FT819 continues to demonstrate meaningful decrease in disease and favorable safety profile with twelve systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients now treated; first systemic sclerosis (SSc) patient treated
First ex-U.S. SLE patient treated with FT819 expands enrollment capacity and supports unique ability of FT819 for broad, on-demand patient accessibility
Preclinical studies show FT836 chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells uniquely targeting stress antigens MICA/B, combined with daratumumab, provide a comprehensive approach to treatment of multiple myeloma
FT839 CAR T cells demonstrate the unique ability to treat a wide range of B-cell malignancies and autoimmune diseases through dual-CAR CD19/CD38 targeting without the need of conditioning chemotherapy in various preclinical models; combination with monoclonal antibodies or T-cell engager further expands targeting capacity
SAN DIEGO, Dec. 08, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Fate Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: FATE), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to bringing a first-in-class pipeline of induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived off-the-shelf cellular immunotherapies to patients for broad accessibility, presented updated clinical data from its ongoing Phase 1 trial evaluating its FT819 off-the-shelf iPSC-derived CAR T-cell program in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and unveiled new preclinical data from next-generation off-the-shelf iPSC-derived CAR T-cell programs for hematologic malignancies and autoimmune diseases at the 2025 American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting & Exposition in Orlando, Florida.
“We are very pleased with the accelerating patient enrollment, the expansion of U.S. clinical sites, and the addition of international clinical sites, which together are enabling broader access to FT819 for patients suffering with lupus,” said Bob Valamehr, Ph.D., M.B.A., President and Chief Executive Officer of Fate Therapeutics. “The updated FT819 clinical data continue to demonstrate meaningful and durable responses with the use of less-intensive conditioning chemotherapy and a differentiated safety profile, reinforcing our goal to commence a registrational study for FT819 in 2026 and highlighting the potential of FT819 as an ideal CAR T-cell therapy for various autoimmune diseases. At the same time, our next-generation programs, FT836 and FT839, are showing substantial progress, with enhanced potency, functional persistence, and multifunctional engineering that are designed to extend the benefits of our platform across hematologic malignancies and solid tumors. These advances highlight the continued momentum of our iPSC-derived off-the-shelf CAR T-cell pipeline and our commitment to delivering scalable, on-demand and broadly accessible CAR T-cell therapies worldwide.”
The clinical update includes data from the Company’s ongoing Phase 1 basket trial of FT819, its lead product candidate, across 13 enrolled patients; 12 with SLE (10 of whom have at least one month of post-treatment follow-up) and one with systemic sclerosis. The updated results demonstrate sustained clinical responses, durable B-cell depletion in a potential dose-response manner, and a differentiated safety profile without the need for intensive-conditioning chemotherapy that typically consists of multiple days of combined doses of cyclophosphamide and fludarabine. With the strength of this clinical data, the Company continues to advance preparations for a pivotal study and is engaged in discussions with the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under its Regenerative Medicine Advanced Therapy (RMAT) designation regarding plans to initiate registrational trial of FT819 in 2026.
At ASH, the Company also presented new preclinical data for two next-generation iPSC-derived CAR T-cell programs designed for use in both oncology and autoimmunity. These programs demonstrate substantial improvements in functional activity and persistence, drug product consistency and uniformity, and breadth of antigen-targeting mechanisms compared with existing autologous and in vivo CAR T-cell platforms.
FT819-102 Clinical Trial Update
FT819 is an off-the-shelf CD19-targeting chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell product engineered to improve safety and efficacy. Analogous to master cell lines used to mass produce biopharmaceutical drug products such as monoclonal antibodies, a precisely engineered clonal master iPSC line serves as the starting cell source to manufacture FT819, overcoming numerous limitations associated with patient- and donor-sourced CAR T-cell therapies. FT819 is well-defined and uniform in composition, produced at a low cost of goods, and can be stored in inventory for off-the-shelf, on-demand availability to potentially reach a broad patient population.
As of a November 25, 2025 data cut off date, 12 SLE patients were treated by 5 enrolling clinical sites, with 14 clinical sites in total (11 in United States and 3 in United Kingdom) now activated. Baseline characteristics were consistent with a high disease burden patient population:
- median SLE duration was 8.7 years, median 7 prior therapies;
- median 14 Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index 2000 (SLEDAI-2K) (baseline range 8-20);
- mean 2.3±0.4 Physician Global Assessment (PGA); and
- mean 23±13 Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy Fatigue (FACIT-Fatigue) score.
As of an October 22, 2025 data cut off date, 10 SLE patients had ≥ 1 month follow up, with 6 of the 10 patients having active lupus nephritis. Preliminary data in Regimen A (with patients receiving a single FT819 dose after pretreatment with either a single dose of cyclophosphamide or two doses of bendamustine) show mean SLEDAI-2K score across both dose levels (DL1, 360 million cells; DL2, 900 million cells) decreased progressively from baseline:
- DL1 SLEDAI-2K score decreased from a mean of 15.2 (n=5) at baseline to a mean of 10 at month 3 (n=2), and to a mean of 6 at month 6 (n=2), representing mean percent drops of 50% and 70%, respectively; and
- DL2 SLEDAI-2K score decreased from a mean of 14.3 (n=3) at baseline to a mean of 6 at month 3 (n=2) and to 4 at month 6 (n=1), representing mean percent drops of 65% and 78%, respectively.
