




Healthcare Industry News: C-Cure
News Release - November 19, 2008
Cardio3 BioSciences SA signs a co-development agreement with Artelis SA for the industrialization of the manufacturing process of C-Cure(TM) and inaugurate its new premises in Mont-Saint-Guibert
Mont-Saint-Guibert, Belgium, November 18, 2008--(HSMN NewsFeed)-- Cardio3 BioSciences, a leading company in the field of regenerative therapies for the treatment of heart failure announces the signature of a co-development agreement with Artelis SA for the industrialization of the manufacturing process of C-Cure.C-Cure is a second generation therapy based on autologous stem cells for the treatment of chronic heart failure of ischemic origin. The clinical investigation is planned to start in the coming weeks.
Artelis has a recognized know-how in cellular cultures automation in high density bioreactors. This technology will allow industrial automation of the aseptic production of C-Cure.
This co-development is in part financed by the Direction Générale des Technologies, de la Recherche et de l’Energie (DGTRE) through recoverable cash advances, with the active support of Marie Dominique Simonet, Research Ministry of the Walloon Region.
The Cardio3 BioSciences project represents a pole of excellence in regenerative therapies, and as such has the active support of the DGTRE.
Dr. Christian Homsy, CEO of Cardio3 BioSciences: "The agreement with Artelis will accelerate our manufacturing process and make us capable of meeting the potentially huge demand for this innovative therapy. More than 6.5 million people in the western countries suffer from an advanced stage of heart failure. To date, there is no treatment aside from heart transplant that can repair the failing heart. C-Cure pre-clinical studies have demonstrated extraordinary potential to repair the heart muscle. Hence it is important to start working without delay on a process to allow up-scalability of the C-Cure production. Artelis has unique expertise in the area of high density bioreactors. We are excited about the prospects offered by this opportunity.
“We are happy to collaborate with Cardio3 BioSciences within the framework of this innovative project. Thanks to our iCELLis(TM) technology, we intend to become the leading specialized provider of industrial manufacturing solutions for regenerative therapies. Indeed, today’s lack of solutions prevents a large number of patients from benefiting from these therapies”, said Hugues Bultot, Artelis’ Chief Executive Officer.
“These are the main objectives of our collaboration: designing, developing and providing Cardio3 BioSciences with a complete production system. The latter includes an iCELLis(TM) bioreactor and the required components to perform automated aseptic operations while ensuring patient safety. In addition, the system enables us to meet Cardio3 BioSciences ambitious and challenging needs in terms of production quantity and cost saving”, added Jose Castillo, Artelis' President.
Cardio3 BioSciences is inaugurating its new premises located at Mont–Saint-Guibert, Belgium, on Tuesday November 18 in the presence of (name) mayor of Mont-Saint-Guibert, as well as the regional and federal ministers Ph. Marcourt, M.D. Simonet and D. Reynders.
Cardio3 BioSciences is a leading edge company, founded in 2007 and active in the field of regenerative therapies for the treatment of heart failure. C-Cure(TM) is a cell therapy based on the usage of autologous stem cells differentiated into cardiac precursors called cardiopoietic cells. This second generation cell therapy was developed based on research conducted with the Cardiovascular Center of Aalst, Belgium, and the Mayo Clinic® Rochester, USA. For more information, please visit www.c3bs.com
Artelis is an international biotech company and the privileged partner of world-leading pharmaceutical groups. Artelis provides the biotech industry with innovative process intensification solutions in the field of cell culture. Artelis is developing iCELLis(TM)- a scalable high-cell-density disposable cell culture technology. iCELLis(TM) enables process intensification by reducing manufacturing scales and simplifying operations. For more information, please visit www.artelis.be.
Source: Cardio3 BioSciences
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