Caszyme and Integra Therapeutics sign licensing agreement for novel CRISPR Cas12l nucleases
The agreement was unveiled at this year’s BIO Europe, which is the largest partnering event for the biomedical industry in Europe, taking place this week in Stockholm. Over 2,800 companies attended from 60 countries, with more than 5,000 biopharma professionals in attendance.
Caszyme (Vilnius, Lithuania), a pioneer in the development and application of CRISPR gene editing technology, and Integra Therapeutics (Barcelona, Spain), a company leading the way in creating advanced therapies based on next-generation gene-writing tools, today announced a licensing agreement for the use of Caszyme’s novel Cas12l nucleases to develop safer and more efficient gene and cell therapies.
The agreement was unveiled at this year’s BIO Europe, which is the largest partnering event for the biomedical industry in Europe, taking place this week in Stockholm. Over 2,800 companies attended from 60 countries, with more than 5,000 biopharma professionals in attendance.
Under the agreement, Integra Therapeutics will incorporate the genome editor Cas12l into its FiCAT 2.0 (Find and Cut-And-Transfer) gene-writing platform, following successful in vivo and ex vivostudies, which yielded highly positive results in terms of safety and functionality in human cells. Caszyme will receive milestone payments up to 40 million. euros in addition to royalties on sales.
Cas12l is a unique CRISPR nuclease family with an effector size of approximately 850 amino acids that stands out for its small size and versatility. As the demand for efficient and safe gene-editing tools in therapeutic contexts continues to grow, these small nucleases represent a promising solution, combining efficacy with the practical advantages of reduced size. Caszyme-developed Cas12l shows great activity in human cells across multiple targets. Compared to other nucleases, Caszyme’s Cas12l offers additional delivery possibilities, especially when combined with other effector domains. Moreover, smaller nucleases from non-pathogenic bacteria may be less immunogenic compared to their larger counterparts, further highlighting their therapeutic potential. The nucleases discovered by Caszyme exhibit different characteristics from Cas9 nucleases, which formed the foundation of the find module in FiCAT 1.0, expanding their potential applications in advanced therapies.
“Caszyme’s goal is to enable therapeutic companies to develop novel, efficient and affordable gene editing modalities. This collaboration with Integra Therapeutics is a perfect alignment between two highly innovative European companies, and when successful, will help bring advanced gene editing based therapies to the market.” said Dr Monika Paulė, CEO and Co-Founder of Caszyme.
Adding, Dr Giedrius Gasiunas, CSO and Co-Founder of Caszyme, said “the partnership will further Caszyme’s core scientific aims – which are to develop novel, safer and smaller Cas12l nucleases that are more compatible with diverse delivery technologies, such as AAVs, mRNA and LNPs.”
Dr Avencia Sánchez-Mejías, CEO and Co-Founder of Integra Therapeutics, added, “This agreement with Caszyme reaffirms our commitment with the excellence in technology development to delivery therapeutic solutions for patients with our gene-writing technology in the preclinical regulatory phase and highlights the success of the transnational project funded by the European Commission, which we launched in 2022 through Eurostars, in support of Europe’s most innovative SMEs.”
“The integration of Caszyme nucleases into our FiCAT 2.0 platform strengthens Integra Therapeutics’ mission to develop the highest-quality gene and cell therapy products for the treatment of a wide range of genetic and oncological diseases. FiCAT 2.0 will set itself apart in the market by offering enhanced precision and efficiency,” explained Dr Marc Güell, CSO and Co-Founder of Integra Therapeutics.