Quell Therapeutics is pressing pause on an engineered regulatory T (Treg) cell therapy for liver transplant patients in order to focus resources on a preclinical autoimmune candidate.
The London- and Boston-based biotech had been evaluating QEL-001, an autologous engineered CAR-Treg therapy, in a phase 1/2 trial to see whether the candidate can stop organ rejection and end the need for lifelong immunosuppression among liver transplant patients.
At one point, the company had touted QEL-001 as a “potentially transformational paradigm for these patients” that could “bring targeted and durable immune tolerance and eliminate their need for chronic immunosuppression.”
But Quell has decided to pause the study, according to an quarterly update from life sciences investor Syncona, which owns a 33.7% stake in the biotech.
Instead, the capital earmarked for QEL-001 has been rerouted to another CAR-Treg called QEL-005. Quell has previously branded QEL-005 as “pipeline-in-a-product for complex rheumatic autoimmune diseases.”
QEL-005 has yet to enter the clinic, although Quell has plans to launch a phase 1 study in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and systemic sclerosis in the first half of this year.
Quell describes the approach of QEL-005, which uses a CD19 CAR and is intended to reduce modulating multiple immune cell types rather than simply kill B cells, as “chill not kill.”
While QEL-001’s future looks in doubt, Quell said data from the phase 1 study had “provided the company with key insights that de-risk the QEL-005 [program], which could access a potentially larger commercial opportunity.”
Syncona noted that the switch in strategy would push back Quell’s key inflection point from this year into 2027, but the investor said it is “encouraged by the technical progress in the field and supports management’s decision to allocate capital to the [program] with the best risk adjusted return.”
Quell’s founding hypothesis is that Treg cell therapies can stop immune attacks in a targeted way. The idea combines the role Tregs play in the body, where they calm unwanted immune responses, with CARs like the targeting technology that enables cancer cell therapies.
The biotech has found a willing Big Pharma partner in the form of AstraZeneca, which paid $85 million upfront in 2023 to enter into an exclusive option and license agreement for assets in Type 1 diabetes and inflammatory bowel disease.