MARLBOROUGH, MA –July 27, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE). Advanced Cell Technology, Inc. (“ACT”; OTCBB:ACTC) announced today that it has submitted documentation and a complete response to substantively address the issues raised by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in connection with the Company’s plans to initiate a Phase I/II multicenter study using embryonic stem (ES) cell derived retinal cells to treat patients with Stargardt’s Macular Dystrophy (SMD). In November 2009, ACT filed an Investigational New Drug (IND) Application to commence treating patients. ACT believes the design of its product and the choice of SMD, from a safety standpoint, represents an ideal cellular product to gain early experience and knowledge about ES cell safety.
The additional details submitted to the FDA support the Company’s belief that the product would be safe and well tolerated by patients. The Company’s process for differentiating ES cells to retinal pigmented epithelial (RPE) cells is not permissive to ES cell persistence in the culture. In fact, no stem cells could be detected even when the RPE cells were spiked during culture with up to 10 percent ES cells. “Our batch release assay has a level of detection of less than 0.0001% for ES cell contamination of RPE cell cultures,” said Robert Lanza, M.D., Chief Scientific Officer at ACT. “We can detect a single stem cell in over a million RPE cells. This is especially significant considering the small number of cells (50,000 to 200,000) to be administered into a controlled space in the eye. Stem cells can’t persist in our culture process, and therefore do not pose a risk of contamination of the final RPE cells to be transplanted.”
ACT’s animal models were designed to assess the safety of cells in the injected eyes. The response to the FDA provides additional data to address the specific concerns presented by the Agency. In addition, studies for tumorigenicity and safety/biodistribution were extended to the lifetime of the animals. The implanted RPE cells survived long-term in the eyes of animals, and no tumors formed as a consequence to the implanted cells. No other adverse findings associated with treatment with RPE cells were observed from histological or pathological evaluation of the animals. “We observed kinetics typical for successful transplantation of the cells,” said Edmund V. Mickunas, ACT’s Vice President of Regulatory. “Histology at all time point’s revealed persistence of human cells without inflammation or immune cell infiltration; and, without tumor formation.”
“We are extremely encouraged by this product opportunity, both in terms of safety and efficacy,” said William M. Caldwell IV, ACT’s Chairman and CEO. “We did not observe any tumorigenicity or adverse abnormal findings. We believe the inherent capability of our manufacturing process to inhibit the presence of hES cells, and the fact that the level of detection in the final batch is less than one ES cell per million, support the safety of using RPE cells in a Phase I/II Clinical Trial in humans.”
Advanced Cell Technology, Inc. is a biotechnology company applying cellular technology in the field of regenerative medicine. For more information, visit http://www.advancedcell.com.
Statements in this news release regarding future financial and operating results, future growth in research and development programs, potential applications of our technology, opportunities for the company and any other statements about the future expectations, beliefs, goals, plans, or prospects expressed by management constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any statements that are not statements of historical fact (including statements containing the words “will,” “believes,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “expects,” “estimates,” and similar expressions) should also be considered to be forward-looking statements. There are a number of important factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements, including: limited operating history, need for future capital, risks inherent in the development and commercialization of potential products, protection of our intellectual property, and economic conditions generally. Additional information on potential factors that could affect our results and other risks and uncertainties are detailed from time to time in the company’s periodic reports, including the report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2009. Forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, opinions, and expectations of the company’s management at the time they are made, and the company does not assume any obligation to update its forward-looking statements if those beliefs, opinions, expectations, or other circumstances should change. Forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, opinions, and expectations of the company’s management at the time they are made, and the company does not assume any obligation to update its forward-looking statements if those beliefs, opinions, expectations, or other circumstances should change.
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