Stability of lead stem cell line

RNS Number : 3376V

ReNeuron Group plc

11 January 2012

 



                            

     

      PRESS RELEASE

New data demonstrate stability of ReNeuron's lead stem cell line in scale-up conditions 

Guildford, UK, 11 January 2012: ReNeuron Group plc (LSE: RENE.L) ("ReNeuron" or "the Company") announces that its academic collaborators are presenting new data regarding the stability of the Company's lead CTX stem cell line in large-scale manufacturing conditions.   The first clinical application for the CTX cell line is ReNeuron's ReN001 stem cell therapy for disabled stroke patients, currently in Phase I clinical development.

Professor Mike Hoare, Co-Director of The Advanced Centre for Biochemical Engineering at University College London (UCL), will present the results at the Scale-Up and Manufacturing of Cell-Based Therapies conference in San Diego, US, on 11-13 January 2012. The UCL team conducted studies with a number of cell candidates, including ReNeuron's CTX cell line.  The results show that the CTX cells retained their morphology and growth characteristics when exposed to the levels of shear and centrifugal stresses that could be experienced in future large-scale manufacture of the cells for widespread clinical use.

The studies were conducted with the support of a grant from the UK Government's Technology Strategy Board and form part of a larger bioprocessing collaboration under the grant involving ReNeuron, UCL, Nottingham Trent University, LGC and others.

Dr John Sinden, Chief Scientific Officer of ReNeuron, commented:

"These new research results demonstrate the robust nature of ReNeuron's CTX cell line when subjected to manufacturing scale-up stresses and thus the potential of this cell line to form the basis of a cell-based therapeutic product for wide-scale clinical application. The ability to utilise ReNeuron's proprietary cell expansion technologies to readily manufacture our cell products at scale has always been a primary element in our product development strategy and one that we believe will pay off for the Company when we seek to license our therapies to commercial development partners in due course."

More details on the Scale-Up and Manufacturing of Cell-Based Therapies conference can be found at http://www.engconfintl.org/12at.html.

Enquiries:

Michael Hunt, Chief Executive Officer - ReNeuron              [phone]

John Sinden, Chief Scientific Officer- ReNeuron

Lisa Baderoon, Mark Court, Isabel Podda                        [phone]

Buchanan Communications                                      

David Hart                                                                               [phone]

Daniel Stewart & Company plc                              

About ReNeuron

ReNeuron is a leading, clinical-stage stem cell business.  Its primary objective is the development of novel stem cell therapies targeting areas of significant unmet or poorly met medical need.  

ReNeuron has used its unique stem cell technologies to develop cell-based therapies for significant disease conditions where the cells can be readily administered "off-the-shelf" to any eligible patient without the need for additional immunosuppressive drug treatments.  ReNeuron's lead candidate is its ReN001 stem cell therapy for the treatment of patients left disabled by the effects of a stroke. This therapy is currently in clinical development.  The Company is also developing stem cell therapies for other conditions such as peripheral arterial disease, a serious and common side-effect of diabetes, and blindness-causing diseases of the retina.

ReNeuron has also developed a range of stem cell lines for non-therapeutic applications - its ReNcell^®products for use in academic and commercial research.  The Company's ReNcell^®CX and ReNcell^®VM neural cell lines are marketed worldwide under license by USA-based Merck Millipore.

ReNeuron's shares are traded on the London AIM market under the symbol RENE.L.  Further information on ReNeuron and its products can be found at www.reneuron.com.

This announcement contains forward-looking statements with respect to the financial condition, results of operations and business achievements/performance of ReNeuron and certain of the plans and objectives of management of ReNeuron with respect thereto. These statements may generally, but not always, be identified by the use of words such as "should", "expects", "estimates", "believes" or similar expressions. This announcement also contains forward-looking statements attributed to certain third parties relating to their estimates regarding the growth of markets and demand for products. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty because they reflect ReNeuron's current expectations and assumptions as to future events and circumstances that may not prove accurate.  A number of factors could cause ReNeuron's actual financial condition, results of operations and business achievements/performance to differ materially from the estimates made or implied in such forward-looking statements and, accordingly, reliance should not be placed on such statements.

 

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