Biggest changeGenome editing companies focused on CRISPR-based technologies include: Arbor Biotechnologies, Inc., Beam Therapeutics Inc., Caribou Biosciences, Inc., CRISPR Therapeutics AG, EdiGene, Inc., Editas Medicine, Inc., Emendo Biotherapeutics, Inc., Ensoma, Inc., Excision Biotherapeutics, Inc., Integra Therapeutics, S.L., Mammoth Biosciences, Inc., Metagenomi Technologies, LLC, Modalis Therapeutics Inc., nChroma Bio (formerly Chroma Medicine, Inc.), Prime Medicine, Inc., Scribe Therapeutics, Inc., Tessera Therapeutics, Inc., ToolGen, Inc., Tune Therapeutics, Inc., Verve Therapeutics, Inc. and YolTech Therapeutics.
Biggest changeCompanies focused on developing therapies using gene editing technologies include: AccurEdit Therapeutics, Allogene Therapeutics, Inc., Arbor Biotechnologies, Inc., Basecamp Research, Ltd., Beam Therapeutics Inc., Bendao Gene Technology Co., Ltd., Caribou Biosciences, Inc., Cellectis S.A., CorrectSequence Therapeutics Co., Ltd., Create Medicines (formerly Myeloid Therapeutics, Inc.), CRISPR Therapeutics AG, EdiGene, Inc., Editas Medicine, Inc., Emendo Biotherapeutics, Inc., Ensoma, Inc., Epicrispr Biotechnologies, Inc., Epigenic Therapeutics, Evox Therapeutics, Ltd., Excision Biotherapeutics, Inc., Integra Therapeutics, S.L., Life Edit Therapeutics (an ElevateBio Company), Mammoth Biosciences, Inc., Metagenomi Therapeutics, Inc., Modalis Therapeutics Inc., nChroma Bio (formerly Chroma Medicine, Inc.), Poseida Therapeutics, Inc.
If we are unable to complete the required studies satisfactorily, the FDA or other regulatory bodies could require that we exclude certain patient populations from clinical studies, place our clinical studies on hold, or require us to cease further clinical studies or deny approval of such product candidates.
If we are unable to complete the required studies satisfactorily, the FDA or other regulatory bodies could require that we exclude certain patient populations from clinical studies, place our other clinical studies on hold, or require us to cease further clinical studies or deny approval of such product candidates.
Among other things, the certificate of incorporation and by-laws: • permit the board of directors to issue up to 5,000,000 shares of preferred stock, with any rights, preferences and privileges as they may designate; • provide that the authorized number of directors may be changed only by resolution of the board of directors; • provide that all vacancies, including newly created directorships, may, except as otherwise required by law, be filled by the affirmative vote of a majority of directors then in office, even if less than a quorum; • divide the board of directors into three classes; • provide that a director may only be removed from the board of directors by the stockholders for cause; • require that any action to be taken by our stockholders must be effected at a duly called annual or special meeting of stockholders, and may not be taken by written consent; • provide that stockholders seeking to present proposals before a meeting of stockholders or to nominate candidates for election as directors at a meeting of stockholders must provide notice in writing in a timely manner, and meet specific requirements as to the form and content of a stockholder’s notice; • prevent cumulative voting rights (therefore allowing the holders of a plurality of the shares of common stock entitled to vote in any election of directors to elect all of the directors standing for election, if they should so choose); 73 • require that, to the fullest extent permitted by law, a stockholder reimburse us for all fees, costs and expenses incurred by us in connection with a proceeding initiated by such stockholder in which such stockholder does not obtain a judgment on the merits that substantially achieves the full remedy sought; • provide that special meetings of our stockholders may be called only by the chairman of the board, our chief executive officer (or president, in the absence of a chief executive officer) or by the board of directors; and • provide that stockholders will be permitted to amend the bylaws only upon receiving at least two-thirds of the total votes entitled to be cast by holders of all outstanding shares then entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, voting together as a single class.
Among other things, the certificate of incorporation and by-laws: • permit the board of directors to issue up to 5,000,000 shares of preferred stock, with any rights, preferences and privileges as they may designate; • provide that the authorized number of directors may be changed only by resolution of the board of directors; • provide that all vacancies, including newly created directorships, may, except as otherwise required by law, be filled by the affirmative vote of a majority of directors then in office, even if less than a quorum; • divide the board of directors into three classes; • provide that a director may only be removed from the board of directors by the stockholders for cause; • require that any action to be taken by our stockholders must be effected at a duly called annual or special meeting of stockholders, and may not be taken by written consent; • provide that stockholders seeking to present proposals before a meeting of stockholders or to nominate candidates for election as directors at a meeting of stockholders must provide notice in writing in a timely manner, and meet specific requirements as to the form and content of a stockholder’s notice; • prevent cumulative voting rights (therefore allowing the holders of a plurality of the shares of common stock entitled to vote in any election of directors to elect all of the directors standing for election, if they should so choose); • require that, to the fullest extent permitted by law, a stockholder reimburse us for all fees, costs and expenses incurred by us in connection with a proceeding initiated by such stockholder in which such stockholder does not obtain a judgment on the merits that substantially achieves the full remedy sought; • provide that special meetings of our stockholders may be called only by the chairman of the board, our chief executive officer (or president, in the absence of a chief executive officer) or by the board of directors; and 73 • provide that stockholders will be permitted to amend the bylaws only upon receiving at least two-thirds of the total votes entitled to be cast by holders of all outstanding shares then entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, voting together as a single class.
Our existing and future therapeutic collaborations may have a number of risks, including that collaborators: • have significant discretion in determining the efforts and resources that they will apply; • may not perform their obligations as expected; • may dispute the amounts of payments owed; • may not pursue development and commercialization of any product candidates that achieve regulatory approval or may elect not to continue or renew development or commercialization programs or license arrangements based on clinical trial results, changes in their strategic focus or available funding, or external factors, such as a strategic transaction that may divert resources or create competing priorities; • may delay, insufficiently fund, stop, initiate new or repeat clinical trials, reformulate a product candidate for clinical testing, or abandon a product candidate; • could develop independently, or with third parties, products that compete directly or indirectly with our products and product candidates; • may view product candidates discovered in our collaborations as competitive with their own product candidates or products, which may cause collaborators to cease to devote resources to the development or commercialization of our product candidates; • may dispute ownership or rights in jointly developed technologies or intellectual property; • may fail to comply with applicable legal and regulatory requirements regarding the development, manufacture, sale, distribution or marketing of a product candidate or product; • with sales, marketing, manufacturing and distribution rights to our product candidates may not commit sufficient resources to the product’s sale, marketing, manufacturing and distribution; • may disagree with us about material issues, including proprietary rights, contract interpretation, payment obligations or the preferred course of discovery, development, sales or marketing, which might cause delays or terminations of the research, development or commercialization of product candidates, lead to additional and burdensome responsibilities for us with respect to product candidates, or result in litigation or arbitration, any of which would be time-consuming and expensive; • may not properly maintain or defend their or our relevant intellectual property rights or may use our proprietary information or sublicensed intellectual property rights in such a way as to invite litigation that could jeopardize or invalidate our intellectual property or proprietary information or expose us to potential litigation and liability; • may infringe the intellectual property rights of third parties, which may expose us to litigation and potential liability; 60 • could become involved in a business combination or cessation that could cause them to deemphasize or terminate the development or commercialization of any product candidate licensed to it by us; and • may terminate our collaborations, which could require us to raise additional capital to develop or commercialize the applicable product candidates, or lose access to the collaborator’s intellectual property.
