Exacis Biotherapeutics Announces Strategic Partnership With CCRM For Specialty Manufacturing Of Services And Investment For Development Of iPSC-Derived mRNA-Engineered NK Cells

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Oct. 21, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Exacis Biotherapeutics, Inc., a development-stage immuno-oncology company working to harness the immune system to cure cancer, today announced initiation of a strategic partnership with Toronto-based Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine (CCRM) for specialty manufacturing services related to the development of Exacis' innovative, iPSC-derived mRNA-engineered NK cell products to treat cancer. The partnership also includes a cash investment into Exacis by CCRM Enterprises Holdings Ltd., the for-profit venture investment arm of CCRM, which will be used to fund operations. 

Exacis CEO Gregory Fiore, MD, commented, "We welcome CCRM as a key partner to allow us to rapidly advance our virus-free manufacturing processes to make novel NK cell products that are engineered for performance and to avoid rejection. CCRM is a recognized leader in iPSC-derived cell therapy development and manufacturing and we are thrilled to have them as a partner. Their confidence in Exacis is evidenced by the accompanying investment, by CCRM Enterprises Holdings Ltd., underscoring the unique value proposition offered by Exacis' differentiated platform and approach to cell therapies. We look forward to partnering with CCRM's CDMO experts to apply our mRNA based technologies to develop best-in-class products to treat challenging hematologic and solid tumors."

Cynthia Lavoie, PhD, President and CIO of CCRM Enterprises Inc. added, "We are pleased to support Exacis by way of an investment, and with our sector expertise and specialized infrastructure. This is a successful model that we have employed in the past to support promising technologies and together we will develop leading cell therapy products that utilize the substantial potential of the Exacis platform as it advances its iPSC-derived cell programs.

About Exacis Biotherapeutics

Exacis is a development stage immuno-oncology company focused on harnessing the human immune system to cure cancer by engineering next generation off-the-shelf NK and T cell therapies aimed at hematologic malignancies and solid tumors. Exacis was founded in 2020 with an exclusive global license to a broad suite of patents covering the use of mRNA based cell reprogramming and gene editing technologies for use in generating engineered NK and T cells for oncology applications. These patents were developed and are owned by Factor Bioscience.

Exacis' differentiated cell therapy platform avoids the use of DNA and viruses and uses instead a proprietary mRNA based technology. Exacis uses the technology to generate iPSCs and to edit their genomes to create stealthed, potent allogeneic cell products, termed ExaNK™, ExaCAR-T™ or ExaCAR-NK™ cells.

About CCRM

CCRM is a global, public-private partnership headquartered in Toronto, Canada. It receives funding from the Government of Canada, the Province of Ontario, and leading academic and industry partners. CCRM supports the development of regenerative medicines and associated enabling technologies, with a specific focus on cell and gene therapy. A network of researchers, leading companies, strategic investors and entrepreneurs, CCRM accelerates the translation of scientific discovery into new companies and marketable products for patients, with specialized teams, funding and infrastructure. CCRM is the commercialization partner of the University of Toronto's Medicine by Design. CCRM is hosted by the University of Toronto. Visit us at ccrm.ca. 

About CCRM Enterprises Inc.

CCRM Enterprises Inc. is the for-profit venture investment arm of the Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine (CCRM). CCRM Enterprises invests in early stage ventures and projects developing therapeutics and enabling technologies. Through an extensive network of investors, it can bring together risk capital to support these early-stage ventures as they scale up along the development pathway. By tapping into CCRM's manufacturing infrastructure and expertise, CCRM Enterprises provides capital-efficient support to accelerate and de-risk these high potential, early-stage ventures, further enabling the development of an advanced therapies ecosystem.

CCRM Enterprises Holdings Ltd. is the associated entity that holds shares in CCRM portfolio companies. Learn more about our investing strategy here. 

About T and Natural Killer (NK) Cell Therapies

T and NK cells are types of human immune cells that are able to recognize and destroy cancer cells and can be modified through genetic engineering to target specific tumors.

SOURCE Exacis Biotherapeutics, Inc.