Helocyte
Helocyte is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical subsidiary of Fortress Biotech developing recombinant MVA-based CMV immunotherapies (Triplex, PepVax, Pentamer) and a bispecific CMV/HIV CAR T cell therapy for transplant recipients, HIV-positive adults, and congenital CMV.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2015
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Helocyte does
Helocyte is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel immunotherapies for the prevention and treatment of cytomegalovirus (CMV) and related infections in immunocompromised patients. Founded in 2015 as a majority-owned subsidiary of Fortress Biotech, Inc. (NASDAQ: FBIO), Helocyte is headquartered in New York with 1-10 employees and operates as a virtual R&D organization. Its pipeline addresses CMV reactivation in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) recipients, solid organ transplant recipients, HIV/CMV co-infected adults, and congenital CMV, an indication with no approved vaccine.
The company's core technology is a recombinant Modified Vaccinia Ankara (MVA) viral vector vaccine platform exclusively licensed from City of Hope. The lead asset, Triplex, is a universal (non-HLA-restricted) vaccine engineered to induce durable virus-specific T cell responses against three CMV immuno-dominant proteins (pp65, IE1, IE2), and has been administered to over 150 subjects across Phase 1 and Phase 2 studies. Additional pipeline assets include PepVax (T-cell immunotherapeutic for transplant CMV control), Pentamer/ConVax (a neutralizing-antibody vaccine for congenital CMV), and an option-licensed bispecific CMV/HIV CAR T cell therapy. The technology is anchored by Don J. Diamond, Ph.D., the City of Hope scientist who originated Triplex and chairs Helocyte's Scientific Advisory Board.
Helocyte's business model is pre-commercial: it has no marketed products and generates no product revenue, instead funding clinical development through non-dilutive NIH grants (NCI, NIAID, CIRM) channeled primarily to City of Hope and University of Washington, and through Fortress Biotech subsidiary financing. Distribution to patients occurs via a network of up to 20 US transplant centers running Phase 2 trials. Future revenue, when it materializes, would derive from licensing, royalty, or partnership economics with larger pharmaceutical companies, as stated in the company's own revenue model. The company is therefore best understood as a clinical-development platform whose value inflection points are Phase 2/3 readouts and partnership transactions rather than near-term product sales.
Helocyte firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Helocyte
- Legal name
- Helocyte, Inc.
- Website
- https://helocyte.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2015
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Helocyte is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical subsidiary of Fortress Biotech developing recombinant MVA-based CMV immunotherapies (Triplex, PepVax, Pentamer) and a bispecific CMV/HIV CAR T cell therapy for transplant recipients, HIV-positive adults, and congenital CMV.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Helocyte industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Clinical-stage Biopharmaceuticals (CMV Immunotherapy)
- NAICS
- Biological Product (except Diagnostic) Manufacturing (325414)
- SIC
- Biological Products, (No Disgnostic Substances) (2836)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Vaccine Technology Platforms (mRNA, viral vector, protein subunit, inactivated/live-attenuated, VLP, DNA) (HLAAAEAD)
Keywords
Where Helocyte is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Helocyte business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Vaccine Development and Commercialization: As a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, Helocyte is developing CMV vaccines (Triplex, PepVax, ConVax) for prevention and treatment of cytomegalovirus in transplant recipients and immunocompromised patients. The company has not yet commercialized any products and does not have product revenue.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
Helocyte product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Helocyte is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a pipeline of novel T-cell immunotherapies and vaccines for the prevention and treatment of cytomegalovirus (CMV) in immunocompromised patients, including allogeneic stem cell transplant recipients, solid organ transplant recipients, and HIV/CMV co-infected adults. The company uses a proprietary recombinant Modified Vaccinia Ankara (MVA) viral vector platform licensed from City of Hope to engineer vaccines such as Triplex, PepVax, and ConVax/Pentamer. Helocyte has no approved products and no product revenue; operations are funded by NIH grants and its parent company Fortress Biotech.
