Immunotherapy Company TC BioPharm partners with Trinity College Dublin to develop V delta 1 γδ T cell-based cancer treatments
TC BioPharm (TCB) today announced it is collaborating with Dublin’s Trinity College to accelerate in-house production of V delta 1 γδ T cell banks for treatment of solid tumors.
The collaboration with Dublin’s School of Medicine, Trinity College, will leverage extensive experience gained by Dr Derek Doherty related to the biology and culture expansion of V delta 1 γδ T cells. Dr Doherty and his research group will work with TCB’s in-house GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) team to develop a range of V delta 1 products with initial focus on EBV-related cancer.
Over the next 12 months TCB will manufacture GMP-compliant V delta 1s which will be combined with the Company’s proprietary allogeneic CAR-T platform to generate next-generation therapies to treat a wide-range of different cancer types. Initial clinical studies are planned for late 2019.
TC BioPharm works with clinical centers of excellence to treat cancer patients in London, Leeds, Cardiff, Manchester, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Oxford and Prague. Employing over 80 members of staff, the UK-based company has premises in Glasgow, Edinburgh, the Netherlands and Japan. Clinical-grade product is manufactured in-house from TCB’s GMP-compliant cell and gene processing unit in Scotland.
Commencing operations in 2014, TCB has grown rapidly due to extensive, unrivaled cell therapy experience leveraged by its two founders, Dr Michael Leek and Angela Scott. Described as a “pioneer in regenerative medicine”, and active in the sector since 1989, Dr Leek has taken ten different cell therapies to the clinic including the first allogeneic cell-based therapy to undergo multinational phase 3 clinical evaluation. Angela Scott has an equally impressive pedigree as one of the pioneering scientists that created ‘Dolly the Sheep’ in 1996, she was also part of the team that clinically developed the world’s first-in-man allogeneic stem cell treatment for stroke patients.
TCB’s chief operating officer, Angela Scott, said: “It’s a pleasure to be working alongside Dr Doherty in Dublin – Derek and his team have provided us with an enormous opportunity to fast-track our V delta 1 research into GMP manufacture and subsequent treatment of cancer patients”.
Dr Derek Doherty, Associate Professor and Head of Immunology at Trinity College commented: “This collaboration with TC BioPharm gives us an opportunity to translate our basic research on V delta 1 γδ T cells into immunotherapies for cancer and infectious disease”.
“At TCB, we believe in the vast potential for V delta 1 T cells to significantly improve cancer patient health and quality of life,” said Dr Michael Leek, TCB’s Chief Executive. “This collaboration builds upon our strategy to maintain position as the leader in clinical development of therapeutic gamma delta T cells”.