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NATICK, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- AffyImmune Therapeutics, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company committed to developing novel, first-in-class, affinity-tuned CAR T cell therapies, announced today the appointment of Matt Britz to Chief Executive Officer and Pete Gelinas as Senior Vice President of Chemistry, Manufacturing, and Controls. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: Matt Britz, CEO, AffyImmune (Photo: Business Wire) “Matt has been an instrumental part of AffyImmune’s growth in the past two years,” said Simone Song, Chairperson of the Board of Directors, AffyImmune, and Founder and Senior Partner at ORI Capital. “AffyImmune is a company incubated by ORI Capital. Matt has executed a focused business strategy supported by insights generated from our big data platform ORIzon, which has led to promising early clinical results for AffyImmune’s lead program AIC100 in advanced thyroid cancer. Matt is well-suited to lead AffyImmune as CEO as the Company accelerates clinical development of AIC100 in thyroid cancer, and in other indications with high unmet medical need. I am also thrilled to welcome Pete to our leadership team at a critical time as we scale up CMC efforts to support our ongoing trial and potential indication expansion. Pete’s extensive BLA experience will be invaluable as AffyImmune moves to the next stage of growth.” “I’m honored to lead AffyImmune’s efforts in advancing affinity-tuned CAR T therapies, building upon the solid foundation we’ve established in the last few years,” said Britz. “Together, we're well-positioned to make significant advancements in addressing the challenges of solid cancers to improve patient outcomes." Matt Britz joined AffyImmune in June 2021 as Senior Vice President (SVP), Business Development and was promoted to Chief Operating Officer in January 2022. He brings 28 years of demonstrated experience in life sciences, and was previously SVP and Head of Business Development at Minerva Biotechnologies, where he led teams across corporate development, manufacturing, clinical operations and regulatory affairs. Prior to Minerva Biotechnologies, Matt held scientific, consulting, and business development positions at Merck, Pfizer, Equinox Group, Health Advances, and Envoy Therapeutics, and played a crucial role in the acquisition of Envoy Therapeutics by Takeda. Matt has expertise leading teams in the initial stages of drug discovery all the way through to development and commercialization. Matt has an MBA from Washington University St. Louis, and a BS in Chemical Engineering and Biology from MIT. Pete Gelinas brings over 15 years of extensive experience in Manufacturing and CMC Product Development to AffyImmune. Previously, he served as the Head of Manufacturing and Technical Operations at ElevateBio, where he led technology transfer, CMC strategy, and oversight of routine clinical manufacturing. During his tenure at bluebird bio, he led both the MSAT and CMC teams for Skysona, a treatment for Cerebral Adrenoleukodystrophy (CALD). He has executed numerous late-phase global technology transfer deals and played a pivotal role in driving the drug product process validation efforts critical to the successful Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) for Zynteglo. Peter has also held various positions at the Connell O’Reilly Cell Manipulation Core Facility (CMCF) at Dana Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI), where he contributed to the development and manufacturing of several gene and cell-based therapies. “I am thrilled to join AffyImmune at this next stage of growth, with the opportunity to contribute my expertise in manufacturing to advance this pipeline for patients with solid cancers,” said Gelinas. “I look forward to making a difference in the lives of patients and their families, and to deliver our life-changing therapies in areas with high unmet medical need.” About AffyImmune Therapeutics AffyImmune is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company committed to developing novel, first-in-class, affinity-tuned CAR T cell therapies to transform the lives of patients with cancer. The Company’s proprietary technology utilizing ICAM1/LFA-1 interaction can potentially address all critical CAR T challenges such as toxicity, antigen loss, T-cell trafficking and exhaustion, while also allowing in vivo tracking of the CAR T cells. Its lead candidate, AIC100, is a ICAM1-directed CAR T therapy being developed for patients with advanced thyroid cancer. AffyImmune is developing a focused pipeline of therapeutics targeting ICAM-1 in oncologic indications with high unmet medical need. AffyImmune is based in Natick, MA. For more information, visit .