Our existing and future therapeutic collaborations may have a number of risks, including that collaborators: • have significant discretion in determining the efforts and resources that they will apply; • may not perform their obligations as expected; • may dispute the amounts of payments owed; • may not pursue development and commercialization of any product candidates that achieve regulatory approval or may elect not to continue or renew development or commercialization programs or license arrangements based on clinical trial results, changes in their strategic focus or available funding, or external factors, such as a strategic transaction that may divert resources or create competing priorities; • may delay, insufficiently fund, stop, initiate new or repeat clinical trials, reformulate a product candidate for clinical testing, or abandon a product candidate; • could develop independently, or with third parties, products that compete directly or indirectly with our products and product candidates; • may view product candidates discovered in our collaborations as competitive with their own product candidates or products, which may cause collaborators to cease to devote resources to the development or commercialization of our product candidates; • may dispute ownership or rights in jointly developed technologies or intellectual property; • may fail to comply with applicable legal and regulatory requirements regarding the development, manufacture, sale, distribution or marketing of a product candidate or product; • with sales, marketing, manufacturing and distribution rights to our product candidates may not commit sufficient resources to the product’s sale, marketing, manufacturing and distribution; • may disagree with us about material issues, including proprietary rights, contract interpretation, payment obligations or the preferred course of discovery, development, sales or marketing, which might cause delays or terminations of the research, development or commercialization of product candidates, lead to additional and burdensome responsibilities for us with respect to product candidates, or result in litigation or arbitration, any of which would be time-consuming and expensive; • may not properly maintain or defend their or our relevant intellectual property rights or may use our proprietary information or sublicensed intellectual property rights in such a way as to invite litigation that could jeopardize or invalidate our intellectual property or proprietary information or expose us to potential litigation and liability; • may infringe the intellectual property rights of third parties, which may expose us to litigation and potential liability; • could become involved in a business combination or cessation that could cause them to deemphasize or terminate the development or commercialization of any product candidate licensed to it by us; and • may terminate our collaborations, which could require us to raise additional capital to develop or commercialize the applicable product candidates, or lose access to the collaborator’s intellectual property.
Our ability to generate revenue, and achieve and retain profitability, depends significantly on our success in many areas, including: • obtaining regulatory approvals and marketing authorizations for our lead programs; • obtaining market acceptance of our product candidates as viable treatment options; • launching and commercializing product candidates for which we obtain regulatory approvals and marketing authorizations, either directly or with a collaborator or distributor; • accurately assessing the size and addressability of potential patient populations; • addressing any competing technological and market developments; • maintaining, protecting and expanding our portfolio of intellectual property rights, including patents, trade secrets and know-how; • avoiding infringement of or obtaining licenses to any valid intellectual property owned or controlled by third parties; • negotiating favorable terms in any collaboration, licensing or other arrangements into which we may enter or which may be necessary for us to develop, manufacture or commercialize our product candidates; • maintaining good relationships with our collaborators and licensors; • attracting, hiring and retaining qualified personnel; • developing a sustainable and scalable manufacturing process for product candidates, including establishing and maintaining commercially viable supply relationships with third parties, such as CMOs, and potentially establishing our own manufacturing capabilities and infrastructure; • successfully completing research, preclinical and clinical development of product candidates; • investing resources in developing commercial manufacturing and operational infrastructure prior to clinical evidence of safety and efficacy for a given product candidate; and • selecting commercially viable product candidates and effective delivery methods.
Our ability to generate revenue, and achieve and retain profitability, depends significantly on our success in many areas, including: • obtaining regulatory approvals and marketing authorizations for our lead programs; • obtaining market acceptance of our product candidates as viable treatment options; • launching and commercializing product candidates for which we obtain regulatory approvals and marketing authorizations, either directly or with a collaborator or distributor; • accurately assessing the size and addressability of potential patient populations; • addressing any competing technological and market developments; • maintaining, protecting and expanding our portfolio of intellectual property rights, including patents, trade secrets and know-how; • avoiding infringement of or obtaining licenses to any valid intellectual property owned or controlled by third parties; • negotiating favorable terms in any collaboration, licensing or other arrangements into which we may enter or which may be necessary for us to develop, manufacture or commercialize our product candidates; • maintaining good relationships with our collaborators and licensors; • attracting, hiring and retaining qualified personnel; • developing a sustainable and scalable manufacturing process for product candidates, including establishing and maintaining commercially viable supply relationships with third parties, such as CMOs, and potentially establishing our own manufacturing capabilities and infrastructure; • successfully completing research, preclinical and clinical development of product candidates; 49 • investing resources in developing commercial manufacturing and operational infrastructure prior to clinical evidence of safety and efficacy for a given product candidate; and • selecting commercially viable product candidates and effective delivery methods.
Our stock price is likely to continue to be volatile and subject to significant price and volume fluctuations in response to market and other factors, including: • the success of our products or technologies or competing products or technologies; • results of clinical trials of our product candidates or those of our competitors; • developments or disputes concerning issued patents, patent applications or other intellectual property rights; • regulatory or legal developments in the U.S. and other countries; • the recruitment or departure of key personnel; • the level of expenses related to any of our product candidates or clinical development programs; • the results of our efforts to discover, develop, manufacture, acquire or in-license our current and additional product candidates or products; • actual or anticipated changes in estimates as to financial results, development timelines or recommendations by securities analysts; • variations in our financial results or the financial results of companies that are perceived to be similar to us; • sales of a substantial number of shares of our common stock in the public market, or the perception in the market that the holders of a large number of shares intend to sell shares; • changes in the structure of healthcare payment systems; • market conditions in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors; • public perception of the safety of genome editing based therapeutics; • general economic, industry and market conditions; and • the other factors summarized and described in this Risk Factors section.
Our stock price is likely to continue to be volatile and subject to significant price and volume fluctuations in response to market and other factors, including: • the success of our products or technologies or competing products or technologies; • results of clinical trials of our product candidates or those of our competitors; • developments or disputes concerning issued patents, patent applications or other intellectual property rights; 70 • regulatory or legal developments in the U.S. and other countries; • the recruitment or departure of key personnel; • the level of expenses related to any of our product candidates or clinical development programs; • the results of our efforts to discover, develop, manufacture, acquire or in-license our current and additional product candidates or products; • actual or anticipated changes in estimates as to financial results, development timelines or recommendations by securities analysts; • variations in our financial results or the financial results of companies that are perceived to be similar to us; • sales of a substantial number of shares of our common stock in the public market, or the perception in the market that the holders of a large number of shares intend to sell shares; • changes in the structure of healthcare payment systems; • market conditions in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors; • public perception of the safety of genome editing based therapeutics; • general economic, industry and market conditions; and • the other factors summarized and described in this Risk Factors section.
However, we cannot predict: • if and when any patents will issue; • the scope, degree and range of protection any issued patents will afford us against competitors, including whether third parties will find ways to invalidate or otherwise circumvent our patents; 45 • whether others will apply for or obtain patents claiming aspects similar to those covered by our patents and patent applications; • whether certain governments will appropriate our intellectual property rights and allow competitors to use them; or • whether we will need to initiate litigation or administrative proceedings to assert or defend our patent rights, which may be costly whether we win or lose.
However, we cannot predict: • if and when any patents will issue; • the scope, degree and range of protection any issued patents will afford us against competitors, including whether third parties will find ways to invalidate or otherwise circumvent our patents; • whether others will apply for or obtain patents claiming aspects similar to those covered by our patents and patent applications; • whether certain governments will appropriate our intellectual property rights and allow competitors to use them; or • whether we will need to initiate litigation or administrative proceedings to assert or defend our patent rights, which may be costly whether we win or lose.
