Sartorius Stedim Biotech partners with Nanotein Technologies to advance immune cell manufacturing
Sartorius Stedim Biotech has secured exclusive global distribution rights for NanoSpark® immune cell activation reagents, investing up to US$3 million in Nanotein Technologies whilst establishing a joint development programme targeting enhanced T cell and NK cell manufacturing workflows for cellular therapy applications.
Sartorius Stedim Biotech has announced a strategic partnership with Berkeley-based biotechnology startup Nanotein Technologies, designed to accelerate manufacturing capabilities within the expanding cell and gene therapy sector. The collaboration encompasses both commercial distribution and equity investment, with Sartorius committing up to US$3 million for a minority shareholding in Nanotein whilst securing exclusive worldwide distribution rights for the company’s NanoSpark® activation platform.
Enhanced cellular activation technology
The partnership centres on two lead NanoSpark products: STEM-T Soluble T Cell Activator and GROW-NK Soluble Activator. These reagents address critical manufacturing challenges in cellular therapy production, specifically targeting the activation and expansion phases required to generate therapeutic quantities of immune cells. Traditional manufacturing approaches often rely on feeder cells or face inconsistency in cellular yields, limitations that the NanoSpark platform aims to overcome through its soluble protein scaffold design.
“Nanotein’s soluble activators are designed to improve cell therapy expansion by enhancing the quality and quantity of T cells and providing a feeder-free soluble activator for NK cell activation and expansion, addressing critical challenges in the manufacturing process,” said Curtis Hodge, Co-Founder and CEO of Nanotein Technologies.
Commercial and development strategy
The NanoSpark technology employs a fully soluble protein scaffold incorporating functional antibodies through high-affinity non-covalent interactions. This configuration enables optimal receptor clustering biology, facilitating immune cell expansion whilst maintaining multipotent cellular characteristics during ex vivo activation processes.
“This partnership will provide our customers with access to some of the most promising new tools for simplifying workflows and improving immune cell manufacturing,” said René Fáber, CEO of Sartorius Stedim Biotech. “Together with Nanotein, we’re enabling cell therapy manufacturers to innovate with greater speed and confidence – from early process development to the clinic.”
Market positioning and timeline
Nanotein currently offers research-grade STEM-T and GROW-NK products, with cGMP-grade STEM-T scheduled for late-2025 release and GROW-NK following in 2026. The partnership positions both companies to address manufacturing bottlenecks in CAR-T and NK-based cancer therapies, whilst establishing a foundation for additional product development targeting the rapidly expanding cellular therapy market.
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