Introducing Our News in Brief
Welcome to the
Glycostem
NEWSBRIEF
, Issue 1. Periodically, we’ll share updates on what’s happening with our team, our technology and our company. Not a subscriber? You can sign up
here.
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MOLMED AND GLYCOSTEM TEAM UP TO ADVANCE
CAR-NK-CELL PRODUCTS
OSS, Netherlands —
Milan-based MolMed, for more than two decades a pioneer in the field of curative cellular innovation, and Glycostem have announced a co-development venture to advance a range of ground-breaking CAR-NK-cell products.
Glycostem CEO Troels Jordansen said, “We are very excited about our collaboration with MolMed. The combining of MolMed’s induction technology with Glycostem’s clinical stage NK-cell technology holds terrific potential, not only for our respective companies, but also for the field of NK-cell research in general.”
Jordansen adds, “This is a significant milestone for Glycostem. We are recognized for our pioneering work in NK-cell R&D and the enormous potential of our platform technology, as well as our achievements in ‘closed production system’ methodology. Now we can look forward to scaling-up our CAR-NK-cell development work in collaboration with MolMed. We will each benefit from the mutual momentum and our respective leading positions in the field.”
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GLYCOSTEM CONTRIBUTIONS IN THE FIELD OF NK CELL RESEARCH
Glycostem works at the cutting edge of cellular immunotherapy, with ongoing contributions to the field in terms of new knowledge and data. A recent example includes new findings in NK-cell activation and functions, represented by the just released ebook,
'
Tailoring NK Cell Receptor-Ligand Interactions: an Art in Evolution
', edited by Gianfranco Pittari, Antoine Toubert and Ulrike Koehl. The research which served as the basis of several articles was initiated by the NaturImmun ITN Marie Curie network program, in which Glycostem actively participated from 2013-2017.
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MOVING DAY: GLYCOSTEM EXPANDS TO NEW FACILITY
On 1 March 2018, its funding goals fully achieved, Glycostem relocated to its new facilities at Pivot Park life sciences industrial park, Oss, Netherlands. Collectively comprising nearly 500 square meters, the premises include the company’s newly renovated and equipped laboratory, production facility and administrative HQ.
The facilities, equipped with new state-of-the-art R&D and production equipment, were completely refurbished and customised for Glycostem’s particularly specialized applications. In preparation for future expansion, Glycostem also retains an option on an additional space of about the same size.
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MANAGEMENT MOMENTUM IN ADVANCE OF PIVOTAL TRIAL
After March 2017 phase I clinical trial delivered solid safety data and strong indications of efficacy in its naked NK-cell technology, to further accelerate product development Glycostem moved to expand its management team. Its members, along with the company’s scientists, technicians and administrative team, are tracking to achieve GMP production certification and to initiate pivotal clinical trials in relapsed and refractory AML patients by Q1 2019.
Troels Jordansen, Glycostem’s CEO, says, “Being a member of the Glycostem management team during this highly productive developmental phase is, to say the least, a very interesting endeavour. We see ourselves as being at the forefront in the battle to make cancer a chronic disease.”
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CORPORATE NAME CHANGE
In early 2018 Glycostem’s official corporate name of record was changed from IPD Developments B.V. to Glycostem Therapeutics B.V.
Troels Jordansen, Glycostem’s CEO, explained, “For years we have been known as Glycostem, but as a matter of record we were IPD Developments B.V. To simplify things and to clarify our identification as a company and a technology, we are now Glycostem Therapeutics B.V.”
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LUPUS VENTURES TAKES STAKE IN GLYCOSTEM
Netherlands-based
LUPUS Ventures
has invested €3 million in Glycostem, furthering the company’s expansion and ongoing technological development. Glycostem will channel this funding primarily to production optimisation and automation.
The LUPUS investment brought closer to realisation a primary goal; having in place a completely closed production system. This would in turn allow Glycostem to leverage EMA’s latest update to ATMP manufacturing, thereby reducing the expense of production implementation.
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CLINICAL DATA RECAP: PEER REVIEWED PHASE 1 TRIAL
In June of 2017, Clinical Cancer Research published a report on the positive outcome of Glycostem’s NK-killer cells phase I clinical trial, which was carried out at Radboud University Center in the Netherlands.
Ten elderly and fragile AML patients were treated in the dose escalating trial, the primary endpoint of which was safety. The goal was achieved with no exhibited side effects; not even at the highest levels of infusion.
Importantly, the treated patients’ duration of survival significantly exceeded the expected duration of survival in the general patient population. The trial results built on Glycostem’s already considerable developmental momentum as the company moves on to the next clinical stage.
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IN THE MEDIA
BioInformant
excerpt:
"Glycostem is a 10-year old clinical stage cellular immunotherapy company based in The Netherlands. The uniqueness around Glycostem, beyond that it is a privately funded company with strong phase I safety clinical trial data, is that it may become the first company with an allogeneic off-the- shelf product (oNKord®). This would potentially position NK cell technology to leapfrog CAR-T cell products, due to a safer profile, lower production costs, off-the- shelf status and positive clinical trial data."
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More: Interview with
Troels Jordansen,
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