Kate Therapeutics and Capsida Biotherapeutics collaborate on gene therapies

The companies aim to bring gene therapies to patients sooner than traditional approaches

Kate Therapeutics (KateTx) and Capsida Biotherapeutics have announced a strategic collaboration to manufacture KateTx’s next-generation gene therapies.

The partnership aims to advance KateTx’s initial internal portfolio of muscle and heart disease programmes and leverage Capsida’s expertise and adeno-associated virus (AAV) manufacturing capabilities.

Under the terms of the agreement, Capsida will provide KateTx with GMP manufacturing of its gene therapies as the medicines advance through preclinical and clinical development.

In exchange, Capsida, an integrated gene therapy company that develops treatments for rare and common diseases, will receive undisclosed funding from KateTx for the term of the agreement.

Patient-focused biotechnology company KateTx has publicly disclosed internal programmes including myotonic dystrophy type 1 and facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy, the two leading causes of adult-onset muscular dystrophy.

Muscular dystrophy is a group of over 30 genetic diseases that cause progressive weakness and the degeneration of skeletal muscles.

Kevin Forrest, president and chief executive officer of KateTx, said: “Capsida’s… AAV manufacturing capabilities allow us to build our pipeline, de-risk our programmes, and advance them into the clinic in the most rapid manner possible, so we can bring much-needed therapies to patients quickly.”

Peter Anastasiou, chief executive officer of Capsida, said that the company looks forward to “[reaching] patients in a complementary space” while further advancing its “internal and partnered pipeline in central nervous system (CNS) and ophthalmology” as part of the strategic collaboration.

“This partnership with KateTx aims to bring these next-generation gene therapies to patients sooner than with traditional approaches,” said Beth Seidenberg, co-founding managing director at Westlake Village BioPartners, member of the board of Capsida, and chair of the board at KateTx.

In June of this year, Astellas Pharma and KateTx announced a licence agreement to develop and commercialise KT430, a preclinical investigational gene therapy to treat X-linked myotubular myopathy, a rare, life-threatening neuromuscular disease.