Joint Venture for Stem Cell Therapy

A new Japanese biotechnology company, Stem Cell Sciences KK (SCS KK), has been formed by Sosei Co., Ltd. (Kobe, Japan) and Stem Cell Sciences (SCS, Melbourne, Australia). The headquarters of the new company are in Kobe, Japan.

SCS has granted SCS KK licenses to patented stem cell technologies relating to the growth, differentiation, and purification of embryonic stem cells. These technologies provide a range of highly purified cell types, such as neurons and cardiac cells, for gene and drug discovery. SCS KK will market its technologies and the SCS technologies throughout Asia. SCS, in turn, will market the combined technologies in all other territories and will partner with SCS KK to create safe and effective stem-cell based therapies for the global market.

Sosei is a Japanese biopharmaceutical company focused on drug development. The company adds to its product pipeline by in-licensing compounds at late stages of development. SCS is an Australian company undertaking research on stem cells for immediate applications in drug and gene discovery and longer-term applications in regenerative medicine.

"While the framework is still unfolding, we are pleased with progress and outcomes to date,” said Dr. Peter Mountford, CEO of SCS. "Japan's green light for human embryonic stem cell research is the first of many steps on the path to new human medicines.”




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