SAN FRANCISCO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / September 17, 2014 / Accurexa Inc. (the "Company") ACXA announced today that it has entered into an exclusive license agreement (the "UCSF License") with the University of California, San Francisco ("UCSF") in regards to the exclusive global licensing of a medical stereotactic device (the "UCSF device"), which the Company believes has the potential to significantly improve the delivery of stem cells into the human brain and enhance the efficacy of a wide range of stem cell therapeutics. Beyond stem cells, the platform technology of the UCSF device can also enable the delivery of cell-based therapeutics, gene therapies, and traditional drugs and drug infusions into the human brain.
"We are pleased that we were able to add this innovative medical platform technology to our portfolio. We believe that this device, which was developed by Dr. Daniel Lim's team at UCSF, has the potential to add significant value to our Company and deliver attractive returns to our shareholders," said George Yu, the Company's President & CEO.
The Stem Cell industry is one of the fastest growing and most compelling areas in medicine with numerous companies and research institutions spending hundreds of millions of dollars per year on the development of new therapies and devices. The Company believes that the UCSF device could become the preferred tool for the deployment of stem cells into the human brain for any company or clinician conducting clinical trials and providing experimental treatment in this field. Therefore, the use of the device could become analogous to the use of 'picks and shovels' during the historical gold rush and allow the Company to pursue such a picks-and-shovels business model by participating in the growth of the Stem Cell industry as a provider of tools and resources.
The Opportunity in the Stem Cell Market
There are numerous companies worldwide that are currently doing research with Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell technologies. According to the VisionGain Stem Cell Industry Report 2012-2013, the estimated market size for regenerative medicine will be $10.7 billion in 2017 ramping up to approximately $22 billion by 2020.
About The UCSF Device
More than 9 million patients in the United States suffer from a wide range of neurological disorders including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, epilepsy, and multiple sclerosis. Promising stem cell therapies for these disorders are being developed, but most require direct delivery of such cell-based therapeutics to specific brain regions.
Currently available neurosurgical devices can deliver a straight, rigid needle to single brain locations. However, this basic strategy limits the size and "shape" of the brain treatment area. In order to deliver to larger and more complex brain targets, the surgeon needs to penetrate the brain multiple times with such straight needles, which may increase the risk of bleeding and stroke, and may reduce the efficacy of stem cell therapeutics due to reflux, whereby cells injected using straight needles can flow back out to the brain surface along the needle's path.
The UCSF device enables the radial deployment of a flexible delivery catheter to large and anatomically complex brain targets through a single initial brain penetration. Thus, the device allows clinicians to "tailor" therapeutic stem cell delivery to individual patient anatomy and specific disease targets, which may enhance the efficacy of a wide range of stem cell therapies. The UCSF device also gives surgeons more precise control of the volume of cells delivered and ensure that the cells delivered into the brain stay in the brain, avoiding the problem of reflux out to the brain surface. This modern and "easy to use" platform technology allows "real-time" monitoring of therapeutic delivery under interventional MRI guidance (iMRI), which can improve the accuracy of cell delivery, reduce the risk of complications, and increase patient safety.
The device was developed at UCSF with $1.8 million in funding from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM). This initial funding of basic research and development has alleviated much of the early risk associated with developing a new breakthrough technology.
The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine was created by California's Proposition 71 in 2004, which authorized it to issue $3 billion in grants over ten years for embryonic stem cell and other biomedical research. It is believed to be the world's largest single backer of research in stem cells.
UCSF has a patent pending on the intellectual property of the device.
About UC San Francisco
UCSF is the nation's leading university exclusively focused on health. Now celebrating the 150th anniversary of its founding as a medical college, UCSF is dedicated to transforming health worldwide through advanced biomedical research, graduate-level education in the life sciences and health professions, and excellence in patient care. It includes top-ranked graduate schools of dentistry, medicine, nursing and pharmacy; a graduate division with world-renowned programs in the biological sciences, a preeminent biomedical research enterprise and two top-tier hospitals, UCSF Medical Center and UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital San Francisco. Please visit www.ucsf.edu.
About Accurexa, Inc.
The Company is focused on developing and commercializing innovative medical device technologies and has licensed two technologies from UCSF and the University of Arkansas, respectively. Besides the UCSF device, the Company has been developing its highly sensitive iV3 device for in vivo, real-time, non-invasive detection of metastatic CTCs (circulating tumor cells) in the bloodstream of cancer patients. iV3 can also potentially destroy CTCs directly and is based on a proprietary photoacoustic laser technology. Additional information about the Company may be found on its website, www.accurexa.com.
Safe Harbor Statement
This release contains certain "forward-looking statements" relating to the business of the Company. All statements, other than statements of historical fact included herein are "forward-looking statements" including statements regarding: the ability of the Company to perform per its license agreement with UCSF and meet its obligations; the ability of the Company to successfully develop and commercialize the UCSF device and execute its business plan; the business strategy, plans, and objectives of the Company; and any other statements of non-historical information. These forward-looking statements are often identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "believes," "expects" or similar expressions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, they do involve assumptions, risks, and uncertainties, and these expectations may prove to be incorrect. Investors should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this news release. The Company's actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of a variety of factors, including those discussed in the Company's periodic reports that are filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and available on its website (http://www.sec.gov). All forward-looking statements attributable to the Company or persons acting on its behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by these factors. Other than as required under the securities laws, the Company does not assume any duty to update these forward-looking statements.
UC Disclaimer
The information stated above was prepared by Accurexa, Inc., and reflects solely the opinion of the Company. Nothing in this statement shall be construed to imply any support or endorsement of Accurexa, Inc., or any of its products, by The Regents of the University of California, its officers, agents and employees.
CONTACT:
Investor Relations
Info@accurexa.com
SOURCE: Accurexa Inc.
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Trade confidently with insights and alerts from analyst ratings, free reports and breaking news that affects the stocks you care about.
