ALAMEDA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
BioTime, Inc. (NYSE American: BTX), a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on degenerative diseases, today announced that data from the ongoing OpRegen® trial will be presented at the upcoming Fifth Annual Retinal Cell and Gene Therapy Innovation Summit. The presentation will take place on April 27th, 2018 from 8:15am – 8:30am local time, in Honolulu, Hawaii. The OpRegen® data will be presented by one of our principal investigators, Dr. Eyal Banin, Hadassah Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel.
The summit takes place just prior to the 2018 annual meeting of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, where BioTime is expected to present in two separate sessions. The Retinal Cell and Gene Therapy Innovation Summit is becoming one of the world’s most comprehensive overviews of the promising research underway for emerging gene, cell, and novel therapies targeting multiple degenerative and inherited retinal diseases. The summit will advance collaborative efforts among physicians, industry, and scientists to address the large unmet needs associated with these diseases.
About OpRegen®
OpRegen®, which is being studied for the treatment of the dry form of AMD, consists of a suspension of retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells that are delivered subretinally during a simple intraocular injection. RPE cells are essential components of the back lining of the retina, and function to help nourish the retina including photoreceptors. A proprietary process that drives the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells is used to generate high purity OpRegen® RPE cells. OpRegen® RPE cells are also “xeno-free," meaning that no animal products are used at any point in the derivation and production process. The avoidance of the use of animal products eliminates some potential safety concerns. Preclinical studies in rats have shown that following a single subretinal injection of OpRegen®, the cells can rapidly organize into its natural monolayer structure in the subretinal space and survive throughout the lifetime of the animal. OpRegen® is designed to be an “off-the-shelf” allogeneic (non-patient specific) product. Unlike treatments that require multiple, frequent injections into the eye, it is expected that OpRegen® will be administered in a single procedure. OpRegen® was granted Fast Track designation from the FDA, which allows more frequent interactions with the agency, and eligibility for accelerated approval and priority review. OpRegen® is a registered trademark of Cell Cure Neurosciences Ltd., a majority-owned subsidiary of BioTime, Inc.
About BioTime, Inc.
BioTime is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on degenerative diseases. Its clinical programs are based on two platform technologies: cell replacement and cell/drug delivery. With its cell replacement platform, BioTime is creating new cells and tissues with its proprietary pluripotent cell technologies. These cells and tissues are developed to replace those that are either rendered dysfunctional or lost due to degenerative diseases. BioTime’s cell/drug delivery programs are based upon its proprietary HyStem® cell and drug delivery matrix technology. HyStem® was designed to provide for the transfer, retention, engraftment and metabolic support of cellular replacement therapies. BioTime’s lead cell delivery clinical program is Renevia®, which consists of HyStem® combined with the patient's own adipose (fat) progenitor cells, Renevia® met its primary endpoint in an EU pivotal clinical trial for the treatment of facial lipoatrophy in HIV patients in 2017. BioTime has submitted Renevia® for CE Mark approval in the EU. There were no device related serious adverse events reported to date. BioTime’s lead cell replacement product candidate is OpRegen®, a retinal pigment epithelium transplant therapy, which is in a Phase I/IIa multicenter clinical trial for the treatment of dry age-related macular degeneration, the leading cause of blindness in developing countries. There were no related serious adverse events reported to date. BioTime also has significant equity holdings in two publicly traded companies, Asterias Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NYSE American: AST) and OncoCyte Corporation (NYSE American: OCX), and a private company, AgeX Therapeutics, Inc.
BioTime common stock is traded on the NYSE American and TASE under the symbol BTX. For more information, please visit www.biotime.com or connect with the company on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube, and Google+.
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