In late 2005 Cancer company Cyclacel did a reverse merge with immune system therapeutics firm Xcyte to form Cyclacel Pharmaceuticals Inc., a public company that will have clinical- and preclinical-stage cancer candidates. Xycte Therapies Inc itself had been formed in August 1997 through a merger of CDR Therapeutics Inc of Seattle and CellGenEx Inc of Chicago. Xycte had been focused on employing antibody engineering to develop antibody-based therapies for immunology, oncology and infectious diseases with emphais on development of therapeutic reagents that target novel as well as known cell-surface receptors critical for immune responses. A struggling Xcyte Therapies Inc. reached two separate agreements that result in the closure of the company's facilities in Seattle in 2006-07. Xcyte sold its intellectual property and accumulated clinical data relating to its T-cell expansion technology to Carlsbad, Calif.-based Invitrogen Inc. (NASDAQ: IVGN) for $5 million in cash and possible future payments. Xcyte had earlier stopped all clinical trials, though six trials had been conducted on Xcellerated T-Cells as a cancer treatment. Separately, Xcyte agreed to merge with Cyclacel Group PLC, a private biotech company based in Scotland. The merged company will be called Cyclacel Pharmaceuticals Inc. and be based in Short Hills, N.J. All facilities in Seattle closed and the research facilities located in the United Kingdom. The newly merged entity buildt upon Cyclacel's cell cycle biology, resulting in a portfolio of three orally available, mechanism-targeted drugs that modulate the cancer cell cycle: all in early to midstage clinical trials. Xcyte's decline has been coming for some time. In March 2006, Xcyte Therapies Inc. had been acquired by Cyclacel Group plc. in a reverse merger transaction. Xcyte Therapies, Inc., a development stage biotechnology company, developing therapeutic products that enhance the bodyâs natural immune responses to treat cancer, infectious diseases, and other medical conditions associated with weakened immune systems. Its therapeutic products consist of activated, patient-specific T cells, using the companyâs patented and proprietary Xcellerate Technology. The company uses blood collected from the patient to generate activated T cells, called Xcellerated T Cells. The Xcellerate Technology activates and expands the patientâs T cells outside of the body. Xcyte completed a Phase I clinical trial of its proprietary Xcellerate Technology in advanced kidney cancer. The company is also conducting Phase I/II clinical trials in multiple myeloma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia. In addition to cancer and HIV, Xcellerated T Cells can be used to treat patients with other illnesses, including infectious diseases, such as hepat
