Nektar Therapeutics

Nektar Therapeutics is a biopharmaceutical company, focused on discovering and developing treatments for unmet medical needs. The company operates in the United States and internationally, and is headquartered in San Francisco, California. It was incorporated in 1990 and is publicly traded on the NASDAQ stock exchange.

Nektar Therapeutics’ current product portfolio includes Bempegaldesleukin, a CD122-preferential interleukin-2 (IL-2) pathway agonist. Bempegaldesleukin is currently in clinical trials for a range of cancer indications, including metastatic melanoma, renal cell carcinoma, muscle-invasive bladder cancer, squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck, and adjuvant melanoma. It is also in early-phase trials for the treatment of COVID-19, systemic lupus erythematosus, and ulcerative colitis.

The company also has several other drug candidates in its pipeline, including NKTR-358, an experimental cytokine Treg stimulant; NKTR-255, an IL-15 receptor agonist; and NKTR-262, a toll-like receptor agonist. These drug candidates are currently in clinical trials for a variety of indications, including non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, multiple myeloma, head and neck cancer, colorectal cancer, psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, and solid tumors.

Nektar Therapeutics has established many strategic partnerships with a number of pharmaceutical companies, including Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Ltd., AstraZeneca AB, UCB Pharma S.A., F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, Bausch Health Companies Inc., Pfizer Inc., Amgen Inc., UCB Pharma (Biogen), Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Baxalta Incorporated, Eli Lilly and Company, Merck KGaA, and SFJ Pharmaceuticals, Inc. In April 2020, the company announced it will collaborate with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) in expanding the clinical trial of Bempegaldesleukin as a treatment for patients hospitalized with COVID-19 in the United States. In addition, Nektar Therapeutics has acquired global rights to a portfolio of clinical-stage oncology drug candidates from Bristol-Myers Squibb Company in June 2020.