Autolus is using ground-breaking University College London (UCL) research into T-cells to create new treatment possibilities for patients with cancers that have failed to respond to standard therapies. T-cells are a naturally occurring part of our immune system that normally kill infected cells.  

UCL scientists found a way to reprogramme T-cells so they can recognise and fight cancer cells in the body, just as they would naturally attack an infection. This programming works by taking T-cells from a person’s blood sample and introducing a gene for an artificial protein called a chimeric antigen receptor, or CAR. Autolus was created to commercialise this research in September 2014.  

The spinout process was supported by UCL Business (UCLB), UCL’s commercialisation company, and founded with additional funding from a BBSRC Sparking Impact award.  

Autolus has now secured funds for the development and filing of its lead product, in addition to preparation for commercialization and the initial manufacturing infrastructure build. 

The strategic collaboration between UCL and Autolus leverages expertise from clinical and translation sciences teams across the two organisations and allows us to rapidly develop programs into the clinic. The partnership with Autolus has been critical to demonstrating the clinical benefits of obe-cel in patients with adult ALL (Acute lymphoblastic leukemia).