02.06.2023

PDC*line Pharma new GMP manufacturing facility in Belgium

PDC*Line Pharma, a clinical stage biotech company developing a new class of potent and scalable active immunotherapies for cancer, announced a series of good news. First, the fundraising of €17.5 MILLION ($20,3M) in series B2 financing round in November 2021. Then, the setting-up of its own GMP manufacturing facility in Belgium for the next clinical trials. Last but not least, first clinical and immunological results from Phase I/II trial with PDC*lung01, the company’s therapeutic off-the-shelf cancer vaccine candidate for Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) end of 2022.

17,5M€ to develop PDC*line Pharma’s cancer vaccine platform

Less than two years after its €20M ($23.2M) B1 round of fundraising, PDC*line Pharma has attracted new investors and secured a further capital increase of €11.8M ($13.7M). In addition, the company has received a €5.7M ($6.6M) grant in repayable aid from the Walloon Region of Belgium, which has backed the company since its arrival in 2016. The company will therefore have raised a total of €37.5M euros in this series B round. This financing round, led by Korea Investment Partners, a leading multi-billion dollar South-Korean fund, also involved a syndicate of new South-Korean investors in life sciences: Alpha Holdings, Brain Asset Management and Hansongneotech Co. Ltd. Existing investors also participated: Noshaq Group (ex-Meusinvest), Sambrinvest (the Charleroi investment fund), SFPI-FPIM (the Belgian Federal Holding and Investment Company), SRIW (The Regional Investment Company of Wallonia) and Smart Korea UTC BioHealthcare Venture Fund.

A brand new owned GMP manufacturing facility in Liège

PDC*Line Pharma is proudly finalizing the construction of an exclusive cell therapy drug production unit in Liège dedicated to its cancer vaccines. Eric Halioua, serial entrepreneurs and esteemed President & CEO of the company, envisions this facility as a linchpin in the manufacture of cancer vaccines for its upcoming clinical trials, including for its pivotal Asian segment. "Our operations are deeply rooted in Belgium, specifically Liège, which houses our headquarter, laboratories and soon, our state-of-the-art production unit," explains Halioua.

Further cementing its international ambitions, Halioua stated, "Our arena is global, and after the licensing of licensing agreement in Asia with LG-Chem, we do not dismiss potential collaborations with other multinational pharmaceutical conglomerates. In fact, they would likely recognize and retain this distinctive GMP unit's value."

The facility finds its home in Légia Park, a cutting-edge business center committed to life sciences enterprises (biotech, medtech, healthtech), strategically located opposite the MontLégia hospital complex, managed by the CHC Health Group. This results in a robust, interconnected scientific, medical, and business ecosystem.

Légia Park, spanning an impressive 30,000m2, is more than a facility - it is a dynamic community, outfitted with offices for SMEs, advanced laboratory modules, cleanrooms, and specialized GMP production units to support healthcare professionals. With this development, PDC*Line Pharma reaffirms its unwavering commitment to innovation and transformative cell therapy drug production.

First immunological results from phase I/II trial

In December 2022 at ESMO Immuno-Oncology Congress, PDC*Line Pharma shared the preliminary data of its phase I/II clinical trial with, PDC*lung01. Results showed that in a large proportion of subjects, PDC*lung01, in monotherapy and combined with pembrolizumab, induces a significant expansion of effector memory CD8+ T-cells specific to the tumor peptides carried by PDC*lung01. A first signal of correlation was also observed between immune and best overall clinical responses in metastatic patients treated with pembrolizumab.

Sources: www.pdc-line-pharma.com ; www.legiapark.be
Photo ©L'Écho

Kaneka Eurogentec receives GMP accreditation for its new state-of-the-art facility in time for the production of DNA vaccines against COVID-19

The new facility audited and certified by Belgian Authorities is equipped with a 2200 L fermenter and is ready to start operating from this summer. It will