Program Type: Translation
2nd Generation Vaccine for the Treatment of Glioblastoma
Translational Candidate It is the peptide LEEKKYNYVVVTDHC conjugated to KLH and used as an anti-cancer vaccine. Area of Impact This is a better optimized, more robust vaccine that aspires to greatly improve glioblastoma patient survival over the current vaccine. Mechanism of Action The vaccine stimulates B cell and T cells. We have found this may […]
Overexpression of HexA/HexB by lentivector expression in blood cells to treat Tay-Sachs and Sandhoff disease
Translational Candidate Autologous hematopoietic stem cells transduced with a lentiviral vector expressing wild type human HexA and HexB. Area of Impact The therapeutic candidate would halt disease progression in Tay-Sachs and Sandhoff disease patients who have no curative or ameliorating treatment. Mechanism of Action Wild type HexA and HexB will be delivered to affected neurons […]
ASCENT- Advanced Stem Cell Enteric Neuropathy Therapy
Translational Candidate ASCENT – Advanced Superdonor Cellular Enteric Neuropathy Therapy, is a donor progenitor cell population that replaces the enteric nervous system. Area of Impact ASCENT would treat enteric neuropathies including Hirschsprung disease and total intestinal aganglionosis which currently have no direct therapy Mechanism of Action Our goal is to develop an allogeneic “off the […]
Development of a Chondrogenic Drug Candidate Targeting Cartilage-residing Mesenchymal Stem Cells for the Treatment of Osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most prevalent musculoskeletal disease affecting nearly 27 million people in the United States, and is the leading cause of chronic disability in the United States. Current therapeutic options are limited to pain or symptom-modifying drugs and joint replacement surgery; no disease-modifying drugs are approved for clinical use. OA is characterized by […]
Embryonic Stem Cell-Derived Chondroprogenitor Cells to Repair Osteochondral Defects
Surgical approaches to the treatment of focal cartilage defects can be classified into repair, replacement, and regeneration therapies. Marrow stimulation procedures such as microfracture result in a repair tissue that is predominantly fibrocartilaginous in nature, which is mechanically less durable than articular cartilage and survives on average 7 years before requiring another procedure. Osteochondral grafting […]
Scaffold for dermal regeneration containing pre-conditioned mesenchymal stem cells to heal chronic diabetic wounds
The goal of our CIRM-funded Early Translational (ETA) grant was to engineer a product to improve healing in diabetic foot ulcers, a devastating consequence of diabetes that occurs in about 25% of all diabetic patients and is responsible for most leg or foot amputations. More than 6 million people in the US and up to […]
A hNSC Development Candidate for Huntington’s Disease
Huntington’s disease (HD) is a devastating degenerative brain disease with at least a 1 in 10,000 prevalence that inevitably leads to death. These numbers do not fully reflect the large societal and familial cost of HD, which requires extensive care-giving. HD has no effective treatment or cure and symptoms unstoppably progress for 15-20 years, with […]
Pre-clinical development of gene correction therapy of hematopoietic stem cells for SCID-X1
Severe combined immunodeficiency caused by mutations in the IL2RG gene on the x-chromosome (SCID-X1 or “bubble boy disease”) is a devastating genetic disease that results in boys not being able to form an immune system. If they are exposed to the environment for even a short period of time they can get infections that a […]
Placental Stem Cells for the In Utero Treatment of Spina Bifida
Myelomeningocele – also known as spina bifida – is a devastating and costly defect that causes lifelong paralysis as well as bowel and bladder incontinence in newborns. It is one of the most common birth defects worldwide, with four children in the United States born with spina bifida every day. Spina bifida affects the physical, […]
Human Stem-Cell Based Development of a Potent Alzheimer’s Drug Candidate
Over 6 million people in the US suffer from Alzheimer’s disease (AD). There are no drugs that prevent the death of nerve cells in AD, nor has any drug been identified that can stimulate nerve cell replacement in aged human brain. Importantly, even if nerve cells could be replaced, the toxic environment of the AD […]