SANTA ANA, Calif., February 24, 2023 — NKGen Biotech, a biotechnology company harnessing the power of the body’s immune system through the development of natural killer cell therapies, announces the appointment of Benson Fong as Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Fong is a highly accomplished CFO who brings an extensive background of financial experience to NKGen Biotech in areas of corporate finance, collaborations, and licensing.  Mr. Fong’s demonstrated expertise will be instrumental in directing the Company’s financial strategies and identifying and guiding financing efforts.

Mr. Fong brings more than three decades of senior financial leadership and corporate development experience. Mr. Fong is the Managing Director of Nehalem Advisory, LLC guiding several life science startups with their financial strategy and implementation. He also collaborates with Potrero Hill Advisors. Before joining Nehalem Advisory, he was consulting CFO and Account Director at Engine Room and CFO at Early Growth Financial Services. Previously, he served as President and CEO of Lapis Therapeutics as well as Senior VP Corporate Development at CoTherix where he was responsible for in-licensing Ventavis® (iloprost) which was later FDA approved and successfully launched.

Prior experience included serving as the first VP for venture debt lending at Imperial Bank/Comerica, CFO at Cibus Pharmaceutical, Controller at Matrix Pharmaceuticals, and Division Controller in Express Banking at Wells Fargo Bank. Mr. Fong started his career as a senior tax accountant and CPA at Arthur Young & Co. Mr. Fong has a successful track record in negotiation including licensing agreements, R&D sponsored research, manufacturing and lease agreements. His leadership responsibilities have included filing S-1s, equity and debt financing, and product licensing.  Mr. Fong received a B.S. in Biology from the University of Oregon.

About NKGen Biotech

NKGen Biotech, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative autologous, allogeneic, and CAR-NK Natural Killer (NK) cell therapeutics. Leveraging our proprietary cell expansion and activation technology and cutting-edge cell manufacturing expertise, we have the ability to infinitely expand natural killer cells while significantly enhancing cytotoxicity across our peripheral blood-derived products. NKGen Biotech’s lead product candidate, SNK01, is currently in clinical trials for the treatment of advanced refractory solid tumors both as a monotherapy and in combination with other agents, including checkpoint inhibitors and cell engagers. SNK02, our allogeneic NK cell therapy, has received USFDA IND clearance for initiating clinical trials in solid tumors. NKGen Biotech is committed to the vision of executing on our clinical strategies with the goal of commercializing our NK cell therapies to help save and sustain patients’ lives worldwide. The company and its commercially licensed cGMP facility are headquartered in Santa Ana, California, USA. For more information, please visit www.nkgenbiotech.com.

Contacts:

Denise Chua, MBA, CLS, MT (ASCP)
Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
949-396-6830
dchua@nkgenbiotech.com

SANTA ANA, Calif., November 4, 2022 — NKGen Biotech, Inc., a biotechnology company harnessing the power of the body’s immune system through the development of natural killer (NK) cell therapies, today announced a collaboration with the Parkinson’s Foundation that will focus on ways to help accelerate NKGen’s clinical program using its novel autologous NK cell therapy (SNK01) for the treatment of advanced Parkinson’s disease (PD) through its network of clinical partners and donors.

 

“Recent research has shown that NK cells can help remove alpha-synuclein proteins, reduce autoreactive T cell generated inflammation, and remove damaged neurons. We believe our non-genetically modified, enhanced, and expanded NK cells (SNK01) can provide an entirely new therapeutic approach to Parkinson’s disease which currently lacks effective disease modifying modalities,” said Paul Y. Song, MD, Vice Chairman of NKGen Biotech. “We are very impressed with the Parkinson’s Foundation’s holistic approach towards improving patient care and supporting cutting-edge research. We are confident that they will be a great partner for us as we bring our treatment for Parkinson’s disease to the clinic in 2023.”

 

“The Parkinson’s Foundation has a strong commitment to identify and accelerate promising scientific breakthroughs in the treatment of PD,” said John L. Lehr, President and CEO of the Parkinson’s Foundation. “We are looking to support novel innovative approaches in PD, and we are attracted to NKGen’s unwavering commitment to bring their NK cell therapy to the clinic very quickly.”

