NorthStar Medical Radioisotopes announced the signing of a strategic Master Supply Agreement with Cellectar Biosciences, Inc. under which Cellectar will acquire and integrate NorthStar’s n.c.a. Ac-225 into Cellectar’s proprietary Phospholipid Ethers (PLE) delivery platform to expand the platform’s capability to produce a diverse range of radiotherapeutic molecules.
NorthStar is a global innovator in the development, production, and commercialization of radiopharmaceuticals used for therapeutic applications and medical imaging. Cellectar Biosciences is a late-stage clinical biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of drugs for the treatment of cancer.
“Our PLE platform provides a unique ability to optimize delivery of any radioisotope and can be designed for the treatment of specific tumor types. Our leading alpha emitter program, CLR 121225, utilizes Ac-225 and has demonstrated promising preclinical results in pancreatic, triple negative breast and other solid tumors, justifying the progression to clinical development,” said James Caruso, president and CEO of Cellectar. “We plan to advance CLR 121225 into human clinical trials in 2025 as part of a broader strategy to bring first-and best-in-class radiotherapeutics to market. This agreement with NorthStar provides a reliable source of Ac-225, which is a critical to our clinical development strategy.”
“Cellectar’s novel TAT compounds, including CLR 121225 and others, have demonstrated their potential in devastating diseases like pancreatic cancer, that for too long have had no highly effective treatments,” said Frank Scholz, president and CEO of NorthStar. “Recent years have seen an increased interest in alpha-emitting radiotherapies like Cellectar’s compound which is expected to enter a Phase 1 first-in-human study next year,” he continued, “but developments have been hampered by the relative scarcity of Ac-225 supply. At NorthStar, our passion is to reduce technological and operational barriers to give companies like Cellectar a reliable source of environmentally preferred, high purity (n.c.a) Ac-225 that will help make these new therapies possible.“