SAN DIEGO, Nov. 5, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Fate Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:FATE), a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the development of programmed cellular immunotherapeutics for the treatment of cancer and immune disorders, announced today that it will present its strategy for developing off-the-shelf cancer immunotherapeutics using its novel pluripotent cell platform, which combines genetic engineering with rapid and efficient generation of immune cells, at the American Society of Hematology (ASH) 2015 Annual Meeting being held December 5-8 in Orlando, Florida.
Fate Therapeutics is utilizing its proprietary platform to engineer immunological properties and safety mechanisms at the pluripotent cell stage, creating a continual cell source for the generation of off-the-shelf T- and NK-cell cancer immunotherapies without requiring patient-sourced cells. New scientific data to be presented include engineering strategies to efficiently, precisely and safely integrate multiple genetic modifications into pluripotent cells, maintenance strategies for engineered pluripotent cell clones and differentiation strategies using well-defined, small molecule-driven protocols for the derivation of T cells and NK cells. The Company will also discuss translation of its pluripotent cell platform to meet current good manufacturing practice (cGMP) requirements for the development of off-the-shelf adoptive immunotherapies.
Presentations at ASH 2015 include the following:
Sunday, December 6, 2015, 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. EST (poster presentation)
Title: A Platform for the Scalable Derivation of Genetically-Enhanced T and NK Lymphocytes from Naive Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells for Cancer Immunotherapy
Session Name: 501. Hematopoietic Stem and Progenitor Biology: Poster II
Abstract Number: 2364
Lead Author: Bob Valamehr, Ph.D., MBA, Director, Reprogramming Biology, Fate Therapeutics
Location: Orange County Convention Center, Hall A
Sunday, December 6, 2015, 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. EST (poster presentation)
Title: Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Incorporating Safe Harbor Loci Integrated Inducible Suicide Systems for Use in the Application of Cellular Therapeutics
Session Name: 801. Gene Therapy and Transfer: Poster II
Abstract Number: 3237
Lead Author: Bob Valamehr, Ph.D., MBA, Director, Reprogramming Biology, Fate Therapeutics
Location: Orange County Convention Center, Hall A
About Pluripotent Cell-Derived Cancer Immunotherapy
Induced pluripotent cells are capable of long-term self-renewal and can be used to generate almost any functional cell, and are therefore an ideal source of cells holding unique potential for the development of off-the-shelf adoptive immunotherapies. Since the Company's founding, Fate Therapeutics has developed a proprietary pluripotent cell platform, which combines genetic engineering with rapid and efficient generation of immune cells. Specifically, the platform is designed to enable the generation of genetically-modified, clonal pluripotent cell lines and the unlimited production of lymphoid cells, such as T cells and NK cells, in a consistent, scalable and efficient manner without requiring patient-sourced cells. Using its pluripotent cell platform, Fate Therapeutics has demonstrated the potential to create large quantities of homogenous cell populations in the hematopoietic lineage using clinically-adaptable methods, and is continuing to extensively characterize the properties of these cells to demonstrate in vitro and in vivo multipotency and targeted cellular cytotoxicity.
About Fate Therapeutics, Inc.
Fate Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the development of programmed cellular immunotherapeutics for the treatment of cancer and immune disorders. The Company's cell-based product pipeline is comprised of off-the-shelf immuno-oncology therapeutics, including NK- and T-cell-based candidates derived from induced pluripotent cells, and immuno-regulatory therapeutics, including hematopoietic cell-based candidates for protecting the immune system of patients undergoing hematopoietic cell transplantation and for suppressing auto-reactive T cells of patients with auto-immune disorders. Its adoptive cell therapy candidates are based on the Company's novel ex vivo cell programming approach, which it applies to modulate the therapeutic function and direct the fate of immune cells. Fate Therapeutics is headquartered in San Diego, CA. For more information, please visit www.fatetherapeutics.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements regarding the therapeutic potential of programmed cellular immunotherapeutics, and the Company's plans and ability to develop programmed cellular immunotherapeutics, including off-the-shelf NK- and T-cell-based cancer immunotherapeutics using its pluripotent cell platform. These and any other forward-looking statements in this release are based on management's current expectations of future events and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially and adversely from those set forth in or implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the risk of cessation or delay of planned research and development activities, any inability to develop programmed cellular immunotherapeutics, including NK cells and T cells derived from induced pluripotent cells, which are suitable for therapeutic applications, and the risk that programmed cellular immunotherapeutics or other product candidates that the Company may develop may not produce therapeutic benefits or may cause other unanticipated adverse effects. For a discussion of other risks and uncertainties, and other important factors, any of which could cause the Company's actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see the risks and uncertainties detailed in the Company's periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including but not limited to the Company's Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2015, and from time to time the Company's other investor communications. The Company is providing the information in this release as of this date and does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this release as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.