Vertex Pharmaceuticals has recently announced a partnership with TreeFrog Therapeutics, a prominent cell manufacturing company. This collaboration involves an initial payment of $25 million from Vertex to obtain a license for TreeFrog’s innovative cell manufacturing technology, C-Stem. The primary objective of this partnership is to enhance the production of Vertex’s cell therapies for type 1 diabetes (T1D).
The focus of this collaboration is on scaling up TreeFrog’s cell manufacturing process, situated in Bordeaux, France, to facilitate the production and amplification of cells for Vertex’s T1D cell therapies. The C-Stem technology is specifically designed to create a natural microenvironment that enables cells to grow exponentially in 3D. By increasing the scale of this cell manufacturing process, Vertex aims to improve its capability to produce large quantities of fully differentiated cells for its T1D cell therapies.
Dr. Morrey Atkinson, the executive vice president and chief technical operations officer at Vertex, has articulated the company’s aspiration to revolutionize the treatment of T1D. In this context, Vertex’s stem cell-derived, fully differentiated islet cell program, known as VX-880 Ph 1/2, holds significant promise.
In addition to the initial payment of $25 million, Vertex has also committed to providing up to $215 million in milestone payments related to the development of a scaled-up process for fully differentiated islet cells. Furthermore, TreeFrog stands to gain an additional $540 million in clinical, regulatory, and commercial milestones for up to two future products, as well as tiered single-digit royalties.
The terms of the agreement dictate that Vertex will assume all research and development expenses related to the collaboration and will oversee the development and commercialization of its cell therapies.
Vertex’s initiatives to address type 1 diabetes involve various investigational approaches utilizing stem cell-derived islets with the goal of replacing the insulin-producing islet cells that are compromised in individuals with T1D. Among these approaches are VX-880 and VX-264. VX-880 is described as an allogeneic, stem cell-derived, fully differentiated, insulin-producing islet cell therapy, while VX-264 encompasses the same VX-880 cells in a device designed to eliminate the need for immunosuppressants.
Ultimately, the collaboration between Vertex and TreeFrog is aimed at increasing the availability of cell therapies to the T1D patient population, with the overarching goal of significantly enhancing the treatment and management of this condition.