For example, through a license agreement between Caribou Biosciences, Inc. and us (the “Caribou License”), we sublicense the rights of the Regents of the University of California and the University of Vienna (collectively, “UC/Vienna”) to a worldwide patent portfolio that covers methods of use and compositions relating to engineered CRISPR/Cas9 systems for, among other things, cleaving or editing DNA and altering gene product expression in various organisms, including eukaryotic cells.
For example, through a license agreement between Caribou Biosciences, Inc. and us (the “Caribou License”), we sublicense the rights of the Regents of the University of California and the University of Vienna (collectively, “UC/Vienna”) to a worldwide patent portfolio that covers methods of use and compositions relating to engineered CRISPR systems for, among other things, cleaving or editing DNA and altering gene product expression in various organisms, including eukaryotic cells.
We also may experience numerous unforeseen events during, or as a result of, any current or future clinical trials that we conduct, which could delay or prevent our ability to receive marketing approval or commercialize our product candidates, including: • challenges in obtaining regulatory authorization or approval to conduct clinical trials in the U.S. from the FDA through an investigational new drug (“IND”) application or from other regulatory agencies outside the U.S., such as the United Kingdom (“U.K.”) Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (“MHRA”) or the European Medicines Agency (“EMA”), through corresponding applications, such as a clinical trial application, a clinical trial notification or a clinical trial exemption, because these agencies have very limited or no experience with the clinical development of CRISPR/Cas9-based therapeutics, particularly in vivo therapeutics, which may require additional significant testing or data compared to more traditional therapies or otherwise delay the development of our product candidates; • successfully developing processes for the safe administration of these product candidates, including long-term follow-up for patients who receive treatment with any of our product candidates; • regulators, institutional review boards (“IRBs”) or ethics committees may not authorize us or our investigators to commence a clinical trial or conduct a clinical trial; • inability to reach, or delays in reaching, agreement on acceptable terms with trial sites and contract research organizations (“CROs”); • clinical trials of any product candidates may fail to show safety or efficacy, or could produce negative or inconclusive results, which could result in having to conduct additional preclinical studies or clinical trials or terminating the product development programs; • we may not be able to initiate or complete clinical trials of a product candidate if the required number of subjects is larger than we anticipated, the number of subjects willing to enroll is smaller than required, the pace of enrollment is slower than anticipated, or subjects drop out or fail to return for post-treatment follow-up at a higher rate than we anticipated; • we may need to educate medical personnel, including clinical investigators, and patients regarding the potential benefits and side effect profile of each of our product candidates; • regulatory agencies may require us to amend our INDs or equivalent regulatory filings, modify the design of our clinical trials or perform more extensive or lengthier preclinical or clinical testing compared to existing therapeutic modalities, any of which may delay the initiation or progression of any of our clinical trials; • animal models may not exist, or available animal models may be inadequate, for some of the human diseases we choose to pursue in our programs, or the preclinical studies we perform as part of our programs; • our third party contractors, clinical trial sites or investigators may fail to comply with regulatory requirements or meet their performance obligations to us in a timely manner, or at all, or may deviate from the clinical trial protocol or drop out of the trial, which may require that we add new clinical trial sites or investigators; • we may elect to, or regulators, IRBs or ethics committees may require that we or our investigators, suspend or terminate clinical research or trials for various reasons, including noncompliance with regulatory requirements or a finding that the participants are being exposed to unacceptable health risks; • the cost of preclinical studies and clinical trials of any product candidates may be greater than we anticipate; • the supply or quality of our product candidates or other materials necessary to conduct preclinical studies and clinical trials of our product candidates may be insufficient or inadequate, or not available in a reasonable timeframe, and any transfer of manufacturing activities may require unforeseen manufacturing or formulation changes; • we may face challenges in sourcing preclinical, clinical and, if approved, commercial supplies for the materials used to manufacture and process our product candidates, which may include importing or exporting materials between different jurisdictions; 36 • our product candidates may have undesirable side effects or other unexpected characteristics, such as effects or characteristics resulting from their biodistribution or mechanism of action, causing us or our investigators, regulators, IRBs or ethics committees to suspend or terminate the trials, or reports may arise from preclinical or clinical testing of other gene therapies or genome editing-based therapies that raise safety or efficacy concerns about our product candidates; • the FDA or other regulatory authorities may require us to submit additional data, such as long-term toxicology studies, or impose other requirements, including submitting preclinical data earlier in clinical development compared to existing therapeutic modalities or requiring amendments to our regulatory filings, before permitting us to initiate or rely on a clinical trial; • we may face challenges in establishing sales and marketing capabilities in anticipation of, and after obtaining, any regulatory approval to gain market authorization; • the FDA or other regulatory authorities may revise the requirements for authorizing our clinical trials or approving our product candidates, or their interpretation of the authorization or approval requirements may not be what we anticipate or require us to adopt Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (“REMS”) as a condition of approval; and • we may not ultimately obtain regulatory approval for a BLA, or corresponding applications outside the U.S., such as a marketing authorization application in the U.K. and other similar regulatory authorities, which may have very limited or no experience with the clinical development of CRISPR/Cas9-based therapeutics, particularly in vivo therapeutics.
We also may experience numerous unforeseen events during, or as a result of, any current or future clinical trials that we conduct, which could delay or prevent our ability to receive marketing approval or commercialize our product candidates, including: • challenges in obtaining regulatory authorization or approval to conduct clinical trials in the U.S. from the FDA through an investigational new drug (“IND”) application or from other regulatory agencies outside the U.S., such as the United Kingdom (“U.K.”) Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (“MHRA”) or the European Medicines Agency (“EMA”), through corresponding applications, such as a clinical trial application, a clinical trial notification or a clinical trial exemption, because these agencies have very limited or no experience with the clinical development of CRISPR-based therapeutics, particularly in vivo therapeutics, which may require additional significant testing or data compared to more traditional therapies or otherwise delay the development of our product candidates; • successfully developing processes for the safe administration of these product candidates, including long-term follow-up for patients who receive treatment with any of our product candidates; • regulators, institutional review boards (“IRBs”) or ethics committees may not authorize us or our investigators to commence a clinical trial or conduct a clinical trial; • inability to reach, or delays in reaching, agreement on acceptable terms with trial sites and contract research organizations (“CROs”); • clinical trials of any product candidates may fail to show safety or efficacy, or could produce negative or inconclusive results, which could result in having to conduct additional preclinical studies or clinical trials or terminating the product development programs; • we may not be able to initiate or complete clinical trials of a product candidate if the required number of subjects is larger than we anticipated, the number of subjects willing to enroll is smaller than required, the pace of enrollment is slower than anticipated, or subjects drop out or fail to return for post-treatment follow-up at a higher rate than we anticipated; • we may need to educate medical personnel, including clinical investigators, and patients regarding the potential benefits and side effect profile of each of our product candidates; • regulatory agencies may require us to amend our IND applications or equivalent regulatory filings, modify the design of our clinical trials or perform more extensive or lengthier preclinical or clinical testing compared to existing therapeutic modalities, any of which may delay the initiation or progression of any of our clinical trials; • animal models may not exist, or available animal models may be inadequate, for some of the human diseases we choose to pursue in our programs, or the preclinical studies we perform as part of our programs; • our third party contractors, clinical trial sites or investigators may fail to comply with regulatory requirements or meet their performance obligations to us in a timely manner, or at all, or may deviate from the clinical trial protocol or drop out of the trial, which may require that we add new clinical trial sites or investigators; • we may elect to, or regulators, IRBs or ethics committees may require that we or our investigators, suspend or terminate clinical research or trials for various reasons, including noncompliance with regulatory requirements or a finding that the participants are being exposed to unacceptable health risks; • the cost of preclinical studies and clinical trials of any product candidates may be greater than we anticipate; • the supply or quality of our product candidates or other materials necessary to conduct preclinical studies and clinical trials of our product candidates may be insufficient or inadequate, or not available in a reasonable timeframe, and any transfer of manufacturing activities may require unforeseen manufacturing or formulation changes; • we may face challenges in sourcing preclinical, clinical and, if approved, commercial supplies for the materials used to manufacture and process our product candidates, which may include importing or exporting materials between different jurisdictions; 34 • our product candidates may have undesirable side effects or other unexpected characteristics, such as effects or characteristics resulting from their biodistribution or mechanism of action, causing us or our investigators, regulators, IRBs or ethics committees to suspend or terminate the trials, or reports may arise from preclinical or clinical testing of other gene therapies or genome editing-based therapies that raise safety or efficacy concerns about our product candidates; • the FDA or other regulatory authorities may require us to submit additional data, such as long-term toxicology studies, or impose other requirements, including submitting preclinical data earlier in clinical development compared to existing therapeutic modalities or requiring amendments to our regulatory filings, before permitting us to initiate, continue or rely on a clinical trial; • we may face challenges in establishing sales and marketing capabilities in anticipation of, and after obtaining, any regulatory approval to gain market authorization; • the FDA or other regulatory authorities may revise the requirements for authorizing our clinical trials or approving our product candidates, or their interpretation of the authorization or approval requirements may not be what we anticipate or require us to adopt Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (“REMS”) as a condition of approval; and • we may not ultimately obtain regulatory approval for a BLA, or corresponding applications outside the U.S., such as a marketing authorization application in the U.K. and other similar regulatory authorities, which may have very limited or no experience with the clinical development of CRISPR-based therapeutics, particularly in vivo therapeutics.
