BRIEF—Kite and Refuge Biotec ink deal on blood cancers

US biotech major Gilead Sciences today revealed that its Kite subsidiary has entered into an exclusive, worldwide license agreement with Refuge Biotechnologies, a synthetic biology company for cancer immunotherapy, for exclusive rights to utilize Refuge’s proprietary gene expression platform to develop potential treatments for blood cancers.

Refuge’s proprietary platform is a synthetic biology system that utilizes an expression modulation strategy to repress or activate transcription of target genes.

Early pre-clinical data suggest a potential for this highly modular platform to regulate target antigen-dependent gene expression as a means to improve upon both the efficacy and safety of first-generation CAR T-cell therapies.

Kite will be responsible for all costs and activities related to research, development, manufacturing and commercialization.

Kite will also make an undisclosed upfront payment to Refuge and Refuge will be eligible to receive potential performance-based regulatory milestone payments