Cellectis and Sanofi partner on alemtuzumab for CAR-T therapies
Cellectis and Sanofi have entered into a partnership and supply agreement for alemtuzumab, to be used as a lymphodepleting agent in Cellectis' allogeneic CAR-T cell trials. The drug targets CD52.
Biotechnology company Cellectis and pharmaceutical firm Sanofi have agreed to collaborate on the use of alemtuzumab.
The partnership will see alemtuzumab utilized as part of a lymphodepleting regimen in clinical trials sponsored by Cellectis for its allogeneic CAR-T cell therapies, known as UCART. Alemtuzumab is a monoclonal antibody that targets the CD52 molecule.
Cellectis' UCART products are engineered to be resistant to alemtuzumab, a characteristic intended to improve the expansion and persistence of the CAR-T cells within the patient's body by reducing existing host immune cells.
Alemtuzumab is currently incorporated into the lymphodepleting regimen for Cellectis' UCART22 and UCART123 candidates in trials for relapsed/refractory acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML), respectively. Sanofi will supply the antibody for these trials, with discussions planned for future commercial supply.