Notch Therapeutics is shuttering one of its three cell therapy centers—which also serves as its headquarters—and is working to find positions for its displaced staff at other companies in the industry.
The Canada-based cell therapy biotech is closing its Vancouver lab, according to a company LinkedIn post. The shutdown will impact about 25 people, with some of those team members being offered relocation spots at the company's Toronto or Seattle centers, a company spokesperson told Fierce Biotech in an emailed statement.
Before the shuttering was announced, the biotech employed more than 90 staffers, or “Notchos,” according to the company website.
The biotech plans to “build on core capabilities” at its two other locations as it works to develop its pipeline. The closure occurred in part so the company could “remain operationally efficient during these externally challenging and turbulent times,” according to the LinkedIn post.
Notch also urged organizations with open roles to reach out so it can “help make connections.”
In a separate LinkedIn post, Notch’s CEO David Main echoed that sentiment, writing that it's "never enjoyable to have to reduce the size of your organization. So I'm reaching out to my network, if you need good people please contact me so I can connect you. #Notchosforever.”
Currently, the company touts an wholly preclinical pipeline, with a main focus on its Allogene-partnered induced-pluripotent-stem-cell-derived T cells. The Canadian biotech inked a deal with the off-the-shelf CAR-T company back in 2019, with Allogene paying $10 million upfront to work with Notch on potential blood cancer treatments. The partnership remains intact, according to the Notch spokesperson.
Allogene also joined Notch’s series A fundraise in 2021, a financing round that totaled $85 million.