The Cortex Innovation Community and Washington University announced today that Wugen, a pharmaceutical research and development company specializing in cancer treatment, will expand in St. Louis. The company’s expansion includes the creation of up to 40 new jobs. Wugen’s expansion will allow the company to advance the development of next-generation cancer therapies and grow its workforce.
“We’re proud to see cutting-edge companies like Wugen starting up and succeeding right here in our state,” said Governor Mike Parson. “The Cortex Innovation Community in St. Louis demonstrates the strength of the region’s growing high-tech sector and continues to support innovation while helping create high-paying jobs for Missourians. Wugen is another example of a Missouri-made company improving the lives of people right here at home and around the globe, and we’re eager to see its continued growth.”
Wugen, which has raised more than $200 million dollars to advance its pipeline of off-the-shelf cell therapies, is focused on providing novel immunotherapies for cancer patients. The company is part of St. Louis’ 200-acre Cortex Innovation Community, a vibrant immunobiology and microbiology research community, and works closely with Barnes Jewish Hospital, Washington University and St. Louis University. The new jobs added through Wugen’s expansion will pay an average annual salary that is well above the average wage in the St. Louis area.
“We are excited to stay within the Cortex Innovation Community,” said Dan Kemp, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Wugen. “We are proud to be part of St. Louis’ vibrant biotech community and are pleased to continue to grow locally, where we will have the opportunity to maintain proximity to our world-class scientific co-founders at Washington University and build on our existing partnerships with the area’s premier scientific institutions. Our new space will give us more room to grow, accelerating our mission of delivering best-in-class, off-the-shelf cell therapies to cancer patients.”
“We are proud to support the growth and expansion of Wugen in St. Louis. Cortex strives to curate a startup from inception to maturity, and with our partners, provide the support necessary for companies like Wugen to thrive,” said Sam Fiorello, President and CEO of Cortex. “By providing access to real estate, strong research relationships, and a curated community of startups and mature companies in a variety of industry sectors such as bioscience, cybersecurity, and geospatial, Cortex is able to help companies attract world-class talent and connect to capital opportunities. We look forward to Wugen’s continued success.”
“Wugen’s expansion is an exciting opportunity for the Cortex Innovation Community and the entire St. Louis region’s growing biotechnology sector,” Department of Economic Development Acting Director Maggie Kost said. “Missouri’s pro-growth business climate and the work of valued partners continue to benefit our state’s economy. We’re pleased to see Wugen succeeding and excited to see the strides it will make in this groundbreaking field.”
For its expansion, Wugen used the Missouri Works program, a tool that helps companies expand and retain workers by providing access to capital through withholdings or tax credits for job creation.
Learn more about Missouri Works.
About Wugen
Wugen, Inc., is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing the next generation of off-the-shelf memory natural killer (NK) and CAR-T cell therapies for cancer. Wugen is leveraging its proprietary MonetaTM platform and deep genomic engineering expertise to pioneer a new class of memory NK cell therapies to treat hematological and solid tumor malignancies.
Learn more about Wugen at wugen.com.
About the Cortex Innovation Community
Founded in 2002 through a collaboration of Washington University in St. Louis, BJC Healthcare, the University of Missouri-St. Louis, Saint Louis University, and the Missouri Botanical Garden, the Cortex Innovation Community is a nationally and internationally recognized hub of innovation and technology commercialization. It serves as an anchor in St. Louis’ growing ecosystem of innovative startups and established companies. Cited by the Brookings Institution as a Best Practice among global urban innovation districts, Cortex is home to 425 technology-related businesses, and it provides a deep pool of entrepreneurial support programs available to the entire St. Louis community.