Aethlon Medical Merges With North Immunology for NOR-101

San Diego, California, and Austin, Texas, September 17, 2026

Merger Creates Platform for NOR-101 Development

The proposed merger brings together Aethlon Medical and North Immunology with a primary focus on advancing NOR-101, North Immunology’s lead therapeutic candidate. NOR-101 is designed as a bispecific antibody targeting IL-13 and IL-18, two inflammatory pathways implicated in atopic dermatitis. According to the companies, the approach is intended to address both type 2 and non-type 2 inflammation, potentially providing broader pathway inhibition than therapies directed at a single inflammatory mechanism. The candidate has been engineered for extended half-life, with North Immunology reporting an approximately 42-day half-life in a non-human primate pharmacokinetic study. However, NOR-101 has not yet been evaluated in human clinical trials, and its safety and efficacy remain to be established through clinical development. The transaction is structured as an all-stock combination under which North Immunology would become part of Aethlon Medical. Subject to customary closing conditions, the resulting company will focus on North Immunology’s pipeline while Aethlon stockholders are expected to retain potential economic interests in certain legacy assets through contingent value rights. The companies also announced the concurrent financing to provide capital for advancing the new company’s development programs.

NOR-101 Targets Multiple Inflammatory Pathways

Atopic dermatitis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease in which immune signaling contributes to skin inflammation, barrier dysfunction and recurrent disease activity. Existing biologic therapies have established the importance of cytokine pathways such as IL-13 in disease management. North Immunology is developing NOR-101 with the goal of simultaneously inhibiting IL-13-driven type 2 inflammation and IL-18-associated non-type 2 inflammatory activity.

Preclinical information presented by North Immunology indicates that dual IL-13 and IL-18 inhibition demonstrated additive effects in laboratory studies involving markers associated with skin-barrier function and inflammation. The company also reports that its bispecific format may offer advantages compared with administering separate antibodies. These findings are preclinical observations, however, and the company has explicitly stated that results from other agents cannot be used to predict the clinical performance of NOR-101.

Phase 1a Study Expected to Begin in 2027

North Immunology expects to begin a Phase 1a clinical study of NOR-101 in the first quarter of 2027. The initial study is expected to evaluate pharmacokinetics and safety, with interim data anticipated by mid-2027. The company plans to subsequently initiate Phase 1b and Phase 2b studies in atopic dermatitis during 2027, with topline results from those studies targeted for 2028. The proposed transaction therefore represents both a corporate combination and a clinical development milestone for North Immunology. If completed, the merger and financing are intended to provide the capital and public-company infrastructure required to move NOR-101 from preclinical development into human studies. Future clinical results will be important in determining whether the candidate’s dual-cytokine targeting strategy can translate into meaningful benefits for people with atopic dermatitis.

The companies’ announcement adds another example of bispecific antibody development in immune-mediated diseases, while the proposed merger illustrates how corporate combinations can be used to provide emerging therapeutic programs with resources for clinical advancement. With the Phase 1a study planned for 2027, NOR-101 will enter human testing as the companies seek to establish its safety, pharmacokinetic profile and potential therapeutic activity.

Source: Aethlon Medical, North Immunology press release