Ghent University (Ghent, Belgium) and AMBICION (Tokyo, Japan) announced that they entered into a patent assignment agreement on the US rights to the Galacto-pyranosyl compounds as developed by the groups of Prof. Serge Van Calnebergh and Prof. Dirk Elewaut.
According to the agreement, AMBICION acquires all rights to the US patent, and AMBICION back-licenses some compounds included in the patent to Ghent university.
This agreement enforces the patent exclusivity of the Natural Killer T (NKT) cell-targeted cancer therapy in the US on which AMBICION conducts the research and development, as a result, the business base of the AMBICION is strengthened.
AMBICION will develop its global development strategy for NKT cell-targeted cancer therapy based on the possibility of alliances with pharmaceutical companies.

Ghent University

Ghent University is a public research university and one of the most prestigious universities in Belgium. Founded in 1817, with over 43,000 students and with a research base of more than 6,000 researchers active in life sciences, engineering and social sciences. Ghent University has strong partnerships with Ghent University Hospital, VIB and IMEC. Ghent is situated in the heart of Flanders, a leading European life sciences region with a thriving ecosystem combining business, research, talent and finance.

Natural Killer T (NKT) cell

Natural Killer T (NKT) cells are unique T cells that combine the properties of NK cells. NKT cells were first discovered in 1986 by Dr. Masaru Taniguchi (currently Senior adviser, Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, RIKEN) et al., and are known as the fourth lymphocyte following T, B cells, and NK cells. NKT cells account for around half of the T cells found in liver and bone marrow. NKT cells are activated promptly when glycolipid antigens are recognized. Multi-type cytokines are produced upon this activation, inducing both immune-stimulation and -suppression.

NKT cell-targeted anti-cancer therapy

NKT cell-targeted anti-cancer therapy aims to activate patient’s own NKT cells. First, patient’s mononuclear cells are collected by apheresis. Then targeted cells are isolated and cultivated with NKT cells activated ligands at Cell Processing Center. This cell product is administered to the patient.