According to a press release by Vaximm, Vaximm and NEC have agreed to cooperate on a non-exclusive basis. As part of the collaboration, NEC will make an equity investment in Vaximm. In addition, the Tokyo-based IT company will provide funding for a Phase I clinical trial for personalized neoantigen cancer vaccines.

The two partners want to develop the vaccines through the agreed collaboration. Vaximm will provide its experience in developing oral T-cell immunotherapies for patients, while NEC has developed a neoantigen prediction system based on state-of-the-art artificial intelligence (AI) technology, which is to be utilized in the development of cancer vaccines. Vaximm will manage the clinical trial scheduled for the coming year. NEC has secured the development and commercialization rights to the program worldwide, except for China and other Asian territories, which also apply to Japan.

Heinz Lubenau, PhD, Chief Operating Officer and Co-Founder of Vaximm, said: “NEC’s novel AI technology will enable not only the identification but also the prioritization of neoantigens from each patient. Once the list of neoantigens is available, we will be able to apply our technology to quickly produce a personalized vaccine. “

Vaximm is headquartered in the Technology Park, Basel. The location will be pleased to hear another success story from one of its companies based there. This means an extension of the cooperation between NBE Therapeutics and the Czech biotech company Sotio. NBE Therapeutics specializes in developing antibody drug conjugate products for cancer treatment. The two companies want to work together to develop next-generation antibody drug conjugates. Sotio has now exercised the option for developing a second drug candidate. NBE Therapeutics will also be able to use its in-house platform for this, while Sotio has the corresponding commercial rights. The exercise of the option by Sotio will give NBE the right to receive certain payments.