Failure to maintain the security, confidentiality, accessibility or integrity of data stored on such systems could result in interruptions in our operations, damage our reputation in the market, increase our service costs, cause us to incur substantial costs, subject us to liability for damages and/or fines, and divert our resources from other tasks, any one of which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
Failure to maintain the security, confidentiality, accessibility or 63 integrity of data stored on such systems could result in interruptions in our operations, damage our reputation in the market, increase our service costs, cause us to incur substantial costs, subject us to liability for damages and/or fines, and divert our resources from other tasks, any one of which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
In addition, other third parties, such as Vilnius University (whose patents we have sublicensed under our Caribou Agreement) and Harvard University, filed patent applications claiming CRISPR/Cas9-related inventions around or within a year after the first patent application filed in the UC/Vienna/Charpentier patent family and allege (or may allege) that they invented one or more of the inventions claimed by UC/Vienna/Charpentier before UC/Vienna/Charpentier.
In addition, other third parties, such as Vilnius University (whose patents we have sublicensed under our Caribou Agreement) and Harvard University, filed patent applications claiming CRISPR-related inventions around or within a year after the first patent application filed in the UC/Vienna/Charpentier patent family and allege (or may allege) that they invented one or more of the inventions claimed by UC/Vienna/Charpentier before UC/Vienna/Charpentier.
If either the Broad Institute, ToolGen or Sigma-Aldrich were to succeed in any of their respective interferences, or if other third parties, such as Vilnius University or Harvard University, pursue claims and succeed in such claims, the prevailing party or parties could assert its issued patents against us based on our CRISPR/Cas9-based activities, including research, development, and commercialization of our product candidates or resulting products.
If either the Broad Institute, ToolGen or Sigma-Aldrich were to succeed in any of their respective interferences, or if other third parties, such as Vilnius University or Harvard University, pursue claims and succeed in such claims, the prevailing party or parties could assert its issued patents against us based on our CRISPR-based activities, including research, development, and commercialization of our product candidates or resulting products.
Our future success also is highly dependent on the successful development of CRISPR-based genome editing technologies, cellular delivery methods and therapeutic applications for the indications on which we have focused our ongoing research and development efforts. We may decide to alter or abandon these programs as new data become available and we gain experience in developing CRISPR/Cas9-based therapeutics.
Our future success also is highly dependent on the successful development of CRISPR-based genome editing technologies, cellular delivery methods and therapeutic applications for the indications on which we have focused our ongoing research and development efforts. We may decide to alter or abandon these programs as new data become available and we gain experience in developing CRISPR-based therapeutics.
In addition, the use of genome editing technology by third parties in areas that are not being pursued by us, such as for targeting and editing of embryonic cells, could adversely impact public and governmental perceptions regarding the ethics and risks of CRISPR/Cas9 technology and lead to social or legal changes that could limit our ability to apply the technology to develop human therapies addressing disease.
In addition, the use of genome editing technology by third parties in areas that are not being pursued by us, such as for targeting and editing of embryonic cells, could adversely impact public and governmental perceptions regarding the ethics and risks of CRISPR technology and lead to social or legal changes that could limit our ability to apply the technology to develop human therapies addressing disease.
Given the amount of time required for the development, testing and regulatory review of new product candidates, patents protecting such candidates might expire before or shortly after such candidates are commercialized. As a result, our 46 owned and licensed patent portfolio may not provide us with sufficient rights to exclude others from commercializing products similar or identical to ours.
Given the amount of time required for the development, testing and regulatory review of new product candidates, patents protecting such candidates might expire before or shortly after such candidates are commercialized. As a result, our owned and licensed patent portfolio may not provide us with sufficient rights to exclude others from commercializing products similar or identical to ours.
New risk factors can emerge from time to time, and we cannot predict the impact that any factor or combination of factors may have on our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations. Risks Related to Our Business Risks Related to Preclinical and Clinical Development CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing technology has only recently been clinically validated for human therapeutic use.
New risk factors can emerge from time to time, and we cannot predict the impact that any factor or combination of factors may have on our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations. Risks Related to Our Business Risks Related to Preclinical and Clinical Development CRISPR genome editing technology has only recently been clinically validated for human therapeutic use.
It is not always possible to identify and deter misconduct by employees and other third parties, and the precautions we take to 57 detect and prevent this activity may not be effective in controlling unknown or unmanaged risks or losses or in protecting us from governmental investigations or other actions or lawsuits stemming from a failure to comply with these laws or regulations.
It is not always possible to identify and deter misconduct by employees and other third parties, and the precautions we take to detect and prevent this activity may not be effective in controlling unknown or unmanaged risks or losses or in protecting us from governmental investigations or other actions or lawsuits stemming from a failure to comply with these laws or regulations.
Public perception may be influenced by claims that gene therapy or genome editing, including the use of CRISPR/Cas9, is unsafe or unethical, or carries an undue risk of side effects, such as improper modification of a gene sequence in a patient’s chromosome that could lead to disease such as cancer, and gene therapy or genome editing may not gain the acceptance of the public or the medical community.
Public perception may be influenced by claims that gene therapy or genome editing, including the use of CRISPR, is unsafe or unethical, or carries an undue risk of side effects, such as improper modification of a gene sequence in a patient’s chromosome that could lead to disease such as cancer, and gene therapy or genome editing may not gain the acceptance of the public or the medical community.
Our future capital requirements will depend on and could increase significantly as a result of many factors, including the scope, progress, results and costs of drug discovery, preclinical development, laboratory 51 testing and clinical trials for our current or future product candidates, including additional expenses attributable to adjusting our development plans (including any supply related matters).
Our future capital requirements will depend on and could increase significantly as a result of many factors, including the scope, progress, results and costs of drug discovery, preclinical development, laboratory testing and clinical trials for our current or future product candidates, including additional expenses attributable to adjusting our development plans (including any supply related matters).
There is a substantial amount of litigation as well as administrative proceedings for challenging patents, including interference, derivation, reexamination, and other post-grant proceedings before the USPTO and oppositions and other comparable proceedings in foreign jurisdictions, involving patents and other intellectual property rights in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries, and we expect this to be true for the CRISPR/Cas9 space as well.