With the loan, bluebird said its cash runway now extends to the first quarter of 2026. As bluebird bio works to make the most of three gene therapy launches, cash-flow concerns have been looming over the drugmaker.  Now, Hercules Capital has swooped in to offer a five-year loan—worth up to $175 million—that will significantly extend the company's runway. The first $75 million portion of the loan was drawn upon the deal closing, with two $25 million tranches available upon the achievement of certain commercial milestones, bluebird said in a Monday release.  A fourth $50 million pot “may be available at the sole discretion Hercules,” bluebird added. Excluding that tranche, the $125 million in loan funding should support the company's operations through the first quarter of 2026. “This financing underscores the value bluebird offers as a standalone gene therapy leader and meaningfully extends our runway, bolstering our ability to bring transformative treatments to patients and their families,” bluebird's chief financial officer, Chris Krawtschuk, said in the release. Bluebird in December scored FDA approval for its sickle cell disease (SCD) gene therapy Lyfgenia, albeit with a black-box warning. Bluebird set its wholesale acquisition cost at $3.1 million, about 40% higher than the price competitor Vertex put on its CRISPR Therapeutics-partnered SCD therapy Casgevy.  Still, bluebird CEO Andrew Obenshain has said there's much more to consider than just the starting price for the therapies. Bluebird has offered a “very innovative contract” for its drug that has been well received by payers, Obenshain said in January. Outside of Lyfgenia, bluebird also markets its one-time beta thalassemia treatment Zynteglo, which comes with a $2.8 million price tag. The company also sells cerebral adrenoleukodystrophy gene therapy Skysona, which is priced at $3 million. Those drugs won back-to-back approvals in 2022. Amid its regulatory advances, bluebird has sought new cash sources to support its commercial future. Other than the latest loan, the company has reached an agreement with Alterna Capital Solutions to hand over future revenues in exchange for upfront funding in a deal that covers a maximum credit of $100 million. It also announced in December that it was working with Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan Securities to sell $150 million in new shares.  Before all of those fundraising efforts, bluebird estimated that its cash and certain other assets could fund operations through the second quarter of 2024.

Gene therapy developer Bluebird bio has raised a large debt financing in a bid to extend its cash runway for another year.The company on Monday announced that its secured up to $175 million through a five-year term loan with Hercules Capital. Bluebird has drawn the first $75 million immediately, but will only get access to two other $25 million installments if it hits certain unspecified commercial milestones.Those tranches, if they materialize, would enable Bluebird to keep operating until the first quarter of 2026. In January, the company said it had about a years worth of cash.The final $50 million from the debt funding would only be available at Hercules sole discretion, the company said. Bluebird will pay interest on what it borrows over the next three years.The funding is the latest in a series of steps Bluebird has taken to shore up its balance sheet. The company has for years been a leading gene therapy developer and a key player in the fields renaissance in the last decade. Its successfully developed three gene therapies:Lyfgeniafor sickle cell disease,Zynteglofor beta thalassemia,and Skysonafor a rare brain disorder known as cerebral adrenoleukodystrophy. Six years ago, its shares were worth more than $115 apiece.Yet several commercial and clinical setbacks have caused its share price to erode and left the company in a precarious financial position. The company wound down its business in Europe after trouble getting reimbursements for its therapies there. Its sickle cell gene therapy faced multiple trial delays, enabling a rival treatment from Vertex Pharmaceuticals and CRISPR Therapeutics to catch up. In 2022, the company warned of insolvency and laid off 30% of its staff to save cash.Bluebird has responded by selling two priority review vouchersawarded by the Food and Drug Administration for about $200 million combined. The company also signed an accounts receivable deal with Alterna Capital Solutions in December, enabling it to collect cash from gene therapy sales more quickly.Still, Bluebird only had about $275 million on hand at the end of 2023, and faces questions about its products commercial potential. Shares are also trading at just over $1 apiece, making equity funding harder to raise. The debt funding will give Bluebird more time to build sales.Bluebird has been focused on diligently deploying our capital and strengthening our balance sheet to further our mission, said Chief Financial Officer Chris Krawtschuk, in a statement. This financing underscores the value Bluebird offers as a standalone gene therapy leader and meaningfully extends our runway, bolstering our ability to bring transformative treatments to patients and their families. '