Vycellix Founders Awarded Innovation Grant by Sweden’s Vinnova to Establish New World-Class Research Environment on Development of Next-Generation Natural Killer Cell-based Cancer Immunotherapy

TAMPA, Fla. & STOCKHOLM--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Vycellix™, Inc. today announced that the Company, founded by leading medical researchers at Sweden’s world renowned Karolinska Institutet, has been included as a collaborative partner in the new Competence Center for Next-Generation NK Cell-based Cancer Immunotherapy (“NextGen-NK”) being established at Karolinska Institutet (“KI”), Stockholm, Sweden.

Vinnova, Sweden’s innovation agency, is making a significant investment in NextGen-NK, where universities and companies together will conduct world-class research and innovation in areas that are important for Sweden while contributing to its global sustainability goals. NextGen-NK has received commitments from a consortium of key opinion leaders and experts from academia and the biotech industry to collectively collaborate with the goal of creating a recognized world-class research environment in the field of natural killer cell-based immunotherapy targeting cancers.

NextGen-NK is scheduled to receive up to approximately $12 million in funding over the next five-years from multiple stakeholders including Vinnova, Karolinska Institutet and its industry partners with the opportunity to apply for extended funding for an additional 5-years at a similar level. NextGen-NK will be led by its Director, Hans-Gustaf Ljunggren, M.D., Ph.D., Professor at the Department of Medicine at KI, former Dean of Research at KI, former Director of the Center for Infectious Medicine at KI, Chief Medical Officer for Vycellix, and member of the Nobel Assembly at KI.

“We are extremely honored, humbled and grateful to Vinnova for recognizing the potential global impact on human health by establishing NextGen-NK,” stated Dr. Ljunggren. “We propose to develop a precision-medicine strategy to direct NK cells to their cancer targets and to optimally stimulate NK cell activity in the body. And by assembling leading scientists and clinicians, including those whom have played key roles over the past four decades of NK cell innovation, this collaboration and discovery-network is expected to generate outcomes that go far beyond the capability of any individual partner.”

NextGen-NK’s Co-Directors will be: Evren Alici, M.D., Ph.D., Associate Professor at the Department of Medicine at KI, Head of the Gene & Cell Therapy Group at KI, and CEO of Vycellix; and Karl-Johan Malmberg, M.D., Ph.D., Professor at the Department of Cancer Immunology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital and member of Vycellix’s Scientific Advisory Board.

About Vycellix™, Inc.:

Headquartered on the Fowler Campus of the Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa, Florida, Vycellix is a closely-held immunotherapy-focused, discovery company with the mission to fundamentally impact the challenges that currently prevail in the area of cell & gene based-therapies. The Company is engaged in the development of proprietary approaches for cell-based cancer immunotherapeutic products and to improve patient outcomes.

Vycellix’s scientific discoveries coupled with a portfolio of small molecule & RNA modulators address current limitations for cell & gene therapies, including the need to accelerate speed of production, lower costs, ensure end-cell viability and persistence, and improve patient outcomes. The Company’s innovative solutions offer the potential to significantly optimize processes for: cell reprogramming; enhancing cell potency; and improving cell expansion. Additionally, the Company is leveraging its assets to develop an early-stage pipeline of multifaceted, next-generation NK cell therapies targeting hematological malignancies and solid tumors, including its ReOpt-NK™ (Retargeted Optimized NK cell) therapy.

The Company’s products were all discovered by scientists at the world renowned Karolinska Institutet (KI) in Stockholm, Sweden. KI is globally recognized for its Nobel Assembly, which awards the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

For more information, please visit the Company’s website at: www.Vycellix.com and follow its Twitter feed at: @Vycellix.

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