January 5, 2023 – Following the formation of Mayflower Bioventures, a cell and gene therapy accelerator stood up from Hibiscus BioVentures and Mayo Clinic, comes the launch of their first start-up, Primera Therapeutics, Inc. Cellectis, a clinical-stage biotechnology company using its gene editing platform to deliver life-saving cell and gene therapies, and Primera announced today the execution of a Collaboration Agreement under which the Parties will work collaboratively to edit mutations in the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) in vivo to treat the root cause of associated diseases.
Primera, together with Cellectis, will be co-developing a mtDNA engineering toolbox that could enable effective therapies for mitochondrial diseases. The experience Cellectis brings in groundbreaking gene editing research, technology, manufacturing and clinical development will be invaluable in moving quickly to advance these programs and mitochondrial research forward.
Along with Cellectis and Mayo Clinic, Primera is collaborating with patient advocacy groups including the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation (UMDF). UMDF, the largest source of funding for mitochondrial disease research outside of the government, promotes research and education for the diagnosis, treatment and cure of mitochondrial disorders and supports affected individuals and families.
Primera is dedicated to advancing its programs to be first into the clinic that will apply gene editing technologies directly to mitochondrial mutations that drive mitochondrial disease and, in the future, potentially broader diseases with central components of mitochondrial dysfunction.