NantKwest In 'Active Discussions' With FDA On COVID-19 Vaccine, Therapeutic Development

Shares of small-cap immunotherapy company Nantkwest Inc NK, a leading producer of clinical dose forms of off-the-shelf natural killer cell therapies, were adding to Monday's gains in Tuesday's session. 

NantKwest and its affiliate ImmunityBio are in "active discussions" with the FDA about developing therapies and vaccines to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, the companies said in a Tuesday press release. 

ImmunityBio will contribute its expertise in vaccine development and NK cell activation, while NantKwest will pitch in with its off-the-shelf cell-based therapies.

ImmunityBio and NantKwest said they have developed immunomodulator regimens for COVID-19 based on the biological stage of the patient's infection — mild, moderate and severe or critically ill. 

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NantKwest, ImmunityBio's COVID-19 Strategy

With the mild-to-moderate stage of infection, the companies said NK and T cell stimulation should work and are proposing clinical trials of N-803 alone and a second trial of haNK alone, or haNK combined with convalescent plasma.

The companies said IND applications for the trials are pending before the FDA.

For patients requiring ventilator support, the companies are exploring the use of bone marrow-derived allogenic mesenchymal stem cells to mitigate the cytopathic storm.

The companies also said they are developing a vaccine platform for both initial immunizations and subsequent booster injections.

"We're in a race against time, but I am confident that, as a result of the incredible hard work the NantKwest, ImmunityBio, and the global scientific communities are undertaking, we will find effective therapeutics and vaccines against this coronavirus," Patrick Soon-Shiong, the chairman and CEO of NantKwest and ImmunityBio, said in a statement. 

NantKwest shares were rising by 10.83% to $3.48 at the time of publication Tuesday.

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