Will the treatment of blindness lift Advanced Cell out of the financial pit?
An experiment on the treatment of blindness with stem cells has been launchedDmitry Tselikov, Compulenta
American surgeons implanted retinal cells grown in the laboratory into the eyes of two patients who went blind due to macular degeneration.
The operation was performed by Stephen Schwartz from the Eye Institute. Jules Stein of the University of California, Los Angeles. The experiment is funded by Advanced Cell Technology, a biotech company that recently received permission from the Food and Drug Administration to test the method among 24 patients suffering from either the dry age form of the named disease or from juvenile macular degeneration (Stargardt's disease).
Two patients (names are not disclosed) are among the first volunteers to receive treatment using embryonic stem cells. Last year, another biotech company, Geron, started a small study using stem cells in an attempt to get rid of spinal cord injuries.
Researchers regard the experiment with blindness as an important milestone. It's also a significant step for Advanced Cell, a tiny firm that has long been at the center of discussions about stem cells. Opponents of abortion have repeatedly staged pickets outside her office, scaring off investors. Twice the company dismissed almost all of its employees due to the fact that the contents of bank accounts were approaching zero.
"It was kind of crazy," recalls Robert Lanza, medical director of Advanced Cell and one of 22 full–time employees. – Times have finally changed. It's much calmer now."
The start of clinical trials is likely to make investors interested. The share price of Advanced Cell has risen by 170% over the past year, and yesterday the capitalization of the company reached $ 285 million. Experts believe that if the experiment is successful, the company's value could amount to billions: almost 10 million Americans suffer from some form of macular degeneration.
So far, however, embryonic stem cells are losing money. Advanced Cell was founded in the mid-nineties, and since then its losses have exceeded $180 million. In recent years, the firm has had to develop programs for cloning cattle and abandon controversial efforts to clone human embryos in favor of a narrower approach.
Prepared based on the materials of Technology Review: Two Patients Undergo Stem-Cell Blindness Treatment
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