Clinical SLEDAI-2K (excluding anti-dsDNA and complement) of 0 was achieved in 5 out of 10 patients, two of whom had resumed an immunosuppressive agent that had previously failed to achieve a clinical SLEDAI-2K of 0 prior to FT819. Two lupus nephritis patients had greater than 3-month follow up, with both achieving complete renal response (CRR) at 2 months and 6 months, respectively. FACIT-fatigue scores improved meaningfully for all patients who had more than one assessment. B-cell depletion was observed, with reconstitution towards predominately naïve cells within the first 3 months. There were no observed dose limiting toxicities; no Grade >2 CRS, ICANS, or GVHD were reported. All patients were treated with FT819 that was available on-demand.
Below are links to the Company Presentations at the 2025 ASH Annual Meeting & Exposition:
Saturday December 6, 2025
Targeting of tumor antigen CD38 and stress antigens MICA/B by CAR T cells provides a unique approach for the comprehensive treatment of multiple myeloma
Poster Presentation Number: 2350
Session Title: CAR-T Cell Therapies: Basic and Translational: Poster I
Session Time: 5:30 PM - 7:30 PM ET
Sunday December 7, 2025
Development of next generation multi-antigen targeting off-the-shelf CAR T cells for conditioning-free treatment of B-cell lymphoma
Poster Presentation Number: 4121
Session Title: CAR-T Cell Therapies: Basic and Translational: Poster II
Session Time: 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM ET
Monday December 8, 2025
The development of an off-the-shelf CAR T-cell therapy targeting CD19 and CD38 for broad application in autoimmune disease
Poster Presentation Number: 5895
Session Title: CAR-T Cell Therapies: Basic and Translational: Poster III
Session Time: 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM ET
About Fate Therapeutics’ iPSC Product Platform
Human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) possess the unique dual properties of unlimited self-renewal and differentiation potential into all cell types of the body. The Company’s proprietary iPSC product platform combines multiplexed-engineering of human iPSCs with single-cell selection to create clonal master iPSC lines. Analogous to master cell lines used to mass produce biopharmaceutical drug products such as monoclonal antibodies, the Company utilizes its clonal master iPSC lines as a starting cell source to manufacture at scale engineered cell products which are well-defined and uniform in composition, can be stored in inventory for off-the-shelf availability, can be administered in combination with other therapies, and can potentially reach a broad patient population. As a result, the Company’s platform is uniquely designed to overcome numerous limitations associated with patient- and donor-sourced cell therapies. Fate Therapeutics’ iPSC product platform is supported by an intellectual property portfolio of over 500 issued patents and 500 pending patent applications.
About Fate Therapeutics, Inc.
Fate Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company dedicated to bringing a pipeline of induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived cellular immunotherapies to patients. Using its proprietary iPSC product platform, the Company has established a leadership position in creating multiplexed-engineered master iPSC lines and in the manufacture and clinical development of off-the-shelf, iPSC-derived cell products. The Company’s pipeline includes iPSC-derived T-cell and natural killer (NK) cell product candidates, which are selectively designed, incorporate novel synthetic controls of cell function, and are intended to deliver multiple therapeutic mechanisms to patients. Fate Therapeutics is headquartered in San Diego, CA. For more information, please visit www.fatetherapeutics.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 including statements regarding the Company's product candidates, clinical studies and preclinical research and development programs, the Company’s progress, plans and timelines for the clinical investigation of its product candidates, including the Company’s plans to complete IND-enabling studies and to submit IND applications for its product candidates, the initiation and continuation of enrollment in the Company’s clinical trials, the expansion of the Company’s ongoing and planned clinical trials to enroll additional patients and include additional clinical sites, the initiation of additional clinical trials, including in new indications, and additional dose cohorts in ongoing clinical trials of the Company’s product candidates, the availability of data from the Company’s clinical trials and the Company’s plans to provide updates on its clinical trials, the therapeutic and market potential of the Company’s research and development programs and product candidates, and the Company’s clinical and product development strategy. These and any other forward-looking statements in this release are based on management's current expectations of future events and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially and adversely from those set forth in or implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the risk that the Company’s research and development programs and product candidates, including those product candidates in clinical investigation, may not demonstrate the requisite safety, efficacy, or other attributes to warrant further development or to achieve regulatory approval, the risk that results observed in prior studies of the Company’s product candidates, including preclinical studies and clinical trials, will not be observed in ongoing or future studies involving these product candidates, the risk of a delay or difficulties in the manufacturing of the Company’s product candidates or in the initiation and conduct of, or enrollment of patients in, any clinical trials, the risk that the Company may cease or delay preclinical or clinical development of any of its product candidates for a variety of reasons (including requirements that may be imposed by regulatory authorities on the initiation or conduct of clinical trials, changes in the therapeutic, regulatory, or competitive landscape for which the Company’s product candidates are being developed, the amount and type of data to be generated or otherwise to support regulatory approval, difficulties or delays in patient enrollment and continuation in the Company’s ongoing and planned clinical trials, difficulties in manufacturing or supplying the Company’s product candidates for clinical testing, and any adverse events or other negative results that may be observed during preclinical or clinical development), and the risk that its product candidates may not produce therapeutic benefits or may cause other unanticipated adverse effects. For a discussion of other risks and uncertainties, and other important factors, any of which could cause the Company’s actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see the risks and uncertainties detailed in the Company’s periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including but not limited to the Company’s most recently filed periodic report, and from time to time in the Company’s press releases and other investor communications. Fate Therapeutics is providing the information in this release as of this date and does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this release as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Contact:
Christina Tartaglia
Precision AQ
212.362.1200
christina.tartaglia@precisionaq.com
Source: Fate Therapeutics, Inc.
