ExCellThera Inc., an advanced clinical stage biotechnology company delivering molecules and bioengineering solutions to expand stem and immune cells for therapeutic use, has announced that it has entered into a manufacturing and collaboration agreement with Comprehensive Cell Solutions (CCS), a division of New York Blood Center (NYBC) for the clinical grade production of ExCellThera’s lead cell therapy product, ECT-001.
The company was founded in 2015 and is located in Montréal, Canada. ExCellThera’s lead solution combines a proprietary small molecule, UM171, and an optimized culture system. In pursuit of better treatments for patients, the company is building out its portfolio of products, as well as supporting best-in-class clinical trials.
Founded in 1964, NYBC is a non-profit organization that is one of the largest independent, community-based blood centers in the world. Comprehensive Cell Solutions™ (CCS) leverages NYBC’s strengths of innovation, flexibility, mobility, creativity, and quality to save more lives by working with diverse organizations (among which are biotech, startups and academic institutions) to help them launch new products, services, and perform clinical trials. CCS’s core areas are transfusion medicine, cellular therapy, regenerative medicine, hematology and infectious disease.
In addition to the site in New York City, NYBC Enterprise’s national network includes Community Blood Center of Greater Kansas City, Rhode Island Blood Center, Blood Bank of Delmarva, and Innovative Blood Resources (Nebraska/Minnesota).
The new agreement provides ExCellThera access to NYBC’s cGMP clean room manufacturing facilities in New York for the production of ECT-001, to be used in clinical trials principally in the United States. ExCellThera’s near term pipeline includes several ongoing studies and additional trials using ECT-001 to be initiated in the coming months.
“The New York Blood Center holds one of the world’s largest blood banks and has over 50 years of leadership in research and development, medical services and laboratory services. We are extremely pleased to enter into this multi-year agreement which will allow us to work closer together and leverage their leadership and expertise in this specialized field.” … “ExCellThera expects a substantial scale-up in production to meet the needs of new trials coming online as ECT-001 advances through the final phases of its clinical development. This collaboration with NYBC will increase overall production capabilities by adding capacity to the existing manufacturing facilities in Montréal, Canada, while also providing redundancies, easing cross-border issues and providing further strategic collaboration opportunities.” – David Millette, Chief Operating and Financial Officer, ExCellThera
“We are proud to partner with ExCellThera as they work to create groundbreaking curative treatments for patients suffering from blood diseases. Their work has the potential to dramatically increase access to stem cells for patients who need them and unleash the therapeutic promise of the hundreds of thousands of cord blood units stored worldwide.” … “New York Blood Center is the perfect fit for this endeavor. With its facilities, in the heart of the city’s life sciences corridor, NYBC can collaborate with leading international biotechnology companies doing critical work to advance medical research. As the creators of the world’s first and largest public cord bank, we’re excited about the opportunity to leverage our experience to support such an important mission.” – Dr. Beth H. Shaz, Chief Medical and Scientific Officer, New York Blood Center
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