Industry Update: Capital market and finances

Written by Dusko ILIC

Latest market and finance developments compiled from January 01 — February 28, 2017.

Latest capital market and finance developments in the field of stem cell research and regenerative medicine compiled from publicly available information and press releases from non-academic institutions from January 01 — February 28, 2017, scheduled to be published in Volume 12 Issue 4 of Regenerative Medicine.


Asterias

Asterias Biotherapeutics (CA, USA; www.asteriasbiotherapeutics.com) has extended the expiration date of warrants to purchase up to an aggregate of 3,329,035 shares of the company’s Series A common stock from February 15, 2017 to September 29, 2017 following a positive recent update on the SCiStar study. Positive interim efficacy results from SCiStar’s Phase 1/2a clinical trial showed additional motor function improvement at 6 months and 9 months following administration of 10 million AST-OPC1 cells in patients with complete cervical spinal cord injuries.

Bone Therapeutics

Bone Therapeutics (Belgium; www.bonetherapeutics.com) has been granted US$ 2.45 (EUR 2.3) million in non-dilutive funding to support its research programs. This funding has been granted by the Walloon Region by decision of the Ministry for Economy, Industry, Innovation and New Technologies. The non-dilutive funding is granted under the form of ‘avances récupérables’ to support specific research and development programs. Under the applicable conditions, the funding is reimbursable over the economic life of the project (25 years). Thirty per cent is refundable based on a fixed reimbursement schedule, while the balance is refunded under the form of royalties over the same period.

CBMG

Cellular Biomedicine Group (CA, USA; www.cellbiomedgroup.com) has been awarded $2.29 million from the governing Board of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM; www.cirm.ca.gov) to support pre-clinical studies of AlloJoinTM, an “Off-the-Shelf” Allogeneic Human Adipose-derived MSC product for the treatment of knee osteoarthritis in the US. CBMG recently announced promising interim 3-month safety data from its Phase I clinical trial in China for AlloJoin stem cell therapy for knee osteoarthritis. The trial is on schedule to be completed by the third quarter of 2017.

CellProthera

CellProthera (France; www.cellprothera.com) has raised US$ 8.8 (€ 8.3) million from private investors. These funds, supplements the US$ 21.3 (€ 20.0) million raised during the previous rounds, and will enable the company to pursue its scientific development, complete its Phase I/IIb clinical trial in Europe and prepare its Phase III in Europe and North America.

Surrozen

Surrozen (CA, USA; www.surrozen.com), a newly formed biopharmaceutical company focused on harnessing the WNT pathway for applications in regenerative medicine, has closed a US$ 33 million Series A financing led by The Column Group (CA, USA; www.thecolumngroup.com), a science-driven venture capital firm. The funds will be used to develop a broad drug discovery platform aimed to unlock the therapeutic potential of WNT signaling, a factor that plays an important role in stem-cell maintenance and tissue regeneration, to address a variety of critical unmet needs.

Xcell

Xcell Biosciences (CA, USA; www.xcellbio.com) has closed a US$ 12 million Series A private equity financing round. Xcell Bio will use the funds to launch its commercial platform worldwide, including expanding its US sales force and worldwide commercial reach. Xcell’s advanced primary cell culturing platform, the Avatarâ„¢ system, enables propagation and gene editing in hard to transfect cell types. The Avatar platform is currently being used for translational research, clinical diagnostics development, and cell therapy applications.