In a major development for the future of cell therapy, Kite, a Gilead company, has acquired Interius BioTherapeutics for $350 million. The acquisition is a significant milestone for Interius—a Mark Foundation portfolio company—and it advances a powerful new therapeutic platform that originated with a Mark Foundation research grant.
At the heart of the deal is the company’s novel approach to creating cancer-fighting cells. Unlike conventional CAR T-cell therapies that rely on a complex and lengthy ex vivo manufacturing process, Interius is developing a method to engineer therapeutic cells directly inside the patient’s body. This in vivo platform, delivered via a single injection, has the potential to make cell therapy more accessible, reduce treatment timelines, and spare patients harsh chemotherapy regimens.
The groundbreaking technology was initially conceived by Saar Gill, MD, PhD, of the University of Pennsylvania, as the basis for his 2019 Mark Foundation Emerging Leader Award. Gill’s project centered on a bold question: could a patient’s body be turned into its own bioreactor to manufacture CAR T-cells?
Funding for ambitious, high-risk projects like Gill’s is often difficult to secure. The Emerging Leader Award program is designed to bridge this gap, providing early-career researchers with the flexibility to pursue ideas with paradigm-shifting potential. In Gill’s case, that risk-taking approach paid off. His project produced the key proof-of-concept for the in vivo approach and formed the scientific backbone of Interius BioTherapeutics, which The Mark Foundation later supported as an initial investor.
Interius has already advanced its first-in-class therapy, INT2104, into clinical trials in Australia and secured regulatory approval for European expansion. This acquisition by Kite will build on that momentum, providing the resources and expertise of a global cell therapy leader to accelerate the platform’s path through clinical development.
“To accelerate cancer research, we need to invest in talented investigators and novel approaches,” said Ryan Schoenfeld, PhD, CEO of The Mark Foundation. “The story of Interius BioTherapeutics —from an early-stage idea expressed in a grant application to a company acquisition by a leader like Kite — is exactly the kind of trajectory we aim to foster, and we congratulate Dr. Gill and the entire Interius team.”