Lineage Cell Therapeutics ( NYSE: LCTX ) and Eterna Therapeutics ( NASDAQ: ERNA ) signed an option and license agreement to develop novel beta 2 microglobulin (B2M)-deficient induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) lines, which Lineage will evaluate for developing differentiated cell transplant therapies.
The companies said that the new cell lines to be developed by Eterna will help the potential creation of more product candidates at Lineage, mainly for treating certain central nervous system (CNS) disorders and other neurology uses.
Eterna is the exclusive licensee of the key intellectual property underlying this team up from its discovery partner Factor Bioscience, the companies added.
"The cell therapy expertise demonstrated by Lineage makes them an attractive partner to deploy our mRNA cell engineering platform for the generation of novel gene-edited iPSC lines for neurological applications," said Eterna CEO Matt Angel.
Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Under the agreement, Eterna plans to carry out certain gene-editing activities and provide materials to Lineage for evaluation.
The transaction provides Lineage an option to get an exclusive license to use and sublicense the novel gene-edited cell lines for preclinical, clinical, and commercial uses for CNS diseases, according to the companies.
Lineage noted that it expects this attribute will expand the edited cell lines’ overall use, including for non-immune privileged or non-human leukocyte antigen (HLA) matched uses.
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Lineage, Eterna team up to develop cell lines for neurological conditions