There is a substantial amount of litigation as well as administrative proceedings for challenging patents, including interference, derivation, reexamination, and other post-grant proceedings before the USPTO and oppositions and other comparable proceedings in foreign jurisdictions, involving patents and other intellectual property rights in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries, and we expect this to be true for the CRISPR space as well.
We expect the novel nature of our product candidates to create challenges or raise questions from regulatory agencies in obtaining regulatory approval. For example, in the U.S., the FDA has not approved any in vivo gene editing-based therapeutic and has only approved one ex vivo CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing therapy for human therapeutic use.
We expect the novel nature of our product candidates to create 52 challenges or raise questions from regulatory agencies in obtaining regulatory approval. For example, in the U.S., the FDA has not approved any in vivo gene editing-based therapeutic and has only approved one ex vivo CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing therapy for human therapeutic use.
The FDA and other agencies actively enforce the laws and regulations prohibiting the promotion of off-label uses and a company that is found to have improperly promoted off-label uses may be subject to significant liability. The FDA’s policies may change and additional government regulations may be enacted that could prevent, limit or delay regulatory approval of our product candidates.
The FDA and other agencies actively enforce the laws and regulations prohibiting the promotion of off-label uses and a company that is found to have improperly promoted off-label uses may be subject to significant liability. 56 The FDA’s policies may change and additional government regulations may be enacted that could prevent, limit or delay regulatory approval of our product candidates.
These non-compete laws may negatively impact our ability to prevent employees from working with direct or indirect competitors in the future and may affect our ability to retain key talent in a competitive market. Our failure to comply with these and other related laws could expose us to civil and, in some cases, criminal liability, including fines and penalties.
These 58 non-compete laws may negatively impact our ability to prevent employees from working with direct or indirect competitors in the future and may affect our ability to retain key talent in a competitive market. Our failure to comply with these and other related laws could expose us to civil and, in some cases, criminal liability, including fines and penalties.
In addition, any material alteration, in an adverse manner, of any 59 material collaboration agreement, or dispute or litigation proceedings we may have related to a material collaboration in the future could delay development programs, create uncertainty as to ownership of or access to intellectual property rights, distract management from other business activities and generate substantial expense.
In addition, any material alteration, in an adverse manner, of any material collaboration agreement, or dispute or litigation proceedings we may have related to a material collaboration in the future could delay development programs, create uncertainty as to ownership of or access to intellectual property rights, distract management from other business activities and generate substantial expense.
All the therapeutic indications approved by the relevant authorities may not be covered or reimbursed. In addition, we cannot be sure that coverage and reimbursement will be available for, or accurately estimate the potential revenue from, our product candidates because they are novel treatments for diseases using a new technology and delivery approaches.
All the therapeutic indications approved by the relevant authorities may not be covered or reimbursed. In addition, we cannot be sure that coverage and reimbursement will be available for, or accurately estimate the potential revenue from, our product candidates because they are novel treatments for diseases using new technology and delivery approaches.
Although one CRISPR/Cas9-edited ex vivo therapy has been approved in the United States (“U.S.”) and European Union (“EU”), no genome editing in vivo therapy has been approved in the U.S., EU countries or other key jurisdictions, and the potential to successfully obtain approval for any of our CRISPR/Cas9 product candidates remains uncertain.
Although one CRISPR-edited ex vivo therapy has been approved in the United States (“U.S.”) and European Union (“EU”), no genome editing in vivo therapy has been approved in the U.S., EU countries or other key jurisdictions, and the potential to successfully obtain approval for any of our CRISPR product candidates remains uncertain.
Such an outcome could have a material adverse effect on our business. Even if we are successful in defending against such claims, litigation could result in substantial costs and be a distraction to management and other employees. We have limited foreign intellectual property rights and may not be able to protect our intellectual property rights throughout the world.
Such an outcome could have a material adverse effect on our business. Even if we are successful in defending against such claims, litigation could result in substantial costs and be a distraction to management and other employees. 46 We have limited foreign intellectual property rights and may not be able to protect our intellectual property rights throughout the world.
Furthermore, because of the substantial amount of discovery required in connection with intellectual property litigation or contractual litigation there is a risk that some of our confidential information could be compromised by disclosure during this type of litigation or proceeding. In addition, there could be public announcements of the results of hearings, motions or other interim proceedings or developments.
Furthermore, because of the substantial amount of discovery required in connection with intellectual property litigation or contractual litigation there is a risk that some of our confidential information could be compromised by disclosure during this type of litigation or proceeding. In addition, there could be public announcements of the 47 results of hearings, motions or other interim proceedings or developments.
The size and complexity of our information technology systems, and those of third party vendors, service providers and collaborators, and the large amounts of confidential information stored on those systems, make such systems potentially vulnerable to service interruptions or systems failures, or to cybersecurity incidents, breaches or compromises from inadvertent or intentional actions by our employees, third party vendors, service providers, collaborators, and/or business partners, or from cyber-attacks by malicious third parties.
The size and complexity of our information technology systems, and those of third party vendors, service providers and collaborators, and the large amounts of confidential information stored on those systems, make such systems potentially vulnerable to service interruptions or systems failures, or to cybersecurity incidents, breaches or compromises from inadvertent or intentional actions by our employees, third party vendors, service providers, collaborators, and/or business partners, or from cybersecurity attacks by malicious third parties.
We are focused on developing novel therapeutics utilizing CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing technology, including in vivo therapies and ex vivo engineered cell therapies. Although there have been significant advances in recent years in the fields of gene therapy and genome editing, in vivo CRISPR-based genome editing technologies are relatively new and their therapeutic utility is largely unproven.
We are focused on developing novel therapeutics utilizing CRISPR genome editing technology, including in vivo therapies and ex vivo engineered cell therapies. Although there have been significant advances in recent years in the fields of gene therapy and genome editing, in vivo CRISPR-based genome editing technologies are relatively new and their therapeutic utility is largely unproven.
If such third parties were found to have rights to patents or patent applications covering our licensed technology (such as CRISPR/Cas9 technology), they could assert that we infringe such patents and, as discussed above, we may be required to obtain rights from such parties (e.g., by obtaining a license) or cease our development and commercialization efforts.
If such third parties were found to have rights to patents or patent applications covering our licensed technology (such as CRISPR technology), they could assert that we infringe such patents and, as discussed above, we may be required to obtain rights from such parties (e.g., by obtaining a license) or cease our development and commercialization efforts.
For example, various patent applications within the UC/Vienna/Charpentier patent family and the Broad Institute patent family have been involved in patent interferences and other patent challenges in the U.S. and other jurisdictions, in which the respective owners have alleged, and are alleging, that they invented and/or own intellectual property claiming overlapping aspects of CRISPR/Cas9 systems.
For example, various patent applications within the UC/Vienna/Charpentier patent family and the Broad Institute patent family have been involved in patent interferences and other patent challenges in the U.S. and other jurisdictions, in which the respective owners have alleged, and are alleging, that they invented and/or own intellectual property claiming overlapping aspects of CRISPR systems.
If we are not able to generate revenue from the sale of any approved products, we may never become profitable. 50 Our operating history may make difficult the evaluation of our business’s success to date and assessment of our future viability. We are a clinical-stage company. We were founded and commenced operations in mid-2014.
If we are not able to generate revenue from the sale of any approved products, we may never become profitable. Our operating history may make difficult the evaluation of our business’s success to date and assessment of our future viability. We are a clinical-stage company. We were founded and commenced operations in mid-2014.
