Entos Pharmaceuticals Announces Plans To Build $198M Facility In Alberta Canada

Funding from the Governments of Canada and Alberta will contribute to the company's new R&D center and GMP manufacturing facility in Edmonton.

Entos® Pharmaceuticals (Entos), a clinical-stage genetic medicines company committed to using its Fusogenix™ PLV™ technology to develop cures, has announced a $62 million investment from the Government of Canada. This funding leverages a previously announced $15.5 million awarded to Entos from the Government of Alberta.

The $77.5 million total investment will support a $198.5 million project to create a state-of-the-art R&D center and GMP biomanufacturing facility in Edmonton, Alberta. The project builds on a partnership Entos has with global healthcare leader Eli Lilly & Company to research, develop, and commercialize nucleic acid products targeting the central and peripheral nervous system, as well as other partnerships with companies such as Oisin Biotechnologies, OncoSenX, and Aegis Life, and to advance its therapeutic pipeline for cancer and rare genetic diseases like Congenital Lipodystrophy, Stargardt Disease and Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

As a hub for next-generation therapeutics, the facility aims to foster collaborations between Entos, Canadian academic institutions, and its industry partners. This effort will build expertise and knowledge to enhance Canada’s life sciences sector.

“We are thrilled to receive this investment, which will enable us to build a cutting-edge GMP biomanufacturing facility and innovative R&D centre in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada,” said John Lewis, CEO, Entos Pharmaceuticals. “It will help us develop, scale up, produce, and commercialize Fusogenix PLV therapeutics to address critical health needs and fill gaps in Canada’s domestic manufacturing capacity.”

“This extraordinary investment from the federal and provincial governments ensures Alberta — and the University of Alberta — continues to play a leading role in strengthening Canada’s biomanufacturing and pharmaceutical sector. This new research facility will advance research and innovation and improve health outcomes for people in Canada and worldwide,” said Bill Flanagan, President and Vice-Chancellor, University of Alberta.

“Our government is protecting the Canadians of tomorrow by making the necessary investments today. By supporting the construction of this state-of-the-art facility in Edmonton, we are strengthening our capacity to produce cutting-edge therapeutics and vaccines, which will better equip Canada in responding to future health emergencies. We are resolved to foster innovation and secure a resilient life sciences ecosystem that will keep Canadians safe for generations to come,” said François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry.

“Alberta’s life sciences sector is booming, and this new manufacturing facility and R&D centre from Entos will only add to the momentum. Alberta is home to many world-class researchers developing potentially ground-breaking new medicines and treatments that will literally save lives. This investment will support Alberta’s efforts to become the most innovative jurisdictions in Canada,” said Nate Glubish, Minister of Technology and Innovation for Alberta.

Entos is a University of Alberta spin-off company that emerged from the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry to take research discovery and innovation from the lab and scale up for developing and manufacturing advanced medicines.