The Belgian drug regulator has approved the start of a Phase 3 trial of an autologous cell therapy for patients with chronic heart failure – understood to be the first such trial ever. The therapy was developed by Cardio3 BioSciences SA and the US Mayo Clinic.
Leading institutions in the UK, including the Wellcome Trust, have announced plans to create a repository of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS) in order to study how genetic variation and defects impact cell behaviour and disease.
UK stem-cell research has received a boost following a decision by the Wellcome Trust and the Medical Research Council to invest £8 million in a new institute for stem-cell biology and medicine. The institute will be located at the University of Cambridge.
A new allogeneic cell therapy has shown promise in the treatment of venous leg ulcers, a condition caused by persistently high blood pressure in the veins of the legs. Results from a 2b study of the therapy were published online in The Lancet on 3 August 2012.
Novartis has announced plans to invest in a new Center for Advanced Cellular Therapies at the University of Pennsylvania in the US to research immunotherapies for patients with cancer using chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) technologies.
Cell Medica Ltd, which is on track to commercialise its first cell therapy in Europe next year, has secured a £17 million equity investment from a group of long-term investors to support its European activities and to finance new operations in Texas.
After more than two years of deliberations, the European Medicines Agency has decided to recommend approval of the first ever gene therapy. The treatment, Glybera, is indicated for the treatment of patients with a rare inherited enzyme disorder.
Shire Plc has renamed one of its business units in order to demonstrate its commitment to building a presence in regenerative medicine. The unit, Advanced BioHealing Inc, will henceforth be known as Shire Regenerative Medicine Inc and will be based in San Diego.
From time to time, venture capital firms have been able to assemble disparate pharmaceutical assets and find the right talent to develop them into a valuable property. However, it looks as if biotechs have started to do something similar by using their widespread contacts and alliances to investigate the causes of disease.
Researchers from the US have tested bone grafts grown from purified adipose-derived stem cells and discovered that the cells regenerated bone tissue better than current methods.The findings were published in the June, 2012 issue of Stem Cells, Translational Medicine.