At year-end, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) will pull out of its partnership with immatics NV (Tuebingen, Germany), which focuses on the development of T-cell receptor therapeutics for solid tumors. Immatics announced this in its financial results for the third quarter, which were published in mid-November.

Immatics was able to report some positive developments at the end of the third quarter. There were advances made in the pipeline, including the efficacy of the company's proprietary cell therapy technology, which is now being demonstrated in a clinical trial in patients for the first time. Financially, immatics is also in a good position. A recently completed capital increase injected €113m into the company's coffers. At the end of the 3rd quarter, immatics thus had €310m in cash and cash equivalents.

The termination of the partnership with GSK was confirmed by immatics, which said the decision was "unrelated to the programs and progress made to date in the collaboration." The partnership formally ends on Dec. 26. Started in 2020, it included an upfront payment of about $50m for the development of autologous T-cell therapies against solid tumors. The agreement centered on Immatics' XCEPTOR TCR discovery platform and XPRESIDENT technology, which the companies used to identify proprietary compounds and targets.

When GSK terminated its collaboration with Adaptimmune, it had a major impact on that company. About a quarter of the workforce had to leave to cut costs. It has not yet been known what the direct consequences will be in Tübingen as a result of the termination of the partnership.