For example, the State of Washington recently passed a law, effective as of March 31, 2024, that regulates health and medical information that is not subject to HIPAA. Similar laws have been passed in Connecticut and Nevada. Additionally, a small number of states have enacted laws that specifically target the collection and use of biometric information.
For example, the State of Washington passed a law, effective as of March 31, 2024, that regulates health and medical information that is not subject to HIPAA. Similar laws have been passed in Connecticut and Nevada. Additionally, a small number of states have enacted laws that specifically target the collection and use of biometric information.
Supreme Court overruled the Chevron doctrine, which gave deference to regulatory agencies’ statutory interpretations in litigation against federal government agencies, such as the FDA and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”), agencies within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, where the law is ambiguous.
Supreme Court overruled the Chevron doctrine, which gave deference to regulatory agencies’ statutory interpretations in litigation against federal government agencies, such as the FDA and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (“CMS”), agencies within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”), where the law is ambiguous.
In addition, adverse publicity due to the ethical and social controversies surrounding the therapeutic in vivo use of CRISPR/Cas9, genome edited modified cells, or other therapeutics mediums, such as viral vectors that we may use in our clinical trials may limit market acceptance of our product candidates.
In addition, adverse publicity due to the ethical and social controversies surrounding the therapeutic in vivo use of CRISPR, genome edited modified cells, or other therapeutics mediums, such as viral vectors that we may use in our clinical trials may limit market acceptance of our product candidates.
If the FDA or any comparable foreign regulatory authority does not accept such data, it would result in the need for additional trials, which could be costly and time-consuming, and which may result in product candidates that we may develop not receiving approval for commercialization in the applicable jurisdiction.
If the FDA or any 53 comparable foreign regulatory authority does not accept such data, it would result in the need for additional trials, which could be costly and time-consuming, and which may result in product candidates that we may develop not receiving approval for commercialization in the applicable jurisdiction.
For more information on coverage and reimbursement see the section entitled “ Business – Government Regulation and Product Approval – Coverage and Reimbursement. ” 67 In the U.S. and some other jurisdictions, patients generally rely on third party payors to reimburse all or part of the costs associated with their treatment.
For more information on coverage and reimbursement see the section entitled “ Business – Government Regulation and Product Approval – Coverage and Reimbursement. ” In the U.S. and some other jurisdictions, patients generally rely on third party payors to reimburse all or part of the costs associated with their treatment.
Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) declared an interference between the UC/Vienna/Charpentier eukaryotic patent family and the Broad Institute patent family to determine which research group first invented the use of the CRISPR/Cas9 technology in eukaryotic cells and, therefore, is entitled to the U.S. patents covering that invention.
Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) declared an interference between the UC/Vienna/Charpentier eukaryotic patent family and the Broad Institute patent family to determine which research group first invented the use of the CRISPR technology in eukaryotic cells and, therefore, is entitled to the U.S. patents covering that invention.
Before obtaining marketing approval from regulatory authorities for the sale of any product candidate, we must complete preclinical development, manufacture (or have manufactured) product candidates and components, and then conduct extensive clinical trials to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of any of our future product candidates in humans.
Before obtaining marketing approval from regulatory authorities for the sale of any product candidate, we must complete preclinical development, 50 manufacture (or have manufactured) product candidates and components, and then conduct extensive clinical trials to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of any of our future product candidates in humans.
For example, in October 2023, we announced an expanded research collaboration with Regeneron to develop therapies for the treatment of neurological and muscular diseases. These current and future therapeutic-focused collaborations could provide us with important technologies and/or funding for our programs and technology.
For example, in October 2023, we announced an expanded research collaboration with Regeneron to develop therapies for the treatment of neurological and 59 muscular diseases. These current and future therapeutic-focused collaborations could provide us with important technologies and/or funding for our programs and technology.
Obtaining and maintaining regulatory approval of our product candidates in one jurisdiction does not guarantee that we will be able to obtain or maintain regulatory approval in any other jurisdiction, but a failure or delay in obtaining regulatory approval in 55 one jurisdiction may have a negative effect on the regulatory approval process in others.
Obtaining and maintaining regulatory approval of our product candidates in one jurisdiction does not guarantee that we will be able to obtain or maintain regulatory approval in any other jurisdiction, but a failure or delay in obtaining regulatory approval in one jurisdiction may have a negative effect on the regulatory approval process in others.
These stockholders may have the ability to influence us through their ownership positions. These stockholders may be able to determine all matters requiring stockholder approval. For example, these stockholders, acting together, may be able to control elections of directors or approval of any merger, sale of assets or other major corporate transaction.
These stockholders may have the ability to influence us through their ownership positions. These stockholders may be able to determine all matters requiring stockholder approval. For example, these stockholders, acting 71 together, may be able to control elections of directors or approval of any merger, sale of assets or other major corporate transaction.
Our approach to developing therapies centers on using CRISPR/Cas9 technology to alter, introduce or remove genetic information in vivo to treat various disorders, or to engineer human cells ex vivo to create therapeutic cells that can be introduced into the human body to address the underlying disease.
Our approach to developing therapies centers on using CRISPR technology to alter, introduce or remove genetic information in vivo to treat various disorders, or to engineer human cells ex vivo to create therapeutic cells that can be introduced into the human body to address the underlying disease.
Because the patent applications involved in these interferences also purport to cover the use of CRISPR/Cas9 for gene editing in eukaryotic cells, the PTAB seeks to determine between the various groups which one invented first and is entitled to the resulting U.S. patents.
Because the patent applications involved in these interferences also purport to cover the use of CRISPR for gene editing in eukaryotic cells, the PTAB seeks to determine between the various groups which one invented first and is entitled to the resulting U.S. patents.
Even if we are not a party to legal actions or other disputes involving our licensed intellectual property, an adverse outcome could harm our business because it might prevent us from continuing to license intellectual property that we may need to operate our business.
Even if we are not a party to legal actions or other disputes involving our licensed intellectual property, an adverse outcome could harm our business because it might prevent us from continuing to license intellectual property that we may need to operate 43 our business.
Further, patients may choose to travel to countries in which we do not have intellectual property rights or which do not enforce these rights to obtain the products or treatment from competitors in such countries. 47 Many companies have encountered significant problems in protecting and defending intellectual property rights in foreign jurisdictions.
Further, patients may choose to travel to countries in which we do not have intellectual property rights or which do not enforce these rights to obtain the products or treatment from competitors in such countries. Many companies have encountered significant problems in protecting and defending intellectual property rights in foreign jurisdictions.
In addition, if the FDA or a comparable foreign regulatory authority approves our product 56 candidates, we will have to comply with their respective legal or regulatory requirements including submissions of safety and other post-marketing information and reports and registration.
In addition, if the FDA or a comparable foreign regulatory authority approves our product candidates, we will have to comply with their respective legal or regulatory requirements including submissions of safety and other post-marketing information and reports and registration.
Even if we are successful in selecting and developing any product candidates, in order to compete successfully we may need to be first-to-market or demonstrate that our CRISPR/Cas9-based products are superior to therapies based on the same or different treatment methods.
Even if we are successful in selecting and developing any product candidates, in order to compete successfully we may need to be first-to-market or demonstrate that our CRISPR-based products are superior to therapies based on the same or different treatment methods.
Pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (“Section 404”), we are required to furnish a report by our management on our internal control over financial reporting, including an attestation report on internal control over financial 72 reporting issued by our independent registered public accounting firm.
Pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (“Section 404”), we are required to furnish a report by our management on our internal control over financial reporting, including an attestation report on internal control over financial reporting issued by our independent registered public accounting firm.
