Servier Exercises Option for Cellectis Allogeneic CAR-T Therapy UCART19

Pharmaceutical company Servier has exercised its exclusive worldwide licensing option for Cellectis' UCART19, an allogeneic CAR-T cell therapy candidate for hematological malignancies. The therapy, developed using Cellectis' TALEN gene-editing technology, is poised to enter Phase 1 clinical development for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).

In parallel, Servier has entered into a global license and collaboration agreement with Pfizer to co-develop and commercialize UCART19. Under this agreement, Pfizer and Servier will share development costs and collaborate on a joint clinical program. Pfizer will lead potential commercialization efforts in the United States, while Servier will retain marketing rights outside the U.S.

UCART19 utilizes Cellectis' proprietary allogeneic approach, which engineers T-cells from healthy donors for potential use in multiple patients. This contrasts with autologous therapies that modify a patient's own T-cells.

Cellectis will receive an upfront payment of $38.2 million from Servier. The company is also eligible for over $300 million in milestone payments, research and development financing, and royalties on future sales. Dr. André Choulika, CEO of Cellectis, highlighted the significance of Servier's early option exercise as a validation of UCART19's potential.