Industry updates with Dusko Ilic: December 2021
Read highlights from the latest installment of Dusko Ilic’s industry news, which discuss the latest developments and news in regenerative medicine and stem cell research, and are published every month in Regenerative Medicine.
Every month, Dusko comments on regenerative medicine industry news of note. Read the full update for December 2021 in Regenerative Medicine here >>>
What happened this month that you were expecting?
Safe bet
Bristol Myers Squibb (NY, USA) announced the first disclosure of results from a prespecified interim analysis of the pivotal TRANSFORM study: a global, randomized, multicenter, Phase III study evaluating Breyanzi (lisocabtagene maraleucel; liso-cel), a CD19-directed CAR-T cell therapy, as a second-line treatment in adults with relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma (LBCL). Although overall survival data were not yet mature, the prespecified interim analysis showed a trend favoring Breyanzi compared with the standard of care. 86% of patients treated with Breyanzi achieved a complete or partial response, with 66% achieving a complete response. In comparison, 48% of patients who received the standard of care achieved a response and only 39% of these patients achieved a complete response (p<0.0001).
What happened that surprised you this month?
Positioning, navigation, and timing
A month after receiving a stock exchange deficiency letter, AgeX Therapeutics (CA, USA), a biotechnology company focused on developing therapeutics for human aging and regeneration, is embarking on a new business collaboration. The company has announced a research collaboration with the University of California Irvine (UCI; CA, USA) to explore the therapeutic potential of exosomes and other extracellular vesicles produced by neural stem cells, derived from AgeX pluripotent stem cells. The goal will be to develop therapies to treat adverse neurocognitive effects of cancer chemotherapy and radiation therapy on brain function.
If we only read about one story this month, what should it be?
ViaCyte
ViaCyte (CA, USA), a clinical-stage regenerative medicine company focused on developing novel cell replacement therapies to address diseases with significant unmet needs, has announced publication of promising preliminary results of an ongoing, first-in-human Phase I/II study demonstrating that its stem cell-derived therapy can produce insulin in people with severe type 1 diabetes (T1D). This is the first reported evidence of meal-regulated insulin secretion by differentiated stem cells in patients. The initial data suggest that pluripotent stem cells, which can be propagated to the desired biomass and differentiated into pancreatic islet-like tissue, may offer a scalable, renewable alternative to pancreatic islet transplants.
Read the full industry update for December 2021 >>>
Dr Dusko Ilic
Dusko Ilic is a Senior Lecturer in stem cell science, coordinator of the cross-divisional postgraduate program in stem cells and regenerative medicine, and Head of the Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Core Facility at King’s College London (London, UK). He is also Head of the Assisted Conception Unit’s Human Embryonic Laboratories at Guy’s Hospital (London, UK). He is also a member of the editorial board of the journal Regenerative Medicine, where he writes the Industry Report, a regular feature compiling information from non-academic institutions in the field of stem cells and regenerative medicine.