CARsgen to build $51M CAR T manufacturing base in China

CARsgen Therapeutics, a CAR T-cell therapy developer headquartered in Shanghai, plans to invest up to $51 million (RMB370 million) to establish a commercial CAR T-cell manufacturing base through its indirectly wholly owned subsidiary CARsgen Diagnostics.

The new site in Shanghai is intended to support commercialization of the company’s CAR T pipeline, including marketed product zevorcabtagene autoleucel and satricabtagene autoleucel (CT041), which is currently in the NDA stage for solid tumors, as well as future allogeneic programs, according to the announcement.

CARsgen said the structure of the agreement is designed to limit early capital expenditures, preserve cash for research and development and market expansion, as well as allow the company to repurchase the assets after long-term operation to maintain production stability and flexibility.

In a previous collaboration, CARsgen partnered with Moderna to combine its Claudin18.2-targeted CAR T candidate CT041 with Moderna’s mRNA cancer vaccine technology, with plans to evaluate the approach in preclinical studies and a Phase I trial.

In 2021, CARsgen announced plans to invest $157 million in its first manufacturing hub in North America.  The company said the new plants will help the company expand its global cGMP manufacturing capacity, while targeting patients in the U.S. and supporting ongoing clinical trials for two therapies.