We seek to protect our proprietary processes, in part, by entering into confidentiality agreements with our employees, consultants, outside scientific advisors, contractors (including CMOs and CROs), and collaborators, and we also rely on federal and state laws requiring our directors, employees, consultants, contractors (including CMOs and CROs), and collaborators to protect our proprietary information.
We seek to protect our proprietary processes, in part, by entering into confidentiality agreements with our employees, consultants, outside scientific advisors, contractors (including CMOs and CROs), and collaborators, and we also rely on federal and state laws requiring our directors, employees, consultants, contractors (including CMOs and CROs), and collaborators to protect our proprietary 48 information.
Even if we obtain coverage for a given product, the resulting reimbursement payment rates might be insufficient or may require co-insurance or co-payments that patients find unacceptably high, which may prevent us from achieving or sustaining profitability.
Even if we obtain coverage for a given product, the resulting reimbursement payment rates might be insufficient or may require co-insurance or co-payments 67 that patients find unacceptably high, which may prevent us from achieving or sustaining profitability.
These different laws 68 governing the privacy and security of health and other personal information often differ from each other in significant ways and may not have the same effective requirements, thus complicating efforts to comply with their respective provisions.
These different laws governing the privacy and security of health and other personal information often differ from each other in significant ways and may not have the same effective requirements, thus complicating efforts to comply with their respective provisions.
For this reason, we will employ multiple steps to control the manufacturing process to ensure that the process results in product candidates that meet their specifications, but complications 52 at any one step could adversely impact our manufacturing of products.
For this reason, we will employ multiple steps to control the manufacturing process to ensure that the process results in product candidates that meet their specifications, but complications at any one step could adversely impact our manufacturing of products.
There is no certainty that the FDA or other similar agencies will continue to apply to all our CRISPR/Cas9 product candidates the same regulatory pathway and requirements it is applying to other in vivo therapies or ex vivo engineered therapeutics.
There is no certainty that the FDA or other similar agencies will continue to apply to all our CRISPR product candidates the same regulatory pathway and requirements it is applying to other in vivo therapies or ex vivo engineered therapeutics.
We may also need to rely on multiple third parties, 69 such as partners and service providers, to meet these legal requirements, which could result in additional liability for us if they do not comply.
We may also need to rely on multiple third parties, such as partners and service providers, to meet these legal requirements, which could result in additional liability for us if they do not comply.
Our trade secrets and other confidential information of ours may also be exposed through cybersecurity attacks, ransomware attacks, and other hacking attempts directed at our information technology systems and those 49 of our employees, consultants, outside scientific advisors, contractors, vendors and collaborators.
Our trade secrets and other confidential information of ours may also be exposed through cybersecurity attacks, ransomware attacks, and other hacking attempts directed at our information technology systems and those of our employees, consultants, outside scientific advisors, contractors, vendors and collaborators.
Further, many third parties, including the third parties described above, have also filed patent applications and obtained patents covering aspects of the CRISPR/Cas9 technology in other key jurisdictions, including the EU members, the U.K., China and Japan.
Further, many third parties, including the third parties described above, have also filed patent applications and obtained patents covering aspects of the CRISPR technology in other key jurisdictions, including the EU members, the U.K., China and Japan.
The GDPR also confers a private right of action on data subjects and consumer 62 associations to lodge complaints with supervisory authorities, seek judicial remedies, and obtain compensation for damages resulting from violations.
The GDPR also confers a private right of action on data subjects and consumer associations to lodge complaints with supervisory authorities, seek judicial remedies, and obtain compensation for damages resulting from violations.
If we cannot replicate positive results from any of our preclinical or clinical activities and studies, we may be unable to successfully develop, obtain regulatory approval for and commercialize any potential product candidate.
If we cannot replicate the positive results from any of our preclinical or clinical activities and studies, we may be unable to successfully develop, obtain regulatory approval for and commercialize any potential product candidate.
The use of the CRISPR/Cas9 system to create genome editing-based therapies is a recent development and may not become broadly accepted by patients, healthcare providers, third party payors and other stakeholders.
The use of the CRISPR system to create genome editing-based therapies is a recent development and may not become broadly accepted by patients, healthcare providers, third party payors and other stakeholders.
If we or our CMOs cannot successfully manufacture material that conforms to 61 our specifications and the strict relevant regulatory requirements, we and our CMOs will not be able to secure or maintain regulatory approval for our respective manufacturing facilities.
If we or our CMOs cannot successfully manufacture material that conforms to our specifications and the strict relevant regulatory requirements, we and our CMOs will not be able to secure or maintain regulatory approval for our respective manufacturing facilities.
Cybersecurity incidents, breaches, compromises, insider threats and other inappropriate access can be difficult to detect, and any delay in identifying them may lead to increased harm of the types summarized and described above.
Cybersecurity incidents, data breaches, compromises, insider threats and other inappropriate access can be difficult to detect, and any delay in identifying them may lead to increased harm of the types summarized and described above.
The scope of 64 requirements depends on legal and risk determinations that rely on novel legal provisions that have not yet been interpreted by courts or regulators, and non-compliance can lead to significant fines.
The scope of requirements depends on legal and risk determinations that rely on novel legal provisions that have not yet been interpreted by courts or regulators, and non-compliance can lead to significant fines.
Any inactive trading market for our common stock may also impair our ability to 70 raise capital to continue to fund our operations by selling shares and may impair our ability to acquire other companies or technologies by using our shares as consideration.
Any inactive trading market for our common stock may also impair our ability to raise capital to continue to fund our operations by selling shares and may impair our ability to acquire other companies or technologies by using our shares as consideration.
Therapeutic applications of genome editing technologies, and CRISPR/Cas9 in particular, for both in vivo products and ex vivo products, are uncertain and must undergo rigorous clinical trials and regulatory review before receiving marketing authorization.
Therapeutic applications of genome editing technologies, and CRISPR in particular, for both in vivo products and ex vivo products, are uncertain and must undergo rigorous clinical trials and regulatory review before receiving marketing authorization.
Specifically, certain patent applications within the UC/Vienna/Charpentier patent family, licensed to us under the Caribou License, covering certain aspects of CRISPR/Cas9 systems to edit genes in eukaryotic cells, including human cells (collectively, the “UC/Vienna/Charpentier eukaryotic patent family”) have been the subject of patent interferences involving patents and patent application co-owned by the Broad Institute, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the President and Fellows of Harvard College and the Rockefeller University (collectively, the “Broad Institute”) that also claim CRISPR/Cas9 systems to edit genes in eukaryotic cells (collectively, the “Broad Institute patent family”).
Specifically, certain patent applications within the UC/Vienna/Charpentier patent family, licensed to us under the Caribou License, covering certain aspects of CRISPR systems to edit genes in eukaryotic cells, including human cells (collectively, the “UC/Vienna/Charpentier eukaryotic patent family”) have been the subject of patent interferences involving patents and patent applications co-owned by the Broad Institute, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the President and Fellows of Harvard College and the Rockefeller University (collectively, the “Broad Institute”) that also claim CRISPR systems to edit genes in eukaryotic cells (collectively, the “Broad Institute patent family”).
We may not meet the requirements of regulatory authorities, such as the FDA, for initiating later phase clinical trials for our product candidates, which could delay the development of our product candidates, including the submission of a BLA or comparable marketing application. 35 Because these are new therapeutic approaches, discovering, developing, manufacturing and commercializing our product candidates may subject us to a number of challenges or delays in completing our preclinical studies and initiating or completing clinical trials.
We may not meet the requirements of regulatory authorities, such as the FDA, for initiating later phase clinical trials for our product candidates, which could delay the development of our product candidates, including the submission of a BLA or comparable marketing application. 33 Because these are new therapeutic approaches, discovering, developing, manufacturing and commercializing our product candidates may subject us to a number of challenges or delays in completing our preclinical studies and initiating or completing clinical trials.
