StemCell Technologies Inc. Obtains License From iPS Academia Japan, Inc. for Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Technologies
May 01, 2013 -- STEMCELL Technologies Inc. has signed an agreement to license iPS Academia Japan’s induced pluripotent stem cell (iPS cell) technologies. This agreement will enable STEMCELL Technologies to develop media that are optimized for cellular reprogramming, further expanding its extensive portfolio of products designed to facilitate cutting-edge pluripotent stem cell research.
The iPS cell technologies developed by iPS Academia Japan are the result of the groundbreaking research of Professor Shinya Yamanaka of the Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA) at the University of Kyoto, Japan. iPS cells hold immense potential for drug development and disease modeling. Patient-derived cells can be reprogrammed using iPS cell technology and subsequently differentiated into specific cell types of diverse lineages. This enables researchers to develop patient-specific cell lines for, among other applications, screening potential treatments. The personalized nature of this approach ensures greater predictive accuracy in terms of disease modeling and treatment outcome.
Dr. Allen Eaves, President and CEO of STEMCELL Technologies, commented: “STEMCELL Technologies’ goal is to help researchers by providing the best culture media for the derivation, maintenance and differentiation of both iPS cells and ES cells, thereby facilitating the development of clinical applications in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine”.
This agreement will ensure that STEMCELL Technologies continues to offer the most complete, defined system of integrated tools for human pluripotent stem cell research. These include mTeSR™1, the most widely published feeder-free cell culture medium for human embryonic stem cells (ES cells) and iPS cells, and TeSR™-E8™, a low-protein medium containing only the essential 8 ingredients for the culture of ES cells and iPS cells. The STEMdiff™ product line features robust reagents and protocols to reliably differentiate human pluripotent stem cells to various lineages. These high-quality defined reagents for pluripotent cell culture increase experimental reproducibility, eliminate variable biological elements in the culture media and increase the clinical relevance of ES cell and iPS cell research.
About STEMCELL Technologies Inc.
STEMCELL Technologies Inc. is a leader in the development of specialty cell culture media, cell isolation products and ancillary reagents for life science research. Driven by science and a passion for quality, STEMCELL Technologies provides over 1500 products to more than 70 countries worldwide. To learn more about how STEMCELL Technologies facilitates life science research, please visit www.stemcell.com.
About iPS Academia Japan, Inc.
iPS Academia Japan, Inc. (AJ) is an affiliate of Kyoto University, and its main role is, among other activities, to manage and utilize the patents and other intellectual properties held/controlled by Kyoto University and other universities in the field of iPSC technologies so that the research results contribute to health and welfare worldwide. AJ was established in Kyoto in June 2008. AJ's patent portfolio consists of more than 60 patent families (the total number of patent applications is about 220 cases) in the iPSC technology as of April 2012, and about 50 license arrangements have been executed with domestic or international enterprises. For more information, visit www.ips-cell.net.
Contact
Simon Hilcove, PhD
Product Manager, Pluripotent Stem Cell Biology
604-675-7898 / simon.hilcove@stemcell.com
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