Wheeler Bio, Inc., a contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO), is expanding its capabilities by licensing ATUM’s miFuc platform designed for expression of recombinant proteins containing afucosylated glycans.
 
ATUM’s miFuc technology is designed for the development of antibodies with significant reduction in fucosylation without affecting product titer, cellular growth rates, or incurring global glycan liabilities. Enabled by ATUM’s proprietary Leap-In Transposase technology, antibodies produced using miFuc embedded expression vectors exhibit significantly increased antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC), resulting in improved efficacy for select therapeutics.
 
This license agreement allows Wheeler Bio’s clients the option to produce therapeutic antibodies with greater effector engagement and antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity for increased therapeutic windows with reduced toxicity.
 
Wheeler Bio previously integrated ATUM’s VectorGPS design platform, Leap-In Transposase technology, and miCHO host cell line with Wheeler’s Portable CMC process platform to deliver a predictable, reliable, and scalable process for accelerating antibodies from discovery into clinical manufacturing. This additional licensing agreement with ATUM further expands Wheeler Bio’s antibody platform capabilities by facilitating the production of afucosylated antibodies and other recombinant proteins.
 
“We are thrilled to partner again with ATUM on another blend of ATUM and Wheeler Bio technologies,” said Jesse McCool, CEO & Co-Founder. “With ATUM’s miFuc technology now integrated with our Portable CMC platform and screening workflows, our clients now have more optionality for their pharmaceutical development without adding risk to timeline, manufacturability, and scale-up.”
 
Oren Beske, Amalgamator of Business and Biology at ATUM, commented, “Partnering with Wheeler Bio has enabled us to bring our innovative platforms to the biotechnology community in a unique way. Their Portable CMC approach aligns with our mission to democratize platform technologies to enable the efficient and cost-effective development of therapeutics for patients in need.”