Korean Company Launches iPSCs Osteoarthritis Trial
Biotech company YiPSCELL breaks ground on a new trial, will head to safety & efficacy trials soon.
Korean biotech company YiPSCELL has reportedly broken new ground by administering induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) therapy in osteoarthritis patients for the first time in Korea.
According to Korean news outlet mk.co.kr, it appears this is part of a joint clinical trial (no pun intended) with Seoul Saint Mary’s College, where they’ll apply a three-dimensional formulation of iPSC-derived therapies as an injectable treatment.
If you aren’t aware, iPSCs are stem cells created by taking an adult’s cells, introducing specific genes in the right lab conditions, which reprogram them into a pluripotent state, similar to embryonic stem cells. They hold a lot of promise for a wide range of conditions, with potentially less immune rejection risk compared to allogeneic stem cells (from someone else’s body).
An interesting detail they mentioned: We all know that Osteoarthritis is difficult for the body to heal from due to the low blood supply. However, YiPSCELL thinks this may be an advantage for stem cell therapy. Low blood supply = fewer immune cells/antibodies, and rejection responses may be mitigated.
(This is translated from Korean, so apologies if it got it wrong) Dr. Nam Yoo-Jun from YiPSCELL mentioned, “Even if other-derived iPSC-cartilage spheroid with mismatched histocompatibility antigens (HLA) is injected into the joint cavity of degenerative arthritis patients, it is unlikely that acute or chronic severe immune rejection will occur. The implication of preclinical and clinical studies to date is that cartilage regeneration can be safely expected without immunosuppressants.”
However, the company notes that localized immune responses remain possible, and further research and preparations are needed.
Unfortunately, if you’re in the USA, it’s difficult to view their website, but we’ll keep our eyes on the news:
https://yipscell.com/
