- Collaboration to leverage Umoja's VivoVecTM
gene delivery platform and AbbVie's expertise in oncology to
develop in-situ generated chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell
therapy candidates
NORTH
CHICAGO, Ill. and SEATTLE, Jan. 4, 2024
/PRNewswire/ -- AbbVie (NYSE: ABBV), and Umoja Biopharma
(Umoja), an early clinical-stage biotechnology company, today
announced two exclusive option and license agreements to develop
multiple in-situ generated CAR-T cell therapy candidates in
oncology using Umoja's proprietary VivoVecTM platform.
The first agreement provides AbbVie an exclusive option to license
Umoja's CD19 directed in-situ generated CAR-T cell therapy
candidates. This includes UB-VV111, Umoja's lead clinical program
for hematologic malignancies currently at the IND-enabling phase.
Under the terms of the second agreement, AbbVie and Umoja will
develop up to four additional in-situ generated CAR-T cell therapy
candidates for discovery targets selected by AbbVie.
"As we continue to strengthen our oncology portfolio, we believe
that in-situ CAR-T cell therapy represents a paradigm shift
utilizing genetic medicine concepts," said Jonathon Sedgwick, Ph.D., vice president and
global head of discovery research at AbbVie. "We look forward to
working with Umoja's team to advance next-generation in-situ CAR-T
therapies, and potentially expand the patient populations and
indications benefitting from conventional CAR-T approaches."
Umoja's VivoVecTM gene delivery platform combines
third generation lentiviral vector gene delivery with a novel
T-cell targeting and activation surface complex. This enables T
cells in the body to manufacture their own cancer-fighting CAR-T
cells in vivo. This has the potential to eliminate a number of
challenges associated with traditional CAR-T approaches including
reliance on gathering a patient's own or donor cells which are
modified externally before being delivered back to the patient, the
associated time lag and manufacturing challenges of ex vivo cell
modification, and the need for patient's lymphodepletion.
"AbbVie is an ideal partner for Umoja given their broad
expertise in development and commercialization of novel
therapeutics in hematology, oncology, and beyond," said
David Fontana, Ph.D., chief
operating and business officer at Umoja.
"By bringing together AbbVie's like-minded pursuit of addressing
patient unmet needs with our investments in vector biology and
fully-owned commercial-scale manufacturing, we look forward to
progressing multiple VivoVec™ drug candidates into the clinic in
the coming years," added Andrew Scharenberg, M.D., co-founder
and chief executive officer at Umoja.
Under the terms of the two agreements, Umoja received upfront
payments and an equity investment from AbbVie. Additionally, for
the two agreements combined, Umoja may be eligible to receive up to
$1.44B in aggregate for option
exercise fees, development and regulatory milestones, with the
potential for Umoja to earn additional sales-based milestones and
tiered royalties on worldwide net sales.
About AbbVie
AbbVie's mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines
and solutions that solve serious health issues today and address
the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable
impact on people's lives across several key therapeutic areas –
immunology, oncology, neuroscience, and eye care – and products and
services in our Allergan Aesthetics portfolio. For more information
about AbbVie, please visit us at www.abbvie.com. Follow
@abbvie on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, X (formerly
Twitter), and YouTube.
About Umoja Biopharma
Umoja Biopharma, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company
aiming to develop off-the-shelf therapeutics that improve the
reach, effectiveness, and access of CAR T cell therapies in both
oncology and autoimmunity. Umoja's VivoVecTM in
vivo gene delivery technology empowers a patient's own immune
system to fight disease. Enabling its core technology is the
Company's state-of-the-art lentiviral vector development and
manufacturing facility in Louisville,
Colorado. Umoja believes its approach can provide broader
access and improved effectiveness of the most advanced
immunotherapies, enabling more patients to live better, fuller
lives. To learn more, connect with Umoja on LinkedIn and visit
http://umoja-biopharma.com/.
AbbVie Forward-Looking Statements
Some statements in this news release are, or may be considered,
forward-looking statements for purposes of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The words "believe," "expect,"
"anticipate," "project" and similar expressions and uses of future
or conditional verbs, generally identify forward-looking
statements. AbbVie cautions that these forward-looking statements
are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual
results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the
forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include,
but are not limited to, challenges to intellectual property,
competition from other products, difficulties inherent in the
research and development process, adverse litigation or government
action, and changes to laws and regulations applicable to our
industry. Additional information about the economic, competitive,
governmental, technological and other factors that may affect
AbbVie's operations is set forth in Item 1A, "Risk Factors," of
AbbVie's 2022 Annual Report on Form 10-K, which has been filed with
the Securities and Exchange Commission, as updated by its
subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. AbbVie undertakes no
obligation, and specifically declines, to release publicly any
revisions to forward-looking statements as a result of subsequent
events or developments, except as required by law.
Umoja Forward-Looking Statements:
This press release contains forward-looking statements about
Umoja Biopharma, Inc. (the "Company," "we," "us," or "our"). The
Company has based these forward-looking statements largely on its
current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about
future events and financial trends that it believes may affect its
financial condition, results of operations, business strategy and
financial needs. In light of the significant uncertainties in these
forward-looking statements, you should not rely upon
forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. These
statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause
the actual results to vary materially, including, among others, the
risks inherent in drug development such as those associated with
the initiation, cost, timing, progress and results of the Company's
current and future research and development programs, preclinical
and clinical trials, as well as any economic, market and social
disruptions. Except as required by law, the Company undertakes no
obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements for
any reason.
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SOURCE AbbVie