LOS ANGELES, and EL SEGUNDO, Calif., Aug. 10, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- CBR® by
Generate Life Sciences, the world's largest private newborn stem
cell bank, and NantKwest (Nasdaq: NK), a clinical-stage, natural
killer cell-based immunotherapy company, today announced a
collaboration to develop a COVID-19 treatment leveraging newborn
stem cells. CBR will provide research-donated umbilical cord
tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) to NantKwest for
efficient and robust expansion utilizing their proprietary modular,
closed bioreactor system from NantKwest affiliate ImmunityBio,
Inc.
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Anticipating the emerging relevance of regenerative medicine,
CBR was the first private stem cell bank to offer families the
option of umbilical cord tissue cryopreservation and has developed
a novel method to efficiently create a pure MSC cellular product
from cryopreserved tissue suitable for on-demand manufacturing.
This collaboration leverages CBR's incomparable size and
industry leadership with NantKwest's unique capability to rapidly
scale the manufacture of a high-quality cellular therapy product, a
particularly valuable asset given the emergent need for these
biological resources in the ongoing fight against COVID-19.
NantKwest recently announced FDA authorization of its
investigational new drug (IND) application utilizing allogeneic
bone marrow (BM) derived MSCs and has initiated a Phase
1b trial to mitigate the acute
respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) resulting from severe
COVID-19. Anticipating ever-increasing demand for these powerful
cellular therapy products, the alliance with CBR will enable
NantKwest to fast-follow their BM-based IND with an umbilical cord
derived product, which is anticipated to expand the scope and
impact of their series of planned clinical trials.
"As NantKwest's pipeline of cellular therapy products all
harness the power of the immune system to treat disease, we
immediately recognized the opportunity to use MSC-derived
treatments to address the inflammatory manifestations of COVID-19,"
said Patrick Soon-Shiong, MD,
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NantKwest. "Our ability to
rapidly scale the manufacture of MSCs will be further supported
through our combined efforts with CBR thanks to their ability to
provide this high-quality biological resource."
"Advancing the scientific applications of newborn stem cells has
always been central to CBR's mission. We've demonstrated the
capacity for our cryopreserved UC-MSCs to retain their important
anti-inflammatory and immune-modulating qualities," said
Jaime Shamonki, MD, Generate's Chief
Medical Officer. "Realizing the particular relevance of these
qualities to COVID-19 complications, we are very excited to work
with NantKwest and anticipate the umbilical cord derived cellular
product will help mitigate some of the acute and long-term
inflammatory consequences from this disease."
Timing and Participation:
The partnership kicks off immediately, with patient trials expected
to begin in the Fall. Both companies anticipate an FDA approved
treatment to be in the market for use in COVID-19 patients by early
2021.
For additional information on preserving newborn stem cells and
the potential to donate, please visit the CBR website.
To find out more about the Los
Angeles based NantKwest COVID-19 clinical trial please visit
the NantKwest website.
About CBR and Generate Life Sciences
CBR (Cord Blood
Registry) is the largest private newborn stem bank in the world
with over 900,000 stem cell units stored. CBR is part of the
Generate Life Sciences (Generate) family of brands, a life sciences
company helping to grow and protect families through reproductive,
newborn stem cell, genetic screening, medical device, and
healthcare technology services. Generate serves families from
preconception to post-birth. The brands - CBR (Cord Blood
Registry), California Cryobank Donor Sperm Bank, Donor Egg Bank
USA, NW Cryobank, ReadyGen,
Kitazato USA, and Donor
Application are pioneering leaders, helping to grow and protect
nearly 1 million families through its services. Headquartered in
Los Angeles, Generate operates
facilities in Tucson, New York, Boston, Palo
Alto, and Rockville, MD.
Generate is a portfolio company of GI Partners, a private
investment firm based in San
Francisco.
About NantKwest
NantKwest (NASDAQ: NK) is an
innovative, clinical-stage immunotherapy company focused on
harnessing the power of the innate immune system to treat cancer
and infectious diseases. NantKwest is the leading producer of
clinical dose forms of off-the-shelf natural killer (NK) cell
therapies. The activated NK cell platform is designed to
destroy cancer and virally-infected cells. The safety of these
optimized, activated NK cells—as well as their activity against a
broad range of cancers—has been tested in phase I clinical trials
in Canada and Europe, as well as in multiple phase I and II
clinical trials in the United
States. By leveraging an integrated and extensive genomics
and transcriptomics discovery and development engine, together with
a pipeline of multiple, clinical-stage, immuno-oncology programs,
NantKwest's goal is to transform medicine by bringing novel NK
cell-based therapies to routine clinical care. NantKwest is a
member of the NantWorks ecosystem of companies. For more
information, please visit www.nantkwest.com
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within
the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995. Forward-looking statements include statements concerning or
implying that NantKwest will be successful in improving the
treatment of cancer or other critical illnesses, including
COVID-19. Risks and uncertainties related to these endeavors
include, but are not limited to, obtaining FDA approval of
NantKwest's NK cells as well as other therapeutics and
manufacturing challenges.
Forward-looking statements are based on management's current
expectations and are subject to various risks and uncertainties
that could cause actual results to differ materially and adversely
from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.
Accordingly, these forward-looking statements do not constitute
guarantees of future performance, and you are cautioned not to
place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements.
These and other risks regarding NantKwest's business are
described in detail in its Securities and Exchange Commission
filings, including in NantKwest's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for
the quarter ended June 30, 2020.
These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof,
and we disclaim any obligation to update these statements except as
may be required by law.
Media Contacts
Monica
Rohleder
media@generatelifesciences.com
847-606-1973
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SOURCE Generate Life Sciences