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Jerusalem, Israel, May 19, 2009 --- Gamida Cell announced that the President of Israel, His Excellency Shimon Peres visited the company today for a briefing and a tour of the R&D facility.
The purpose of the visit was for the president to learn more about the stem cell industry, which he recognizes to be important. Great strides have already been made in this growing industry, with several new products expected to reach the market in the next two years. Israel and Gamida Cell are at the forefront of this progress.
President Peres said, “Your company is not only a leader in cell therapy in Israel, but also worldwide. My visit today was intriguing; the work done at Gamida Cell shows that Israel has the greatest minds and scientists. I am proud that a company like yours represents our best and brightest.”
The visit included:
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Stem Cell Industry Overview: Israel and Internationally - Dr. Aharon Schwartz, Vice President, Innovative Ventures, Teva Pharmaceuticals
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Overview of Gamida Cell and its current international Phase III ExCell study of StemEx for leukemia and lymphoma - Dr. Yael Margolin, President and CEO, Gamida Cell
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Tour of the lab - Tony Peled, Founder and VP R&D
Israel has the second largest number of scientific publications in the stem cell field; the United States ranks first. Israel is also home to more than 70 academic groups engaged in stem cell research and nearly 20 companies developing stem cell therapy related products. (Office of the Chief Scientist of Israel). There are around 300 stem cell companies worldwide, and it is estimated that the market will reach $178M in 2009, $700M in 2010, and $8.5B in 2016 (Robin R. Young, 2008).
“Gamida Cell is a prime example of Israel’s leadership in stem cell research. The Gamida Cell-Teva Joint Venture is currently conducting the last stage of its clinical testing of StemEx®, a therapy for patients with blood cancers such as leukemia and lymphoma who need a bone marrow transplantation. This is the largest multi-center cord blood transplant study for adults run by a company in the world,” said Dr. Schwartz.
“We were delighted to have the opportunity to host President Peres and to answer his questions. The Israeli government has always been supportive of the stem cell industry and of our work. Since the beginning, the Office of the Chief Scientist has awarded Gamida Cell a total of $12M in grants to develop our products, including StemEx, which we anticipate will enter the market in 2011,” said Dr. Margolin.
About Gamida Cell
Gamida Cell Ltd. is a world leader in stem cell expansion technologies and therapeutic products. The company is developing a pipeline of products in stem cell transplantation and in tissue regeneration to effectively treat debilitating and often fatal illnesses such as cancer, hematological, autoimmune and ischemic diseases. Gamida Cell’s therapeutic candidates contain populations of adult stem cells, selected from non-controversial sources such as umbilical cord blood and bone marrow, which are expanded in culture. Gamida Cell was successful in translating these proprietary expansion technologies into robust and validated manufacturing processes under GMP. Gamida Cell’s flagship product, StemEx, is now being studied as a therapy for patients with blood cancers in an international pivotal trial, called ExCell (www.stemexstudy.com), at leading transplant centers in the U.S., Europe and Israel. StemEx has orphan drug designation in the U.S. and in Europe. Gamida Cell’s current shareholders include: Elbit Imaging, Biomedical Investment, Israel Healthcare Venture, Teva Pharmaceuticals, Amgen, Denali Ventures and Auriga Ventures. Ruben Krupik is the chairman of the board of Gamida Cell.
For more information, please visit: www.gamida-cell.com.
For information regarding the ExCell study: www.stemexstudy.com.
Press contact:
Marjie Hadad, +972-54-536-5220 or marjie@gamida-cell.com.
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