Cell Based Therapies funding continues – Reprogramming Skin Cells

This process was recently featured with Michael J. Fox on television with Dr. Oz speaking of this type of research. Much of what we once considered to be Sci-Fi is either here or very close on the horizon. Thank goodness the research has been opened here for stem cells.

Michael J. Fox on Parkinson’s Disease and Stem Cells – Oprah and the Daily Show

Cloned cells bring hope of therapy for Parkinson’s disease

The Oprah Show – Dr. Oz Explores and Explains Regenerative Medicine

These are the items in healthcare we must have the money to expand as it means cures and treatments for millions and represents science and clinical working knowledge coming together for the cures. BD

iZumi Bio, a company specializing in stem cell research used to create a range of treatments, has landed $20 million in first-round funding and a partnership with Kyoto University in Japan to conduct parallel studies and collaborate on the results.

From the website:

Human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells

The ability to reprogram somatic cells into a pluripotent state and differentiate those cells into cells of interest offers tremendous promise for the treatment of major diseases and for revolutionizing drug discovery and development process. In December 2008, in its annual list of the year's top ten scientific breakthroughs, Science Magazine named cellular reprogramming the "breakthrough of the year".
The creation of iPS cells obtained non-invasively from human skin cells and their differentiation into cell lines that have the potential to represent virtually any disease is expected to provide an entirely new way of developing disease models, identifying therapeutic targets, conducting preclinical testing of drugs and ultimately delivering cell-based therapies to patients across a broad spectrum of diseases.

iZumi Bio plans to use cellular reprogramming, including its iPS technology, to find new molecular targets and develop proprietary therapeutics for its own pipeline to treat specific diseases. iZumi Bio is focusing on diseases for which there are poor in vivo and in vitro model systems and limited therapeutic treatments to date. The Company is initially focused on three neurological disorders, including Parkinson's disease, spinal muscular atrophy and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. These conditions currently have limited therapeutic treatments, and scientists have demonstrated the ability to differentiate the affected cell types in these disorders. iZumi Bio is also focusing on calcific aortic valve disease, through its collaboration with The Gladstone Institute of Cardiovascular Disease.