Therapeutic/Technology: Therapeutic Approach
Stem cell based treatment strategy for Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD)
Retinal degeneration represents a group of blinding diseases that are increasingly impacting the health and well being of Californians. It is estimated that by 2020, over 450,000 Californians will suffer from vision loss or blindness due to the age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the most common cause of retinal degeneration diseases in the elderly. AMD is […]
Development of Highly Active Anti-Leukemia Stem Cell Therapy (HALT)
Leukemias are cancers of the blood forming cells that afflict both children and adults. Many drugs have been developed to treat leukemias and related diseases. These drugs are often effective when first given, but in many cases of adult leukemia, the disease returns in a form that is not curable, causing disability and eventual death. […]
hPSC-derived enteric ganglioids for cell therapy in gastrointestinal motility disorders
Research Objective The proposed aims will enable the generation, purification and characterization of enteric neurons from diverse hiPSCs and assessment of their efficacy for cell therapy in GI motility disorders. Impact This proposal addresses a significant unmet clinical need for a cell therapy approach for gastrointestinal motility disorders such as Hirschsprung disease, achalasia and gastroparesis. […]
Role of ataxin-3 polyadenylation site selection in ALS neuron toxicity and disease pathogenesis
Research Objective Here we will study the role of ataxin-3 alternative polyadenylation in the pathogenesis of ALS, and test if ASOs can reduce distal polyadenylation of ataxin-3 to rescue ALS disease phenotypes Impact Our goal is to determine if ataxin-3 genetic dysregulation is a target for the development of therapies to treat ALS (Lou Gehrig's […]
Engineering pluripotent stem cells for universally available, off-the-shelf T cell therapies
Research Objective Our goal is to develop new gene editing methods for producing universal, off-the-shelf, therapeutic T cells from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) that can be applied to a range of diseases. Impact We will develop new gene editing approaches to overcome the block to T cell development from iPSC that occurs when key […]
The role of WNT and BMP signaling pathways in iPSC to iTenocyte step-wise differentiation for tendon repair
Research Objective Development-inspired differentiation will enable efficient and specific generation of tenocytes that can repair tendon injury, restore dysfunctional tissue, and prevent long term effects. Impact This study will eliminate heterogenous differentiation of pluripotent stem cells and will results in high yield and unified tenogenic phenotype. Major Proposed Activities Establish the mechanism by which Wnt […]
Drug Discovery for Dilated Cardiomyopathy using Patient-Derived Human iPSCs
Research Objective Greenstone Biosciences will use patient-derived stem cells to discover safe and effective drugs for cardiovascular disease. Impact The use of patient-derived stem cells to discover novel drug targets for cardiovascular disease, identify drug candidates, and establish clinical trial in a dish to evaluate drug safety and efficacy. Major Proposed Activities Use patient-derived induced […]
Development of universal off-the-shelf iPSC derived dendritic cells for use as patient specific anti-tumor vaccine
Research Objective This proposal aims to develop a novel cell based vaccine for the treatment of cancer. The vaccine would be derived from stem cells and be personalized to the genetics of the patient and their cancer. Impact Success would provide proof-of-principle of a novel cell based therapy for cancers broadly. It is expected to […]
A phase I/II study of human placental hematopoietic stem cell derived natural killer cells (CYNK-001) for the treatment of adults with COVID-19
Therapeutic Candidate or Device Human placental hematopoietic stem cell derived natural killer cells (CYNK-001) Indication SARS-CoV-2 positive patients requiring hospital admission and have any 2 out of 3 symptoms: fever, cough, or positive disease-related chest x-ray. Therapeutic Mechanism CYNK-001 is allogenic, human placental hematopoietic stem cell-derived NK cells that express the dominant NK cells marker […]
Mesenchymal Stromal Cells for ARDS (COVID positive and COVID negative)
Therapeutic Candidate or Device Novel testing of a cell based therapy (Mesenchymal Stromal Cells) for respiratory failure from ARDS. Indication COVID-19 positive or negative ARDS patients Therapeutic Mechanism It will hopefully improve oxygenation in ARDS patients and potentially decrease mortality. Unmet Medical Need There is an unmet need for more effective treatments for ARDS both […]