# Quell Therapeutics
Quell Therapeutics is a London-based clinical-stage biotechnology company developing engineered T-regulatory (Treg) cell therapies, founded in 2019 as a spin-out from [University College London](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-college-london) with partners at [King's College London](https://www.edgepedia.org/kings-college-london) and Hannover Medical School, and operating as of 2025-2026.[1](https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2023/jun/ucl-spin-out-quell-therapeutics-joins-forces-astrazeneca-2billion-deal) • [2](https://open.endole.co.uk/insight/company/11890040-quell-therapeutics-limited)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2019; incorporated 19 March 2019[2](https://open.endole.co.uk/insight/company/11890040-quell-therapeutics-limited) |
| Headquarters | London, Greater London[2](https://open.endole.co.uk/insight/company/11890040-quell-therapeutics-limited) |
| Founders | Six academics from UCL, King's College London, and Hannover Medical School; CEO Iain McGill[3](https://www.synconaltd.com/portfolio/clinical-companies/quell-therapeutics/) • [4](https://www.uclb.com/case-studies/a-new-balance/) |
| Sector | Engineered Treg (CAR-Treg) cell therapy[5](https://www.quell-tx.com/news/quell-therapeutics-raises-156-million-in-oversubscribed-series-b-financing-to-advance-its-pioneering-multi-modular-engineered-t-regulatory-treg-cell-therapy-pipeline-and-platform) |
| Funding | $84m Series A; $156m Series B (Nov 2021); ~£175m total equity before 2023; $85m AstraZeneca upfront (2023)[4](https://www.uclb.com/case-studies/a-new-balance/) • [5](https://www.quell-tx.com/news/quell-therapeutics-raises-156-million-in-oversubscribed-series-b-financing-to-advance-its-pioneering-multi-modular-engineered-t-regulatory-treg-cell-therapy-pipeline-and-platform) • [1](https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2023/jun/ucl-spin-out-quell-therapeutics-joins-forces-astrazeneca-2billion-deal) • [6](https://www.quell-tx.com/news/quell-therapeutics-signs-a-collaboration-exclusive-option-and-license-agreement-with-astrazeneca-to-develop-manufacture-and-commercialize-engineered-treg-cell-therapies-for-autoimmune-diseases) |
| Notable backers | Syncona (33.7% owner), Jeito Capital, Ridgeback, SV Health Investors, Fidelity, British Business Bank[1](https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2023/jun/ucl-spin-out-quell-therapeutics-joins-forces-astrazeneca-2billion-deal) • [5](https://www.quell-tx.com/news/quell-therapeutics-raises-156-million-in-oversubscribed-series-b-financing-to-advance-its-pioneering-multi-modular-engineered-t-regulatory-treg-cell-therapy-pipeline-and-platform) • [7](https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/case-studies/quell-therapeutics) |
| Status | Active company; 140+ staff; LIBERATE trial dosing and AstraZeneca milestones through 2025[2](https://open.endole.co.uk/insight/company/11890040-quell-therapeutics-limited) • [7](https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/case-studies/quell-therapeutics) • [8](https://www.synconaltd.com/news-insights/news/quell-therapeutics-achieves-key-milestone-in-its-car-treg-cell-therapy-program-for-inflammatory-bowel-disease/) |
## Founding and people
Quell was founded and spun out in 2019 by Professors Emma Morris and Hans Stauss of the UCL Institute of Immunity & [Transplantation](https://www.edgepedia.org/transplantation), in partnership with experts from King's College London and Hannover Medical School in Germany, with support from UCL Business.[1](https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2023/jun/ucl-spin-out-quell-therapeutics-joins-forces-astrazeneca-2billion-deal) The full founder group comprises Professors Emma Morris and Hans Stauss from UCL, Professor Giovanna Lombardi, Dr Marc Martinez-Llordella, and Professor Alberto Sánchez-Fueyo from King's College London, and Dr Elmar Jaeckel from Hannover Medical School.[4](https://www.uclb.com/case-studies/a-new-balance/) Syncona, the London-listed life sciences investor, describes the company as founded in partnership with these six immunology experts; the two accounts differ in emphasis, with UCL and UCLB crediting Morris and Stauss as the founding pair and Syncona listing all six.[3](https://www.synconaltd.com/portfolio/clinical-companies/quell-therapeutics/)
The company is led by chief executive Iain McGill, described by Syncona as a seasoned pharmaceutical and biotech executive.[3](https://www.synconaltd.com/portfolio/clinical-companies/quell-therapeutics/) Syncona owned 33.7% of Quell at the time of the June 2023 [AstraZeneca](https://www.edgepedia.org/astrazeneca) deal.[1](https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2023/jun/ucl-spin-out-quell-therapeutics-joins-forces-astrazeneca-2billion-deal)
## Technology: the multi-modular engineered Treg platform
Quell's lead candidates are antigen-specific multi-modular CAR-Treg cells: chimeric antigen receptor modules direct the cells to target tissue, and the company's proprietary Phenotype-Lock technology is described by Quell as enabling it to "lock" Tregs in an immunosuppressive phenotype that enhances their safety, stability, and efficacy, with additional modules intended to provide disease-specific efficacy and safety.[5](https://www.quell-tx.com/news/quell-therapeutics-raises-156-million-in-oversubscribed-series-b-financing-to-advance-its-pioneering-multi-modular-engineered-t-regulatory-treg-cell-therapy-pipeline-and-platform) These descriptions come from the company itself; no independent technical source in the public record retrieved for this article evaluates the platform's claims.