 

About NKGen Biotech

NKGen Biotech, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative autologous, allogeneic, and CAR-NK Natural Killer (NK) cell therapeutics. Leveraging our proprietary cell expansion and activation technology and innovative cell manufacturing expertise, we have the ability to infinitely expand natural killer cells while significantly enhancing cytotoxicity across our peripheral blood-derived products. NKGen Biotech’s lead product candidate, SNK01, is currently in clinical trials for the treatment of advanced refractory solid tumors both as a monotherapy and in combination with other agents, including checkpoint inhibitors and cell engagers. NKGen Biotech is committed to the vision of executing on our clinical strategies with the goal of commercializing our NK cell therapies to help save and sustain patients’ lives worldwide. The company and its commercially licensed cGMP facility are headquartered in Santa Ana, California, USA. For more information, please visit www.nkgenbiotech.com.

About the Parkinson’s Foundation
The Parkinson’s Foundation makes life better for people with Parkinson’s disease by improving care and advancing research toward a cure. In everything we do, we build on the energy, experience, and passion of our global Parkinson’s community. Since 1957, the Parkinson’s Foundation has invested more than $400 million in Parkinson’s research and clinical care. Connect with us on Parkinson.org, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or call (800)4PD-INFO (473-4636).

Contact:
Denise Chua, MBA, CLS, MT (ASCP)
Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
949-396-6830
dchua@nkgenbiotech.com

SANTA ANA, Calif., September 21, 2022 — NKGen Biotech, a biotechnology company harnessing the power of the body’s immune system through the development of natural killer cell therapies,  today announced a publication in the peer-reviewed Journal of Cancer Research and Cellular Therapeutics entitled “Durable responses using SNK01 autologous enhanced natural killer cells and pembrolizumab for chemotherapy-resistant advanced sarcoma: Case reports, review of literature, and future perspectives.”

The paper by Gordon et al. discloses enduring response data in chemotherapy resistant metastatic sarcoma patients who were treated with SNK01, autologous enhanced natural killer cell therapy, and pembrolizumab, an immune checkpoint inhibitor, along with a review of literature and future perspectives on the use of SNK01 in advanced sarcoma.

“We are pleased to be able to share the promising results of our SNK01 natural killer cell therapy in combination with pembrolizumab, in these two important case studies since metastatic sarcoma is typically associated with poor outcomes when treated with standard regimens,” commented Paul Song, M.D., Vice Chairman of NKGen Biotech. “It is encouraging to see that Patient #1, despite being PD-L1 negative and having failed prior pembrolizumab, eventually showed a gradual tumor reduction with a 47% partial response, after which the patient underwent two surgical resections and achieved a sustained remission. Of note is that the patient has safely been on this regimen for almost 35 months without any toxicity at all and remains no evidence of disease.”

“Patient #2 has low PD-L1 expression and had failed prior nivolumab. The patient showed a gradual reduction in tumor size, achieving a 38% partial response,” added Dr. Song, “This response data is very promising especially since both patients had failed prior immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy. It appears that SNK01 might be able to change the tumor microenvironment and suggests that SNK01 plus pembrolizumab has the potential to be a viable therapeutic option for patients with metastatic sarcoma, and especially in PD-L1 negative and low expressing tumors. Further studies are warranted, and we look forward to confirming these findings in a Phase II clinical trial.”

The encouraging data from these two case reports suggests SNK01 combined with pembrolizumab may be a viable salvage therapy regimen for chemotherapy-resistant advanced sarcoma with manageable toxicity. The data also supports existing evidence that natural killer cells mediate a favorable response to immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy while reducing immune-related adverse events.

 

About NKGen Biotech

NKGen Biotech, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative autologous, allogeneic, and CAR-NK Natural Killer (NK) cell therapeutics. Leveraging our proprietary cell expansion and activation technology and cutting-edge cell manufacturing expertise, we have the ability to infinitely expand natural killer cells while significantly enhancing cytotoxicity across our peripheral blood-derived products. NKGen Biotech’s lead product candidate, SNK01, is currently in clinical trials for the treatment of advanced refractory solid tumors both as a monotherapy and in combination with other agents, including checkpoint inhibitors and cell engagers. NKGen Biotech is committed to the vision of executing on our clinical strategies with the goal of commercializing our NK cell therapies to help save and sustain patients’ lives worldwide. The company and its commercially licensed cGMP facility are headquartered in Santa Ana, California, USA. For more information, please visit www.nkgenbiotech.com.

