Atara Halves Workforce Once more, Pauses 2 CAR T Packages

For the second time this yr and following a call to pause two CAR T applications, Atara Biotherapeutics has divulged a roughly 50% workforce discount, based on a March 3 SEC submitting. The Thousand Oaks, California–based mostly biotech disclosed in January it might let go the identical proportion of workers.

Atara may have round 40 individuals left as soon as each rounds of cuts—anticipated to be largely full by June—are performed, given it had 159 workers as of Sept. 30, as famous in a Nov. 12 SEC submitting. The biotech didn’t specify which places the most recent workforce discount will have an effect on. Along with its headquarters in Thousand Oaks, it additionally has an Aurora, Colorado, location.

In its newest SEC submitting, Atara disclosed it’s discontinuing growth actions and pausing its ATA3219 and ATA3431 applications. The transfer will embrace ending all medical research evaluating ATA3219, an allogeneic anti-CD19 chimeric antigen receptor CAR T cell remedy the corporate had been testing for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and systemic lupus erythematosus.

The selections comply with two FDA-related setbacks in January. On Jan. 16, the FDA rejected Ebvallo, which is accepted in Europe for sufferers with post-transplant lymphoproliferative illness who’re optimistic for the Epstein-Barr virus, citing unresolved manufacturing considerations. Lower than per week later, the FDA took the extra step of putting a medical maintain on Atara’s lively investigational new drug purposes because of the similar manufacturing considerations that led to Ebvallo’s rejection. That maintain affected not solely Ebvallo but in addition ATA3219.

The corporate’s remaining pipeline, based on its web site, consists of extra next-generation allogeneic CAR T approaches for hematological malignancies and stable tumor AlloCAR T applications.

Atara may see extra important adjustments in its future. In a Jan. 16 announcement, the corporate famous it was in lively discussions with a number of potential events relating to strategic alternate options that might embrace an acquisition, merger, reverse merger, sale of property or different strategic transactions.

In its Nov. 12 SEC submitting, Atara reported a internet lack of $72.7 million for the primary 9 months of 2024. As of Sept. 30, it had an accrued deficit of $2 billion and money, money equivalents and short-term investments totaling $67.2 million.

The corporate expects the most recent workforce discount will value about $3 million for severance and associated advantages however might incur different prices associated to the workforce discount, based on the March 3 submitting.