Sanofi Acquires Tidal Therapeutics to Advance In Vivo Immune Cell Reprogramming with Novel mRNA Platform

April 09, 2021 /BioValleyBIOON/ -- Sanofi recently announced the successful completion of its acquisition of Kymab Group, adding KY1005 to its pipeline. KY1005 is a fully human monoclonal antibody targeting OX40L, a key regulator of the immune system. Kymab’s pipeline also includes KY1044, an ICOS agonist monoclonal antibody currently in early Phase 1/2 development, both as monotherapy and in combination with anti-PD-L1 therapy. This acquisition further builds on Sanofi’sImmunologyBuilding on its leading position in the field, this aligns with Sanofi’s strategy to seek best-in-class therapies in specific areas.

On the same day, Sanofi also announced the acquisition of Tidal Therapeutics, a private preclinical biotechnology company with a novel mRNA-based approach for in vivo reprogramming of immune cells. This new technology platform will expand Sanofi’s immunTumorresearch capabilities in immunology and inflammatory diseases, while also being broadly applicable to other therapeutic areas. Sanofi acquired Tidal Therapeutics for an upfront payment of $160 million, with potential total deal value reaching up to $310 million upon the achievement of certain milestones.

Frank Nestle, Global Head of Research and Chief Scientific Officer at Sanofi, stated, “We anticipate that this next-generation, off-the-shelf approach has the potential to bring CAR-T cell therapy to a broader patient population. We believe that this mRNA-targeting platform will be applicable across multipleTumorandAutoimmunitydisruptive therapies in disease.”

Tidal Therapeutics is a preclinical biotechnology company headquartered at LabCentral, a shared laboratory facility in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. Tidal Therapeutics employs a novel mRNA-based approach to reprogram immune cells in vivo. This technology is based on its proprietaryNanoGranules, this type ofNanoNanoparticles can deliver mRNA (information) to reprogram immune cells in the body. This technology enables selective delivery of mRNA to specific cell types within the body, with initial applications targeting particular types of immune cells.

This in vivo approach aims to deliver efficacy comparable to current ex vivo methods, in which immune cells are genetically modified to enhance their therapeutic properties (such as T cells expressing chimeric antigen receptors [CARs]), with the potential to improve safety and enable outpatient and repeated administration. Currently, Tidal Therapeutics is conducting preclinical programs involving the in vivo reprogramming of T cells or other types of immune cells for cancer indications.

Ulrik Nielsen, President and Chief Executive Officer of Tidal Therapeutics, stated, “Our collaboration with Sanofi provides us with the opportunity to further develop and apply our unique platform, ultimately benefiting patients across a range of diseases.” (Bioon.com)

Original source: Sanofi acquires Tidal Therapeutics, adding innovative mRNA-based research platform withapplications in oncology, immunology, and other disease areas