Product overview
Helocyte is a clinical-stage company developing a portfolio of novel immunotherapies for the prevention and treatment of cancer and infectious diseases, with a primary focus on cytomegalovirus (CMV). The company's core products include Triplex, a recombinant MVA viral vector vaccine targeting CMV proteins for transplant recipients; PepVax, another T-cell immunotherapy for CMV control; and ConVax/Pentamer, a vaccine for congenital CMV prevention. Additionally, Helocyte holds an option for a bispecific CMV/HIV CAR T cell therapy to be used in combination with Triplex for HIV treatment. The company operates as a majority-owned subsidiary of Fortress Biotech, with technology licensed from City of Hope.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Triplex A universal (non-HLA-restricted) recombinant Modified Vaccinia Ankara (MVA) viral vector vaccine engineered to induce a robust and durable virus-specific T cell response to three immuno-dominant CMV proteins (pp65, IE1, IE2) for controlling CMV complications in transplant recipients and HIV/CMV co-infected adults.
- PepVax A T-cell immunotherapeutic vaccine for controlling CMV in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant and solid organ transplant recipients.
- ConVax (Pentamer) A universal immunotherapeutic vaccine designed to induce a neutralizing antibody response to prevent the transmission of CMV from mother to fetus (congenital CMV prevention).
- CMV/HIV CAR T Cell Therapy A novel bispecific Chimeric Antigen Receptor T cell therapy targeting both CMV and HIV being developed for the treatment of adults living with HIV-1.
Quantifiable outcome
- 18% CMV reactivation rate in recipients of Triplex-vaccinated donors vs 37% in similar cohorts prophylactically treated with letermovir (antiviral)
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Helocyte
Customer profileSegments4 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Helocyte technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature2 records
Helocyte partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered major and core.
- Brigham & Women's Hospital and Dana-Farber Cancer InstitutemajorMajor transplant research centers in Boston participating as clinical trial sites in the Phase 2 study of Triplex vaccination in stem cell donors to reduce CMV events in HSCT recipients.
- University of WashingtoncoreUniversity of Washington's Solid-Organ Transplant Infectious Disease Program is leading the COLT (CMV vaccine in Orthotopic Liver Transplant) Phase 2 clinical trial. Dr. Ajit Limaye serves as Principal Investigator. The NIAID grant ($9.0M to date, estimated additional $12M over four years) is awarded to University of Washington Seattle to support this multi-center trial across up to 20 transplant centers.
- University of California, San DiegomajorUC San Diego is participating in the Phase 1 clinical trial of the bispecific CMV/HIV CAR T cell therapy funded by CIRM. The trial is led by Dr. Sara Gianella and Dr. Davey Smith. UCSD is also a site for the Phase 2 trial of Triplex in HIV/CMV co-infected adults.
- City of Hope National Medical CentercoreCity of Hope, a world-renowned cancer research and treatment center, developed the Triplex CMV vaccine technology and exclusively licensed it to Helocyte in 2015. Dr. Don J. Diamond, Chair of the Department of Experimental Therapeutics at City of Hope, led the development of Triplex and serves as Co-Founder and Chairman of Helocyte's Scientific Advisory Board. The partnership includes licenses to Triplex, PepVax, and option rights to Pentamer and bispecific CMV/HIV CAR T cell therapy. Helocyte could pay City of Hope in excess of $100MM in upfront, milestone and other payments if all programs are successfully developed and commercialized.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Helocyte competitors and assessment
Company assessmentMarket position
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Helocyte social profiles
Digital presenceHelocyte financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Helocyte leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Helocyte funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds3 records
Investors2 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Helocyte M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Helocyte
What does Helocyte do?
Helocyte is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a pipeline of novel T-cell immunotherapies and vaccines for the prevention and treatment of cytomegalovirus (CMV) in immunocompromised patients, including allogeneic stem cell transplant recipients, solid organ transplant recipients, and HIV/CMV co-infected adults. The company uses a proprietary recombinant Modified Vaccinia Ankara (MVA) viral vector platform licensed from City of Hope to engineer vaccines such as Triplex, PepVax, and ConVax/Pentamer. Helocyte has no approved products and no product revenue; operations are funded by NIH grants and its parent company Fortress Biotech.
Is Helocyte a public or private company?
Helocyte is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Helocyte founded?
Helocyte was founded in 2015. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Helocyte based?
Helocyte is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does Helocyte make money?
One revenue line is on record: vaccine Development and Commercialization.
Does Helocyte have an API?
No public API is recorded for Helocyte.
What industry is Helocyte in?
Helocyte's product category is Clinical-stage Biopharmaceuticals (CMV Immunotherapy). Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAAAEAD, Vaccine Technology Platforms (mRNA, viral vector, protein subunit, inactivated/live-attenuated, VLP, DNA). Its NAICS code is 325414 and its SIC code is 2836.