Collaborative Research Environment Triggers Move Of Umbilical Cord Stem Cell Company

Main Category: Stem Cell Research
Also Included In: Women's Health / Gynecology
Article Date: 02 May 2008 - 5:00 PDT

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Officials from Rutgers University and state government have welcomed StemCyte, Inc., to the Garden State. One of the factors in the company's decision to move into New Jersey was a desire to be closer to Rutgers and the groundbreaking research taking place at the university.

StemCyte's new office in Ewing Township will house members of its executive management and therapeutics team, establishing a base of operations for the company's northeast United States therapeutics program. StemCyte is a global umbilical cord blood (UCB) stem cell and therapeutic products company.

Rutgers and StemCyte have been collaborating on a spinal cord injury therapy in development by Dr. Wise Young, the Richard H. Shindell Professor of Neuroscience. Young's therapy, which uses StemCyte's proprietary human UCB stem cells in conjunction with lithium, is undergoing clinical trials in China in a network of medical facilities brought together by Young.

"I am proud of New Jersey's and Rutger's commitment to stem cell therapeutics," Young said. "StemCyte is the only company today that is actually curing hundreds of people with stem cells." Over the past six years, StemCyte has treated patients with 35 types of diseases in 32 countries with a UCB stem cell product.

"The synergy emanating from this partnership of academia and industry is already global in its scope," said Richard L. McCormick, president of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. "Dr. Young's work with people in China offers new hope to spinal cord injury patients and their families here in New Jersey and worldwide. We are pleased to welcome StemCyte as new neighbors in a statewide community that is focused on medical progress."

To further encourage this industrial-academic research and development partnership, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority is supporting StemCyte's move with a 10-year Business Employment Incentive Program (BEIP) grant that will facilitate the 12 new executive-level jobs the company is bringing to the state.

"New Jersey continues to provide an innovative and collaborative environment for landmark stem cell research opportunities," Gov. Jon S. Corzine said. "The addition of StemCyte to our portfolio of companies represents an important economic investment that brings with it the promise of discovery and cures for some of our most devastating diseases and injuries. I am proud to welcome StemCyte to the Garden State."

Proximity to Rutgers and the BEIP grant were both important considerations in StemCyte's decision to move to New Jersey.

"The research being done by Dr. Young at Rutgers is top notch," said Kenneth J. Giacin, chair and chief executive officer of StemCyte. "In addition, Gov. Corzine's plan for developing New Jersey as an active hub for stem cell research and therapeutics development was an important reason for our decision to move our East Coast operations to the state. We're pleased to become an integral part of New Jersey's life sciences community with our focus on therapies derived from umbilical cord blood."

StemCyte, which also has announced the development of a facility in India in collaboration with Cadila Pharmaceuticals and Apollo Hospitals, has operations in California and Taiwan. These facilities collect, process and store UCB stem cells to be used as therapeutic treatments. Unlike embryonic stem cells, which have been the subject of much public controversy, UCB stem cells are harvested from umbilical cords that would otherwise be discarded at the time of childbirth.

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Article adapted by Medical News Today from original press release.
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Source: Joseph Blumberg
Rutgers University