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Natural killer cells (NK cells) are CD3-negative CD56-positive lymphocytes, which are part of the innate immune system and play an important role in the defense against virus-infected and transformed cells. Possessing multiple cytotoxicity mechanisms and the ability to modulate the immune response through cytokine production, NK cells provide an attractive source of effector cells for cancer immunotherapy. Because allogeneic NK cells do not cause graft-versus-host disease, they can be obtained from healthy donor sources to avoid the shortcomings with autologous approaches.
We developed a robust, reproducible and scalable culture system for manufacturing high numbers of allogeneic NK cells from umbilical cord blood-derived CD34+ hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPC). This HSPC-NK product displays high purity, no allogeneic T-cell contamination and exerts potent antitumor reactivity. These HSPC-NK cells can be used as allogeneic immune effectors in adoptive cancer immunotherapy. Moreover, this NK generator platform provides a versatile method for genetic engineering to further enhance tumor specificity and antitumor function.
Application
- Therapeutics for treating cancer
- Ideal platform for genetic modification
- Potential for off-the-shelf production
Development status
Patent application has been filed. The production process is GMP-compliant and an IMPD has been developed. Two clinical trials with stem cell-derived NK cells are currently running (NCT03539406 and NCT04347616).
Opportunity
- We offer a licensing opportunity for the patent covering the described invention
- We are interested in collaboration and/or co-development
For more information contact us through businessdevelopment@radboudumc.nl