As discussed above, such allegations or litigation may affect our ability to market and sell CRISPR/Cas9-based human therapeutics and may result in significant costs or delays to our programs.
As discussed above, such allegations or litigation may affect our ability to market and sell CRISPR-based human therapeutics and may result in significant costs or delays to our programs.
Dube, our Chief Accounting Officer, David Lebwohl, our Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer and Birgit Schultes, our Executive Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer, as well as the other principal members of our management, scientific and clinical teams.
Dube, our Chief Accounting Officer, David Lebwohl, our Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer and Birgit Schultes, our Executive Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer, as well as the other principal members of our management, scientific and clinical 66 teams.
Any security incidents, compromises or breaches that lead to unauthorized access, use, or disclosure of personal information, including personal information regarding our employees or current or future clinical trial participants, could harm our reputation, require us to 63 comply with onerous legal requirements under laws and regulations that protect the privacy and security of personal information, and subject us to significant liability including fines, litigation, and loss of current and future business.
Any security incidents, compromises or data breaches that lead to unauthorized access, use, or disclosure of personal information, including personal information regarding our employees or current or future clinical trial participants, could harm our reputation, require us to comply with onerous legal requirements under laws and regulations that protect the privacy and security of personal information, and subject us to significant liability including fines, litigation, and loss of current and future business.
Additionally, because our in vivo technology potentially involves genome editing across multiple cell and tissue types, we are subject to many of the challenges and risks that other genome editing therapeutics and gene therapies face, including: • regulatory guidance for gene and genome editing therapy products has changed and may continue to change in the future, including, e.g., the finalized guidance document titled “Human Gene Therapy Products Incorporating Human Genome Editing” that the FDA issued in January 2024 and the draft guidance document titled “Frequently Asked Questions — Developing Potential Cellular and Gene Therapy Products” published in November 2024; • to date, only a limited number of products that involve in vivo gene transfer have been approved globally; • improper modulation of a gene sequence, including unintended editing events, insertion of a sequence into certain locations in a patient’s chromosome or other effects related to the biodistribution of our product candidates, could lead to cancer, other aberrantly functioning cells or other diseases, including death; • transient expression of the Cas9 protein or other genome editing components of our product candidates could lead to patients having an immunological reaction towards those modified cells, which could be severe or life-threatening; • corrective expression of a missing protein in patients’ cells could result in the protein being recognized as foreign, and lead to a sustained immunological reaction against the expressed protein or expressing cells, which could be severe or life-threatening; and • regulatory agencies may require extended follow-up observation periods of patients who receive treatment using genome editing products including, for example, the FDA’s recommended 15-year follow-up observation period for these patients, and we will need to adopt such observation periods for our product candidates if required by the relevant regulatory agency, which could vary by country or region. 37 Further, because our ex vivo product candidates involve editing human cells and then delivering modified cells to patients, we are subject to many of the challenges and risks that engineered cell therapies face.
Additionally, because our in vivo technology potentially involves genome editing across multiple cell and tissue types, we are subject to many of the challenges and risks that other genome editing therapeutics and gene therapies face, including: • regulatory guidance for gene and genome editing therapy products has changed and may continue to change in the future, including, e.g., the finalized guidance document titled “Human Gene Therapy Products Incorporating Human Genome Editing” that the FDA issued in January 2024 and the draft guidance document titled “Frequently Asked Questions — Developing Potential Cellular and Gene Therapy Products” published in November 2024; • to date, only a limited number of products that involve in vivo gene transfer have been approved globally; 35 • improper modulation of a gene sequence, including unintended editing events, insertion of a sequence into certain locations in a patient’s chromosome or other effects related to the biodistribution of our product candidates, could lead to cancer, other aberrantly functioning cells or other diseases, including death; • transient expression of the Cas9 protein or other genome editing components of our product candidates could lead to patients having an immunological reaction towards those modified cells, which could be severe or life-threatening; • corrective expression of a missing protein in patients’ cells could result in the protein being recognized as foreign, and lead to a sustained immunological reaction against the expressed protein or expressing cells, which could be severe or life-threatening; and • regulatory agencies may require extended follow-up observation periods of patients who receive treatment using genome editing products including, for example, the FDA’s recommended 15-year follow-up observation period for these patients, and we will need to adopt such observation periods for our product candidates if required by the relevant regulatory agency, which could vary by country or region.
In addition, we could be found liable for monetary damages, including treble damages and attorneys’ fees if we are found 41 to have willfully infringed a patent.
In addition, we could be found liable for monetary damages, including treble damages and attorneys’ fees if we are found to have willfully infringed a patent.
Specific to our nex-z program, we are aware of other companies that are currently commercializing or developing products and therapies used to treat ATTR amyloidosis, including Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, BridgeBio Pharma Inc., Bayer AG, Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Metagenomi Technologies, LLC, Novo Nordisk A/S, Pfizer, Inc. and YolTech Therapeutics.
Specific to our nex-z program, we are aware of other companies that are currently commercializing or developing products and therapies used to treat ATTR amyloidosis, including Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, BridgeBio Pharma Inc., Bayer AG, Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Metagenomi Therapeutics, Inc., Novo Nordisk A/S, Pfizer, Inc. and YolTech Therapeutics.
The approaches we are taking to discover and develop novel therapeutics using CRISPR/Cas9 systems are unproven and may never lead to marketable products.
The approaches we are taking to discover and develop novel therapeutics using CRISPR systems are unproven and may never lead to marketable products.
The interference involved 14 allowable patent applications from the UC/Vienna/Charpentier eukaryotic patent family 42 and 13 patents and one patent application from the Broad Institute patent family.
The interference involved 14 allowable patent applications from the UC/Vienna/Charpentier eukaryotic patent family and 13 patents and one patent application from the Broad Institute patent family.
GDPR and any other developments regulating the transfer of personal data between the U.K. and EU. For example, the U.K. government has introduced a Data Use and Access Bill (the “U.K. Bill”) into the U.K. legislative process. The aim of the U.K. Bill is to reform the U.K.’s data protection regime following Brexit.
GDPR and any other developments regulating the transfer of personal data between the U.K. and EU. For example, the U.K. government has introduced a Data Use and Access Bill (the “U.K. Bill”) into the U.K. legislative process, which has passed. The aim of the U.K. Bill is to reform the U.K.’s data protection regime following Brexit. The U.K.
U.S. law also provides for other procedures to challenge patents, including inter partes reviews, post-grant reviews and, in certain circumstances, interference or derivation proceedings, that add uncertainty to the possibility of challenge to our developed or licensed patents and patent applications in the future.
U.S. law also provides for other procedures to challenge patents, including inter partes reviews, post-grant reviews and, in certain circumstances, interference or derivation proceedings, which add uncertainty to the possibility of challenge to our developed or licensed patents and patent applications in the future.
We have limited intellectual property rights outside the U.S. Filing, prosecuting, maintaining and defending patents on product candidates in all countries throughout the world would be prohibitively expensive, and our intellectual property rights in some countries outside the U.S. can have a different scope and strength than do those in the U.S.
Filing, prosecuting, maintaining and defending patents on product candidates in all countries throughout the world would be prohibitively expensive, and our intellectual property rights in some countries outside the U.S. can have a different scope and strength than do those in the U.S.
As discussed above, a number of third parties have filed oppositions challenging the validity, and seeking the revocation, of several CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing patents granted to UC/Vienna/Charpentier by the European Patent Office (“EPO”).
As discussed above, a number of third parties have filed oppositions challenging the validity, and seeking the revocation, of several CRISPR genome editing patents granted to UC/Vienna/Charpentier by the European Patent 45 Office (“EPO”).