 

Contact:
Denise Chua, MBA, CLS, MT (ASCP)
Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
949-396-6830
dchua@nkgenbiotech.com

SANTA ANA, Calif., September 6, 2022 – NKGen Biotech, a biotechnology company harnessing the power of the body’s immune system through the development of Natural Killer (NK) cell therapies, today announced that compassionate use cases of SNK01 + an immune checkpoint inhibitor in patients with advanced sarcoma have been accepted for poster presentation at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Annual Congress being held in Paris, France, September 9 – 13, 2022.

Poster Presentation

Title: USFDA Authorized Compassionate Use of SNK01 (Autologous Non-Genetically Modified Natural Killer Cells with Enhanced Cytotoxicity) and Checkpoint Inhibitors in Advanced Heavily Pre-treated Sarcoma: A Promising Regimen.
Poster #: P757
Date and Time: September 10, 2022, 10:38 am CEST
Poster Session:  13
Location:  Paris Expo Porte de Versailles; Poster Area, Hall 4

Promising data aggregated from eight USFDA approved compassionate use IND cases from metastatic sarcoma patients who received SNK01 combined with a checkpoint inhibitor will be disclosed during the poster presentation. The combination of SNK01 and a checkpoint inhibitor appears to have clinical activity against several types of heavily pre-treated advanced sarcomas, independent of PD-L1 status. The data also suggests that repeated dosing with the combination appears to be safe and well-tolerated.

More information on the ESMO Congress 2022 can be found at the following link: https://www.esmo.org/meetings/esmo-congress-2022

About NKGen Biotech

NKGen Biotech, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative autologous, allogeneic, and CAR-NK Natural Killer (NK) cell therapeutics. Leveraging our proprietary cell expansion and activation technology and cutting-edge cell manufacturing expertise, we have the ability to infinitely expand natural killer cells while significantly enhancing cytotoxicity across our peripheral blood-derived products. NKGen Biotech’s lead product candidate, SNK01, is currently in clinical trials for the treatment of advanced refractory solid tumors both as a monotherapy and in combination with other agents, including checkpoint inhibitors and cell engagers. NKGen Biotech is committed to the vision of executing on our clinical strategies with the goal of commercializing our NK cell therapies to help save and sustain patients’ lives worldwide. The company and its commercially licensed cGMP facility are headquartered in Santa Ana, California, USA. For more information, please visit www.nkgenbiotech.com.

Contact:
Denise Chua, MBA, CLS, MT (ASCP)
Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
949-396-6830
dchua@nkgenbiotech.com

SANTA ANA, Calif., June 21, 2022 — NKGen Biotech, a biotechnology company harnessing the power of the body’s immune system through the development of Natural Killer (NK) cell therapies, today announced that senior management will be hosting one-on-one meetings at the Truist Securities Cell Therapy Symposium – symposia-cel being held in person in New York City on Tuesday, June 28, 2022. Details on the symposium can be found below.

Truist Securities Cell Therapy Symposium – symposia-cel (in person)
Format: Symposium and 1 x 1 meetings
Date: Tuesday, June 28, 2022
Meeting Times: 12:30 pm – 5:00 pm EDT
Location: New York, NY
Registration: Event website

If you are interested in arranging a 1 x1 meeting with NKGen Biotech, please contact your Truist representative.

About NKGen Biotech
NKGen Biotech, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative autologous, allogeneic, and CAR-NK Natural Killer (NK) cell therapeutics. Leveraging our proprietary cell expansion and activation technology and cutting-edge cell manufacturing expertise, we have the ability to infinitely expand natural killer cells while significantly enhancing cytotoxicity across our peripheral blood-derived products. NKGen Biotech’s lead product candidate, SNK01, is currently in clinical trials for the treatment of advanced refractory solid tumors both as a monotherapy and in combination with other agents, including checkpoint inhibitors and cell engagers. NKGen Biotech is committed to the vision of executing on our clinical strategies with the goal of commercializing our NK cell therapies to help save and sustain patients’ lives worldwide. The company and its commercially licensed cGMP facility are headquartered in Santa Ana, California, USA. For more information, please visit www.nkgenbiotech.com.

Contact:
Denise Chua, MBA, CLS, MT (ASCP)
Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
949-396-6830
dchua@nkgenbiotech.com