BioTime and Subsidiary Cell Cure Neurosciences Establish Innovative Cell Therapy Manufacturing Center in Jerusalem, Israel
BusinessWire
---Center has Capability to Manufacture Additional BioTime Products-
BioTime, Inc. (NYSE MKT: BTX and TASE: BTX), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing and commercializing products addressing degenerative diseases, and its majority-owned subsidiary, Cell Cure Neurosciences Ltd, today dedicated a new, 800 square meter (8,600 square feet), state-of-the-art, cGMP manufacturing center located in the Jerusalem Bio Park on the campus of Hadassah University Hospital in Jerusalem.
The new manufacturing center, initially to be staffed by 25-30 employees, is equipped to produce a range of cell therapies for the treatment of various degenerative human diseases. In the near term, the plan is to supply OpRegen(R) for the company's ongoing clinical trial program for the treatment of dry age-related macular degeneration, or dry AMD. OpRegen provides a particular cell type in the retina, called Retinal Pigment Epithelial cells, to replace those lost due to the disease. Data presented at the ISOPT Clinical Symposium on December 2, 2016, indicate that OpRegen at the first dose caused no serious adverse events in the first patient cohort and retinal imaging suggests the presence and survival of the transplanted cells in the subretinal space for up to one year.
"The opening of this new, innovative manufacturing center, demonstrates our continued commitment and is the culmination of a multi-year effort by BioTime and its subsidiary, Cell Cure Neurosciences, to manufacture cell therapies in Israel on an industrial scale," commented Adi Mohanty, Co-CEO of BioTime, Inc. "Near term, this new center will manufacture OpRegen doses to treat the patients enrolled in the clinical trial program. Longer term, this center may manufacture additional cell therapies as our products progress into clinical trials and then into commercial distribution."
Charles Irving, CEO of Cell Cure Neurosciences Ltd, stated, "The opening of this new manufacturing center is an exciting and important development. Our team in Israel together with BioTime is advancing the OpRegen clinical trial program and the manufacture of OpRegen. We look forward to continued close collaboration with BioTime as it advances additional cell therapy programs in the near future."
About BioTime
BioTime, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing and commercializing products addressing degenerative diseases. The foundation of BioTime's core therapeutic technology platform is pluripotent cells. Pluripotent cells are capable of becoming any of the cell types in the human body. Pluripotent cells have potential application in many areas of medicine with large unmet patient needs, including various age-related degenerative diseases and degenerative conditions for which there presently are no cures. Unlike pharmaceuticals that require a molecular target, therapeutic strategies based on the use of pluripotent cells are generally aimed at regenerating or replacing affected cells and tissues, and therefore may have broader applicability than pharmaceutical products.
BioTime common stock is traded on the NYSE MKT and TASE under the symbol BTX. For more information, please visit www.biotimeinc.com or connect with the company on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube, and Google+.
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