ME Therapeutics Granted Licence for CD22 Nanobody Asset to Expand Next-Gen In Vivo CAR Cell Therapy Program

Executive Summary

• ME Therapeutics entered a technology license agreement with the National Research Council of Canada, securing exclusive commercial rights to a nanobody‑based CD22 binder for CAR‑T and CAR‑M therapies across multiple territories.
• The agreement includes an upfront licence fee, royalty obligations on product sales, and milestone payments tied to clinical trial progress and regulatory approvals.
• The CD22 binder is being evaluated in an investigator‑driven Phase 1 autologous CAR‑T trial (NCT06208735) for relapsed/refractory B‑cell cancers, positioning ME Therapeutics to develop next‑generation immuno‑oncology candidates.

Key Details

• Parties: ME Therapeutics Holdings Inc. (CSE: METX) and the National Research Council of Canada (NRC).
• Technology: NRC’s proprietary nanobody‑based CD22 binder, intended for use in chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) therapies, including in‑vivo CAR‑T and myeloid CAR‑M approaches.
• Territory Coverage: Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Europe, India, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, United States (exclusive rights for autologous CAR cell therapy products except in Canada; exclusive for all other CAR modalities).
• Financial Terms:
• Up‑front licence fee payable within 12 months of agreement execution.
• Royalties on sales of autologous CAR products and on revenue from allogeneic/in‑vivo CAR products, subject to a minimum annual royalty.
• Milestone payments due upon:
  • Initiation of dosing in Phase 1 trials.
  • Initiation of dosing in Phase 2 trials.
  • Initiation of dosing in registration trials.
  • Six months after first regulatory approval of any product in the territory.
• Expiration: Licence terminates upon expiry of the last claim of the final patent covering the technology.
• Clinical Development: The CD22 binder is currently part of an investigator‑driven Phase 1 trial (NCT06208735) assessing safety and efficacy in pediatric and adult patients with relapsed/refractory B‑cell malignancies.
• Strategic Rationale: Provides ME Therapeutics a home‑grown, Canadian nanobody asset to enhance its in‑vivo CAR‑cell therapy program and expand its immuno‑oncology pipeline.

Notable Quotes

“This milestone strengthens our commitment to develop innovative immuno‑oncology candidates, including next‑generation CAR therapies that can reprogram immune cells in the tumour microenvironment using advanced nanobody technology.” – Salim Dhanji, CEO, ME Therapeutics

“We are pleased to license this Canadian‑made, publicly‑owned nanobody‑based CD22 binder to a Canadian company for use in next‑generation CAR applications.” – Sue Twine, Director General, NRC Human Health Therapeutics Research Centre