## Funding by the numbers
Quell's Series A comprised an initial financing round in March 2019 that was extended in February 2021, bringing total Series A investment to $84 million, which UCLB describes as the biggest ever Series A investment in the field.[4](https://www.uclb.com/case-studies/a-new-balance/) On 29 November 2021 the company announced a $156 million oversubscribed Series B co-led by [Jeito Capital](https://www.edgepedia.org/jeito-capital), Ridgeback Capital Investments, SV Health Investors, and Fidelity Management & Research Company LLC, with founding investor Syncona participating; the British Business Bank invested £5.5 million directly as part of that round.[5](https://www.quell-tx.com/news/quell-therapeutics-raises-156-million-in-oversubscribed-series-b-financing-to-advance-its-pioneering-multi-modular-engineered-t-regulatory-treg-cell-therapy-pipeline-and-platform) • [7](https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/case-studies/quell-therapeutics) By June 2023 Quell had raised about £175 million from investors led by Syncona.[1](https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2023/jun/ucl-spin-out-quell-therapeutics-joins-forces-astrazeneca-2billion-deal)
The AstraZeneca collaboration added $85 million upfront in 2023, comprising a predominant cash payment and an equity investment, with eligibility for over $2 billion in further development and commercialization milestones plus tiered royalties.[6](https://www.quell-tx.com/news/quell-therapeutics-signs-a-collaboration-exclusive-option-and-license-agreement-with-astrazeneca-to-develop-manufacture-and-commercialize-engineered-treg-cell-therapies-for-autoimmune-diseases) Two option-exercise milestones of $10 million each followed, in November 2024 and June 2025.[8](https://www.synconaltd.com/news-insights/news/quell-therapeutics-achieves-key-milestone-in-its-car-treg-cell-therapy-program-for-inflammatory-bowel-disease/) • [7](https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/case-studies/quell-therapeutics) As of the British Business Bank case study Quell had a team of over 140 people.[7](https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/case-studies/quell-therapeutics)
## Pipeline and clinical progress
The lead candidate, QEL-001, is described as a first-in-class antigen-specific multi-modular CAR-Treg cell therapy designed to prevent organ rejection in liver transplant patients. The $156 million Series B was intended to fund its LIBERATE Phase 1/2 clinical trial, with recruitment expected to begin before the end of 2021.[5](https://www.quell-tx.com/news/quell-therapeutics-raises-156-million-in-oversubscribed-series-b-financing-to-advance-its-pioneering-multi-modular-engineered-t-regulatory-treg-cell-therapy-pipeline-and-platform) By 2025 the company had dosed 9 patients in total in the LIBERATE Phase 1b/2 trial and was progressing toward an initial efficacy readout, with first efficacy data expected later in 2025.[7](https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/case-studies/quell-therapeutics) • [8](https://www.synconaltd.com/news-insights/news/quell-therapeutics-achieves-key-milestone-in-its-car-treg-cell-therapy-program-for-inflammatory-bowel-disease/)
A second internal program, QEL-005, targets immune-mediated diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and scleroderma; preclinical data were to be filed with regulators in Q4 2025, with clinic entry planned in H1 2026.[7](https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/case-studies/quell-therapeutics) Quell also retains a preclinical neuroinflammation program.[6](https://www.quell-tx.com/news/quell-therapeutics-signs-a-collaboration-exclusive-option-and-license-agreement-with-astrazeneca-to-develop-manufacture-and-commercialize-engineered-treg-cell-therapies-for-autoimmune-diseases)
## The AstraZeneca partnership
In June 2023 Quell signed a collaboration, exclusive option, and license agreement with AstraZeneca to develop, manufacture, and commercialize autologous (made from the patient's own cells) multi-modular Treg cell therapy candidates for type 1 diabetes and inflammatory bowel disease.[6](https://www.quell-tx.com/news/quell-therapeutics-signs-a-collaboration-exclusive-option-and-license-agreement-with-astrazeneca-to-develop-manufacture-and-commercialize-engineered-treg-cell-therapies-for-autoimmune-diseases) Under the division of responsibilities, AstraZeneca runs CTA/IND-enabling studies and clinical development, while Quell provides CMC support including GMP drug product for a first-in-human trial and is responsible for process development and manufacturing of clinical candidates through the end of the first-in-human study.[8](https://www.synconaltd.com/news-insights/news/quell-therapeutics-achieves-key-milestone-in-its-car-treg-cell-therapy-program-for-inflammatory-bowel-disease/) • [6](https://www.quell-tx.com/news/quell-therapeutics-signs-a-collaboration-exclusive-option-and-license-agreement-with-astrazeneca-to-develop-manufacture-and-commercialize-engineered-treg-cell-therapies-for-autoimmune-diseases)
