CLEVELAND, May 25, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Athersys, Inc. (Nasdaq:ATHX) today announced positive interim results from an ongoing Phase I clinical trial of MultiStem®, its cell therapy product, administered to individuals undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplants (HSCTs) for the treatment of leukemia and related conditions. The study results for the single infusion arm of this Phase I clinical trial demonstrate that MultiStem was well tolerated at all dose levels and also suggest that the product may reduce the incidence of severe Graft-versus-Host Disease (GvHD), a potentially life-threatening complication of such transplants, as compared to historical clinical experience. The repeated dose administration arm of the clinical trial is ongoing and enrollment is expected to be completed in 2011. In 2010, Athersys was granted orphan drug designation by the U. S. Food and Drug Administration for MultiStem for the prevention of GvHD.
