Two UK institutions have stepped up their support for gene therapy with a £3.1 million award to a consortium that is investigating an experimental treatment for cystic fibrosis. The therapy is poised to enter Phase 2 development.
Therapies derived from human embryonic stem (hES) cells promise to be the most stable and cost-effective modality for future medicines and deserve support from public and private funders, according to a commentary in The Lancet.
The US Food and Drug Administration has approved an allogeneic cell therapy- the first of its kind – to treat vascular wounds caused by surgery to treat mucogingival conditions in adults. The product, Gintuit, was developed by Organogenesis Inc of Massachusetts, US.
Oxford BioMedica Plc has reduced staff, appointed a new finance director, and closed an office in the US as it conserves cash in order to support the next phase of development of its candidate gene therapies and its therapeutic vaccine for cancer, TroVax.
Patients with two common eye diseases have been safely treated with cells derived from human embryonic stem cells (hESC), the first such treatment to be carried out in humans. The results were reported on 25 February 2012 in The Lancet.
The management of Amsterdam Molecular Therapeutics NV is proposing to de-list the company and transfer its gene therapy assets to a new private concern following a regulatory rejection of its lead product Glybera. Shareholders will vote on the proposal on 30 March.
The first embryonic stem-cell derived therapy for the eye has been safely transplanted into two patients with no signs of inflammation, rejection or tumourigenicity, according to a report published online in The Lancet on 24 January 2012.
Cardio3 BioSciences SA has secured €3.1 million in new funding from the Walloon regional government of Belgium and from the European Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) to support development of its stem-cell technology.
ProFibrix BV of the Netherlands has announced that a Phase 2 US study of its sealant to stop bleeding during and after surgery reached its primary endpoint, confirming the results of an earlier Phase 2 study in the Netherlands.
Sanofi SA has agreed to pay up to €180 million to privately-held Scil Technology GmbH for exclusive rights to the German company’s preclinical programme for cartilage regeneration. The programme is based on the rhCD-RAP protein.