellatoz is specializing in the development of advanced innovative cell therapies in regenerative medicine and immunology fields. The company’s IP protected Muscular Skeletal Stem Cells (MSSC), which can differentiate into muscular skeletal system, are targeting regenerating cartilages and treating complex fractures. The company is also developing treatments for peripheral neuropathies including Charco-Marie-Tooth disease utilizing Neuronal Regeneration Promoting Cells (NRPC), which are Schwann-like cells differentiated from tonsillar mesenchymal stem cells.
Based on the new MOU the parties will utilize Allele’s iPSC lines and product development capabilities, and Cellatoz’s other cell types, in co-developing cell therapy products for various indications including musculoskeletal diseases and neuropathies. The companies will also join hands in exploring personalized iPSC-banking business in South Korea and possibly other Asian territories.
“Allele Biotech has been a leader in iPSC technology, and we are very excited about this opportunity to work closely with them”, said Dr. Jaeseung Lim, CEO of Cellatoz Therapeutics. “Cellatoz’s MSSC-based CLZ-1001 and the NRPC-based CLZ-2002 are fast heading for clinical trials. We expect that this new collaboration would facilitate these cell therapy products to reach more patients and would enable the development of iPSC-based next generation products”, Dr. Lim commented further.
“We are pleased to work with Cellatoz. This agreement will lead us to co-develop more innovative products and widen our portfolio of iPSC-based therapeutic pipeline. Personalized clinical-iPSC banking is one of Allele’s unique capabilities, enabled by our robust and consistent mRNA reprogramming technology. We see this collaboration as a great step forward in expanding our iPSC- banking and future personalized medicine business globally.” said Dr. Jiwu Wang, Allele’s founder and CEO.
