CHA Biotech announced on Tuesday that its subsidiary, Matica BioLabs, has entered into a contract manufacturing organization (CMO) agreement with Ingenium Therapeutics. The partnership focuses on developing advanced regenerative medical treatments based on natural killer (NK) cells and the innate immune system.
Under this agreement, Matica BioLabs will oversee the production and quality testing of Ingenium Therapeutics’ autologous memory NK cell therapy.
Advanced regenerative medical treatments present unique challenges due to their patient-specific nature, including reproducibility of processes, consistency of quality, and scheduling management. Matica BioLabs aims to leverage its expertise in cell therapy manufacturing, quality control, and global regulatory compliance to ensure stable production and quality assurance.
Ingenium Therapeutics plans to administer the therapies produced by Matica BioLabs to patients at a specialized cancer hospital in Hong Kong. The treatment will target individuals at risk of relapse following hematologic malignancies or solid tumors.
Memory NK cells, which respond more robustly and swiftly to familiar stimuli, are emerging as a promising alternative for patients with relapsed acute myeloid leukemia (AML) who have shown resistance to conventional treatments.
Over two decades, Ingenium Therapeutics has conducted four clinical trials demonstrating the efficacy and safety of Zenglucel, their memory NK cell-based cancer treatment. The company is now preparing to launch a Phase 2 clinical trial for AML patients across three hospitals in Korea.
Jang Won Kyu, CEO of Matica BioLabs,
emphasized the significance of the partnership, saying the agreement enables collaboration across the entire process, from clinical development to the commercialization of autologous regenerative medical treatments. He noted that it marks a pivotal expansion of cooperation beyond traditional CDMO partnerships for immune cell therapies into advanced autologous regenerative medicine.
Matica BioLabs, a specialized cell and gene therapy (CGT) CDMO company, was established in 2018 as a spin-off from CHA Biotech.
CHA Biotech has established a global CGT CDMO network across the United States, Japan, and Korea under the strategic brand name Matica Bio. While Matica BioLabs manages domestic operations, Matica Biotech oversees North American and global initiatives.