EXACIS BIOTHERAPEUTICS GRANTS ETERNA THERAPEUTICS AN OPTION TO LICENSE UP TO FOUR ALLOGENEIC IPSC-DERIVED NK AND T CELL THERAPIES

• Agreement grants Eterna rights to license up to four next-generation iPS cell derived NK and T cell cancer therapies
  
  
• License terms include an upfront license fee, development and commercialization milestone and single-digit royalties.
  
  
• Exacis' allogeneic cell therapies are made from iPSCs engineered for stealthing and performance using proprietary mRNA-based gene editing and differentiated into NK and / or T cells targeted at virtually any tumor antigen

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Oct. 17, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Exacis Biotherapeutics Inc. ("Exacis" or the "Company"), a development-stage immuno-oncology company working to harness the immune system to cure cancer, today announced that it has signed an option agreement with Eterna Therapeutics Inc. ("Eterna") providing Eterna the right to license up to four off-the-shelf, iPSC derived NK cell and T cell cancer treatments to be produced using Exacis' proprietary mRNA-reprogrammed iPSCs that will be engineered with Exacis' mRNA-based gene editing platform. The option agreement provides Exacis and Eterna until December 31, 2022 to negotiate the license agreement. Terms include an upfront license fee, development and commercialization milestones, and single-digit royalties.

Exacis' non-viral platform uses mRNA-reprogrammed iPSCs engineered for stealthing and performance using Exacis' proprietary mRNA-based gene editing system including mRNA vector RiboSlice^™ and nuclease NoveSlice^™. The Exacis process avoids use of potentially harmful DNA and viruses by using mRNA.

Dr. Dimitri Goundis, Exacis' Chief Business Officer commented, "Exacis is committed to using its powerful platform to produce safe and effective immune cell therapies for cancer. Eterna is well positioned to rapidly advance products toward the clinic and patients".

Dr. Matt Angel, Eterna's Interim Chief Executive Officer added, "The opportunity to partner with Exacis and add next-generation mRNA-based NK and T cell therapies to our oncology portfolio is an important step in advancing Eterna's mission to realize the potential of cell engineering to provide patients with transformational new medicines."

Exacis is a development stage immuno-oncology company focused on harnessing the human immune system to cure cancer by engineering off-the-shelf iPSC-derived NK cell therapies targeting hematologic and solid tumors. Exacis' allogeneic engineered cell therapies, ExaNK^™ and ExaCAR-NK^™, are designed to be used alone or in combination with antibodies or NK cell engagers for superior performance. For more information, please visit www.exacis.com. 

Eterna is focused on developing advanced therapies using state-of-the-art mRNA cell engineering technology. Its mission is to realize the potential of cell engineering to provide patients with transformational new medicines. The Company has in-licensed a portfolio of over 100 patents covering key cell engineering technologies, including what it believes are the most widely used methods for therapeutic gene editing currently in clinical development. Eterna has multiple next-generation cell and gene-editing therapies in preclinical development for various indications. For more information, please visit www.eternatx.com.

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

SOURCE Exacis Biotherapeutics Inc.