Just a few months after dosing the first patient in a phase 2 trial for newly diagnosed glioblastoma, IN8bio is hitting the brakes—and laying off half of its workforce.
The drug being put on the back burner is INB-400, an autologous gamma-delta T-cell therapy. The biotech has suspended patient enrollment in the phase 2 study “while it explores partnership opportunities for the program.”
The layoffs will bring down the biotech’s workforce from 37 to 19 full-time employees, affecting teams at both the company’s New York City and Birmingham, Alabama, sites, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.
Along with the staffing cuts, the executive team will see their pay cut by 11% effective Sept. 1.
IN8bio, formerly known as Incysus Therapeutics, is shifting focus to INB-100, an allogeneic cell therapy being tested in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) receiving bone marrow transplants, according to a Sept. 4 release. The company received guidance from the FDA earlier this summer on how to advance INB-100 and will be adding a control cohort to its ongoing phase 1 trial. Funds opened up from the strategic reorganization will be used to continue enrolling patients in an expanded trial cohort, with a goal of enrolling about 25 patients.
As of Aug. 30, none of the patients who received INB-100 have seen their disease relapse, the company said. The phase 1 trial for another cell therapy in newly diagnosed glioblastomas, INB-200, will also continue.
“The data across both of our INB-100 and INB-200 clinical programs remain positive and robust. We are committed to building upon the data for INB-100 in AML, and we are making the difficult decision to advance fewer pipeline programs, reduce our spend and focus on key milestones that can help to generate near-term interest and value creation,” IN8bio CEO and co-founder William Ho said in the release.
The Birmingham-based biotech went public in 2022 with a downsized IPO that raised just over $10 million, below the $69 million the company had originally hoped for.
IN8bio ended June with $10.2 million in the bank, less than half of the $21.3 million the company entered 2024 with.