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Cellectis a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing immunotherapies based on genome-edited CAR T-cells (UCARTs). Cellectis has been working in the gene editing field for 16 years to design novel products, particularly immune therapies for cancer.

History
Cellectis was founded by André Choulika in 1999 through a licensing agreement with the Pasteur Institute. In 2005, scientists working at Cellectis showed that meganucleases could be used to edit a genome in vivo. Subsequent work led to refinements in the use of precision nucleases, particularly transcription activator-like (TAL) effector nucleases (TALEN®). In 2011, Cellectis acquired an exclusive license for the commercial application of TALEN® technology from the University of Minnesota and began researching the use of TALEN® to develop engineered immune cell therapies.

Cellectis has been trading on Alternext since 2007 and held an initial public offering on the NASDAQ exchange in March 2015.

Cancer Immunotherapy
The company's portfolio includes several lines of proprietary chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells targeting individual cancers. In 2014, Cellectis entered into strategic alliances with Servier and Pfizer to develop and commercialize "universal" CAR T-cells (UCARTs) targeting specific cancers. As of January 2016, Cellectis has five disclosed UCART products that are in various stages of clinical development.

In November 2015, Cellectis announced the first clinical use of its UCART technology. After she failed to respond to a traditional anti-cancer regimen, an 11-month old baby suffering from CD19+ acute lymphoblastic leukemia was treated at the Great Ormond Street Hospital with genome-edited donor T cells that had been engineered to attack leukemia cells. These cells had also been modified to be resistant to Alemtuzumab and to evade detection by the host immune system after introduction. A few weeks after therapy, the patient's condition improved, and the patient has been in remission for several months following treatment. This compassionate case provides encouraging proof of concept for future clinical trials of T cell-based immunotherapies.

Engineered Nucleases
Cellectis is a leader in the use of precision genome editing technologies, including meganucleases, TAL effector nucleases (TALEN®), and "megaTALs," which combine the benefits of both meganucleases and TALEN constructs. The use of these technologies allows for predictable and accurate gene editing.

TALEN is believed to be the most effective tool today for therapeutic gene editing. Typical knockout efficiencies range from 85% to 90% for a single allele knockout, while preserving good functionality and viability.

Pulse Agile
Cellectis uses proprietary electroporation technology to incorporate desired mRNA and DNA molecules into cells. This approach allows high transfection efficiency and preserves cell viability.

Plant Subsidiary Calyxt
Calyxt (formerly Cellectis Plant Sciences) was founded in 2010 in New Brighton, Minnesota. Calyxt aims to develop crops with improved nutritional and agricultural characteristics.

Publications
A complete list of publications is available on the company's website.