Zelluna announces collaboration with Etcembly for AI-enabled TCR engineering

Oslo, Norway, 09 March 2026 – Zelluna (OSE: ZLNA), a company pioneering allogeneic "off-the-shelf" T Cell Receptor-based Natural Killer (TCR-NK) cell therapies for the treatment of solid cancers, today announced a collaboration with Etcembly Ltd, a biotechnology company applying advanced machine learning to T cell receptor (TCR) discovery and engineering.

Highlights:

• AI-enabled collaboration to engineer KKLC1-targeting TCRs for Zelluna's TCR-NK platform
• Builds on successful engineering of MAGE-A4 TCR underpinning ZI-MA4-1, approved for clinical testing in February 2026
• Expands pipeline with validated solid tumour antigen expressed across multiple difficult-to-treat cancers
• AI-guided in silico engineering to enhance specificity, potency and development efficiency

The collaboration will focus on the engineering of high-affinity, tumour-specific TCRs targeting KKLC1, a validated cancer antigen found in multiple difficult-to-treat solid tumours. The engineered receptors will be fully owned by Zelluna and developed for use within Zelluna's proprietary TCR-NK platform. In-vitro data demonstrating safety, specificity and functional activity is now expected in Q4 2026.

This collaboration builds on Zelluna's successful engineering of a T cell receptor (TCR) designed to recognise the cancer antigen MAGE-A4. This receptor is the targeting module of the company's lead product candidate ZI-MA4-1, which in February 2026 received approval from the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (UK MHRA) to initiate clinical testing. By engineering receptors targeting KKLC1, Zelluna is expanding its product portfolio beyond MAGE-A4 and can thereby address a broader spectrum of solid cancers and patients.

"Our lead product candidate ZI-MA4-1 is built on an affinity enhanced receptor that recognises cancer cells with the MAGE-A4 protein. We developed this receptor in our first highly successful collaboration with Etcembly," said Luise Weigand, Chief Scientific Officer of Zelluna. "We are now delighted to continue our collaboration on our next programme targeting KKLC1. By combining artificial intelligence with our cell therapy platform, we aim to develop highly precise and potent treatments for solid cancers."

"Our first collaboration with Zelluna demonstrated what AI-guided TCR engineering can achieve: a clinically approved receptor in a fraction of conventional timelines. We are excited to apply EMLy™ again to expand Zelluna's pipeline and address cancers that desperately need new treatment options" commented Michelle Teng, Founder and CEO of Etcembly.

About Etcembly's EMLy™ Platform:

Etcembly's proprietary platform, EMLy™, uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to analyse large amounts of data on immune receptors. This enables the design and engineering of optimised T cell receptors (TCRs) through computational modelling before they are tested in the laboratory. Rather than only testing many candidates in the laboratory, the platform can predict how the receptors will function and thereby improve precision, increase potency and reduce the risk of unintended effects. This AI-driven approach increases both precision and efficiency in the development of tumour-specific receptors suitable for cancer treatment.

About Zelluna's TCR-NK Platform:

Zelluna's TCR-NK platform combines the precise tumour recognition capabilities of T cell receptors with the innate, multi-mechanism cytotoxicity of Natural Killer (NK) cells in an allogeneic, off-the-shelf format designed for scalability and patient access. By expanding its target portfolio to include KKLC1, Zelluna continues to build a diversified pipeline aimed at addressing a broad range of cancers and broad reach of cancer patients.

Definitions:

TCR (T Cell Receptor): A protein on the surface of T cells that recognises specific antigens on cancer cells. TCRs provide precise targeting of cancer cells.

NK cells (Natural Killer cells): Immune cells with innate ability to kill cancer cells through multiple mechanisms, without the need for prior activation.

TCR-NK: Zelluna's proprietary technology that combines the precise targeting of TCRs with the potent killing ability of NK cells.

KKLC1: A cancer antigen (protein) expressed in multiple difficult-to-treat solid cancers, representing a validated target for cancer treatment.

MAGE-A4: A cancer antigen found in many solid cancers, including lung, ovarian, head and neck cancers and sarcomas. The target for Zelluna's lead product candidate ZI-MA4-1.

In silico: Performed using computational modelling and simulation, as opposed to laboratory experiments.

In vitro: Experiments performed in the laboratory, outside a living organism.

About Zelluna ASA

Zelluna ASA (OSE: ZLNA) is a pioneering allogeneic 'off-the-shelf' T Cell Receptor-based Natural Killer (TCR-NK) cells for the treatment of solid cancers. The company's platform combines the innate killing power of NK cells with precise solid tumour targeting of TCRs, designed to address the limitations of current cell therapies in solid tumours. The company's lead candidate, ZI-MA4-1, is the world's first MAGE-A4 targeting TCR-NK therapy. Zelluna received approval for its Clinical Trial Application from the UK MHRA in February 2026, with initial clinical data expected to emerge from mid-2026. Zelluna is headquartered at the Oslo Cancer Cluster Innovation Park in Oslo, Norway and is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange under the ticker ZLNA.

About Etcembly

Etcembly is pioneering a new frontier in immune repertoire analysis, where cutting-edge computational technologies converge with the transformative power of large language models (LLMs) to accelerate the discovery and engineering of safe and efficacious immunotherapies. Through its proprietary AI platform, EMLy™, the company integrates powerful machine learning techniques with deep immunological expertise to decode, predict, and design high-performance biologics at unprecedented speed. Etcembly’s mission is to redefine the landscape of AI-guided drug research by offering innovative tools and solutions, ultimately paving the way for next-generation immunotherapies.

For further information, please contact:

Namir Hassan, CEO, Zelluna ASA

Email: 

Phone: