Cell therapy weekly: collaboration to enhance MSC research
This week: FUJIFILM Biosciences (CA, USA) and NextCell Pharma AB (Huddinge, Sweden) enter into a strategic collaboration to overcome challenges in mesenchymal stromal cell research with the commercial launch of NextCell-Cord RUO. INmune Bio Inc. (FL, USA) and Anthony Nolan (London, UK) expand their multitarget MSC platform, while Bracco Imaging (Milan, Italy) provides an opportunity to rethink selection through the launch of the BubbleGen™ platform. Plus, Latus Bio (PA, USA) secured US$97 million in Series A financing.
The news highlights:
- Collaboration to overcome challenges in MSC research
- US$97 million financing to expand gene therapy clinical pipeline
- Expansion of multitarget MSC platform
- Rethinking cell selection with buoyant microbubbles
Collaboration to overcome challenges in MSC research
FUJIFILM Biosciences and NextCell Pharma AB have entered into a strategic collaboration to provide researchers with a more consistent, efficient and accessible source of cells − overcoming common challenges often associated with MSCs. This global commercial launch combines FUJIFILM Biosciences’ PRIME-XV MSC Expansion XSFM medium with NextCell’s first commercial product, NextCell-Cord RUO, a research-use-only MSC product derived from umbilical cord tissue.
NextCell-Cord RUO is now available across all major global markets through FUJIFILM Biosciences, either as a standalone product or bundled with FUJIFILM’s PRIME-XV MSC Expansion XSFM media, recombinant growth factors and reagents.
“We’ve worked with FUJIFILM Biosciences to ensure that this product meets the needs of researchers and drug developers who value consistency, scalability, and translational relevance,” explained Lindsay Davies, Chief Scientific Officer at NextCell Pharma AB. “NextCell-Cord RUO reflects not only our clinical manufacturing expertise, but also a commitment to delivering high-quality, standardized MSC products that are scientifically robust and immediately usable in research and development workflows.”
US$97 million financing to expand gene therapy clinical pipeline
Biotechnology company Latus Bio has successfully closed a US$97 million Series A financing round to advance its therapeutic pipeline. The funding will support the company’s two most advanced programs: LTS-201 for Huntington’s disease and LTS-101 for late-infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis type 2 (CLN2) disease, as well as additional programs utilizing the company’s proprietary AAV discovery platform.
“This financing, completed in a highly selective capital environment for gene therapy, supports the advancement of our clinical pipeline and strategy to expand gene therapy to larger diseases that affect greater numbers of patients,” commented P. Peter Ghoroghchian, CEO of Latus Bio. “By combining proprietary and engineered AAV capsids with optimal routes for clinical delivery, we aim to achieve robust cell- and tissue-specific transduction at low doses, which we believe is critical to improving safety, efficacy, manufacturability and costs. This approach enables a repeatable model for developing therapies across multiple underserved indications with significant unmet need. We are advancing LTS-201 toward a first-in-human study in Huntington’s disease, which is our first step into large-rare CNS indications. In parallel, LTS-101 for CLN2 disease will advance towards initial clinical data in late 2026 through an investigator-initiated trial.”
Expansion of multitarget MSC platform
In a move to advance cell therapy development, clinical-stage biotechnology company INmune Bio and UK-based charity Anthony Nolan have expanded their Material Transfer and License Agreement. The expanded agreement provides long-term access to high-quality umbilical cord tissue for INmune Bio’s CORDStrom™ platform – an MSC technology engineered to produce consistent, scalable, ‘off-the-shelf’ cell therapies for the UK, EU, USA and other global markets.
CORDStrom aims to address challenges in donor variability and manufacturing inconsistencies through the leverging of Anthony Nolan’s Cell Therapy & Laboratory Services’ procurement and screening infrastructure. The collaboration initially focuses on several high-impact therapeutic candidates:
- CORDStrom for Recessive Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa (RDEB), a severe skin-fragility disorder
- CORDStrom-col7a for addressing the underlying genetic deficiencies of epidermolysis bullosa
- CORDStrom-TRAIL for solid tumors
- Treatments for osteoarthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus
“We view CORDStrom as a tremendous platform that finally solves the fundamental challenge of understanding MSCs as a drug,” shared David Moss, CEO of INmune Bio. “By partnering with Anthony Nolan’s Cell Therapy & Laboratory Services, we are combining the most advanced MSC cell platform with the most reliable source of cellular starting material. This collaboration allows us to move beyond the limitations of traditional cell therapy and provide consistent, high-potency treatments for patients suffering from RDEB, cancer and chronic inflammatory conditions. We remain hugely grateful to the volunteer donors who provide the [umbilical cord] for our program and who consent to UK and US testing to make CORDStrom universally available.”
Rethinking cell selection with buoyant microbubbles
At the Internation Society for Cell and Gene Therapy (ISCT; Dublin, Ireland; 6–9 May 2026) Bracco Imaging introduced an Early Access Program for its BubbleGen™ platform. The platform utilizes buoyant microbubbles for cell isolation, an alternative to traditional magnetic bead-based methods. Designed to extend beyond standard workflows, the system is adaptable, with the ability to isolate harder-to-target cell populations, remove unwanted components and improve overall sample purity.
“BubbleGen rethinks cell selection, enabling more flexible, targeted applications across cell types,” explained Sophie He, Vice President of Cell Therapy at Bracco. “With early access to the evaluation kit, researchers can test new workflows, help optimize their process, and provide feedback to guide the technology.”