Ocata Therapeutics Licenses Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Technology from Allele Biotechnology & Extends Leadership Position ...
25 March 2015 - 12:05AM
Business Wire
Ocata Announces Proof-of-Concept Results in
Restoring Vision and Prevention of Blindness
Ocata Therapeutics, Inc. (“Ocata” or “the Company”; NASDAQ:
OCAT), a leader in the field of Regenerative Ophthalmology™,
today announced that it has entered into a
definitive agreement with Allele Biotechnology &
Pharmaceuticals, Inc. of San Diego, CA (“Allele”) to
access Allele’s proprietary technology for generating human induced
pluripotent stem cells (“iPSCs”).
"This agreement with Allele is part of our strategy to broaden
our technology platform and increase our leadership in
regenerative ophthalmology,” said Paul Wotton Ph.D., President and
CEO of Ocata. “Ocata can now take advantage of induced and
embryonic pluripotent stem cells to produce commercially viable
human tissue for transplantation. We recently confirmed proof of
concept in creating photoreceptors capable of preventing blindness
and restoring vision in established animal models. Data from these
studies will be published later this year.”
Since Dr. Yamanaka discovered how to generate iPSCs in 2007
there has been tremendous enthusiasm about the potential to use
these pluripotent cells to develop commercially viable therapies.
Despite many efforts to develop iPSC derived
therapies in the same scalable and
reliable way as embryonic stem cells, many of
those efforts have been unsuccessful due
to issues relating to the growth capacity,
differentiation potentials and epigenetic properties of iPSCs.
The “footprint-free” reprogramming technology developed
by Allele potentially offers a
reliable and scalable process
for producing iPSCs with superior properties
and is a major step for translation
of iPSC technology to practical clinical use. These
iPSCs can potentially be used to manufacture millions of treatment
doses as off-the-shelf therapies for any patient.
“We have had a strong leadership role in this area,” said Robert
Lanza, M.D., Chief Scientific Officer of Ocata. “Ocata has
extensive experience and patent rights in generating both ocular
and non-ocular cell types from human iPSCs. We have painstakingly
and patiently evaluated many different iPSC technologies and
selected the Allele technology only after we were satisfied and
confident that this represented the best of all approaches and
could permit us to generate transplantable tissues that would be
potentially safe in human patients. In our hands,
the iPSCs we are generating are comparable to our embryonic
stem cells in those features required for use in potential human
therapies.”
“It is particularly rewarding to us that Ocata, a company
whose understanding of the science and regulatory requirements in
this space is unparalleled, has selected
the iPSC technology developed at Allele for application
in its own pipeline,” said Jiwu
Wang Ph.D., President and CEO of Allele. “It
only serves to confirm our belief that
our iPSC platform is a solution to what otherwise
have been unresolved issues associated with the maturation
of iPSCs to a fully functional state. The ability to
predictably derive stable iPSC lines without using
any viral element or foreign DNA enables both fundamental
scientific research and clinical applications, which has
been the mission of Allele Biotechnology from its inception.”
About Ocata Therapeutics, Inc.
Ocata Therapeutics, Inc. is a clinical stage biotechnology
company focused on the development and commercialization of
regenerative ophthalmology therapeutics. Ocata’s most advanced
products are in clinical trials for the treatment of Stargardt’s
macular degeneration, dry age-related macular degeneration, and
myopic macular degeneration. Ocata’s intellectual property
portfolio includes pluripotent stem cell platforms – hESC and
induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) – and other cell therapy
research programs. For more information, visit www.ocata.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
All statements, other than historical facts, contained in this
news release, including statements regarding the , the timing and
substance of data related to in creating photoreceptors capable of
preventing blindness and restoring vision in established animal
models, the potential scalability and application of Allele’s iPSC
technology licensed to us, including generation of transplantable
tissues safe for human patients, and any other statements about
Ocata’s future expectations, beliefs, goals, plans, results or
prospects expressed by management constitute forward-looking
statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. Any statements that are not statements of
historical fact (including statements containing the words “will,”
“believes,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “expects,” “estimates,” and
similar expressions) should also be considered to be
forward-looking statements. There are a number of important factors
that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from
those indicated by such forward-looking statements, including: the
fact that Ocata has no product revenue and no products approved for
marketing; Ocata’s limited operating history; Ocata’s need for and
limited sources of future capital; potential failures or delays in
obtaining regulatory approval of products; risks inherent in the
development and commercialization of potential products; reliance
on new and unproven technology in the development of products; the
need to protect Ocata’s intellectual property; the challenges
associated with conducting and enrolling clinical trials; the risk
that the results of clinical trials may not support Ocata’s product
candidate claims; the risk that physicians and patients may not
accept or use Ocata’s products, even if approved; Ocata’s reliance
on third parties to conduct its clinical trials and to formulate
and manufacture its product candidates; and economic conditions
generally. Additional information on potential factors that could
affect our results and other risks and uncertainties are detailed
from time to time in Ocata’s periodic reports, including the Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2014.
Forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, opinions, and
expectations of Ocata’s management at the time they are made, and
Ocata does not assume any obligation to update its forward-looking
statements if those beliefs, opinions, expectations, or other
circumstances should change. Forward-looking statements are based
on the beliefs, opinions, and expectations of Ocata’s management at
the time they are made, and Ocata does not assume any obligation to
update its forward-looking statements if those beliefs, opinions,
expectations, or other circumstances should change. There can be no
assurance that Ocata’s future clinical trials will be successful or
that the results of previous clinical studies will lead to
commercialization or products or therapies.
Investors:Westwicke PartnersJohn Woolford,
443-213-0506john.woolford@westwicke.comorPress:Russo
PartnersDavid Schull,
858-717-2310david.schull@russopartnersllc.comorChristopher R.
Hippolyte, 646-942-5634Chris.hippolyte@russopartnersllc.com
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