AstraZeneca holds the option to further develop and commercialize successful candidates. It exercised that option twice: in November 2024 after selecting a lead Treg candidate in the T1D program, and on 11 June 2025 after selecting a lead candidate from the IBD program, each triggering a $10 million payment to Quell.[8](https://www.synconaltd.com/news-insights/news/quell-therapeutics-achieves-key-milestone-in-its-car-treg-cell-therapy-program-for-inflammatory-bowel-disease/) • [7](https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/case-studies/quell-therapeutics) Quell retains full ownership of QEL-001, which had been expected to enter first-in-human trials during 2023, and holds an option, exercisable either after IND approval or at the end of the Phase I/II study, to co-develop Treg cell therapies from the T1D program with AstraZeneca in the United States.[6](https://www.quell-tx.com/news/quell-therapeutics-signs-a-collaboration-exclusive-option-and-license-agreement-with-astrazeneca-to-develop-manufacture-and-commercialize-engineered-treg-cell-therapies-for-autoimmune-diseases)
## Recent developments and status as of 2026
The company's record through 2025 shows continued operation rather than the 2021-era snapshot of a newly funded startup: two AstraZeneca option exercises with $10 million payments (November 2024 and June 2025), nine patients dosed in the LIBERATE trial, QEL-005 regulatory filing planned for Q4 2025 with clinic entry in H1 2026, and an active UK company registry record.[8](https://www.synconaltd.com/news-insights/news/quell-therapeutics-achieves-key-milestone-in-its-car-treg-cell-therapy-program-for-inflammatory-bowel-disease/) • [7](https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/case-studies/quell-therapeutics) • [2](https://open.endole.co.uk/insight/company/11890040-quell-therapeutics-limited)
## References
1. [UCL spin out Quell Therapeutics joins forces with AstraZeneca in $2 billion deal](https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2023/jun/ucl-spin-out-quell-therapeutics-joins-forces-astrazeneca-2billion-deal)
2. [Quell Therapeutics Limited — Endole company record](https://open.endole.co.uk/insight/company/11890040-quell-therapeutics-limited)
3. [Quell Therapeutics — Syncona portfolio page](https://www.synconaltd.com/portfolio/clinical-companies/quell-therapeutics/)
4. [Quell Therapeutics: a new balance — UCLB Case Study](https://www.uclb.com/case-studies/a-new-balance/)
5. [Quell Therapeutics raises $156 million in oversubscribed Series B financing](https://www.quell-tx.com/news/quell-therapeutics-raises-156-million-in-oversubscribed-series-b-financing-to-advance-its-pioneering-multi-modular-engineered-t-regulatory-treg-cell-therapy-pipeline-and-platform)
6. [Quell Therapeutics signs collaboration, exclusive option and license agreement with AstraZeneca](https://www.quell-tx.com/news/quell-therapeutics-signs-a-collaboration-exclusive-option-and-license-agreement-with-astrazeneca-to-develop-manufacture-and-commercialize-engineered-treg-cell-therapies-for-autoimmune-diseases)
7. [Quell Therapeutics case study — British Business Bank](https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/case-studies/quell-therapeutics)
8. [Quell Therapeutics achieves key milestone in its CAR-Treg cell therapy program for Inflammatory Bowel Disease (Syncona)](https://www.synconaltd.com/news-insights/news/quell-therapeutics-achieves-key-milestone-in-its-car-treg-cell-therapy-program-for-inflammatory-bowel-disease/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Society and history › Economics and business › Business and work › Business and work overview › Companies and corporations › Venture-backed startups and growth companies › Health, biotech, and medtech startups › Cell and gene therapy developers › Cell therapy developers*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 19, 2026 · Edited: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 11, 2026; Oct 15, 2026 · Last review: Sep 19, 2026*
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