Japanese hospital to evaluate technology used in European trials

Leading stem cell researchers at Shonan Kamakura General Hospital (SKGH), Japan, are collaborating with regenerative cell therapy developer CellProthera to manufacture autologous endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) for use in forthcoming clinical trials. Led by world-renowned stem cell expert Takayuki Asahara, MD, PhD, the SKGH research team will use the company’s automated manufacturing technology, along with single-use cell culture kits to produce therapies for patients with ischemic and renal diseases.

Professor Asahara, Deputy Director of Shonan Research Institute of Innovative Medicine at SKGH, was the first researcher to isolate EPCs from peripheral blood. EPCs are naturally deployed in the body to repair blood flow after it is restricted (as in ischemic stroke).

CellProthera’s StemXpand, which has been in use in European trials to grow patients’ own cells into a therapeutic dose, will be rigorously tested to meet SKGH’s manufacturing specifications and adapted as needed to begin qualification runs for an upcoming clinical trial. After the collaborators confirm consistency and reproducibility both in the manufacturing process and with the previously manufactured product, Prof. Asahara’s team will perform validation runs to ready the technology’s use for clinical testing.

“We are honoured to work with Prof. Asahara given his ground-breaking experience in the regenerative medicine space and think he is the ideal partner to demonstrate the utility of our manufacturing technology beyond our own pipeline,” said Matthieu de Kalbermatten, CEO, CellProthera. “As a long-time advocate for the use of stem cells for the treatment of ischemic and renal diseases, I am hopeful this collaboration will pave the way for the StemXpand and StemPack to play a pivotal role in the research and development of stem cell treatments across the globe.”

“Ischemic diseases remain one of the leading causes of death in Japan, with limited treatment options,” commented Prof. Asahara. “We hand-picked CellProthera for collaboration based in part on how StemXpand, a tried and trusted technology, will help us meet the needs of patients with ischemic diseases through our development of targeted stem cell therapies.”

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