Stemedica Cell Technologies Reports Positive Data in Allogeneic Stem Cells Study

Stemedica Cell Technologies announced positive results from its Phase I/IIa clinical study for the treatment of ischemic stroke.

In a multi-center, open-label Phase I/IIa study, ischemic tolerant mesenchymal stem cells (itMSCs) achieved safety, tolerability, and preliminary efficacy objectives. The data demonstrated that itMSCs administered intravenously appeared to be safe and well tolerated. No serious adverse events or clinically significant changes in lab and imaging measurements were reported. Results of the study are supportive of advancing the clinical program.

"We are excited to move our ischemic stroke program forward," said Craig Carlson, Chief Executive Officer of Stemedica. "Approximately 800,000 people in the U.S. suffer strokes each year and 87% of all strokes are ischemic strokes, costing the U.S. an estimated $34 billion each year in health care services, medicines, and missed days of work. There are currently no treatments approved by the FDA to reduce the severity of neurological disabilities resulting from ischemic stroke. Stemedica's itMSCs have the potential to address this significant and unmet need."

"Stemedica's Phase I/IIa clinical results demonstrated product safety as well as preliminary efficacy results indicating potentially significant clinical benefits for patients with ischemic stroke," said Dr. Michael Levy, principal investigator in the study, Chief of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Rady Children's Hospital-San Diego, and Clinical Professor of Surgery at UC San Diego School of Medicine.

"The positive results of this clinical trial give Stemedica important insight into how our hypoxia-induced cGMP-manufactured itMSCs perform within an ischemic environment of stroke brain tissue as it relates to safety and potential efficacy," said Nikolai Tankovich, M.D., Ph.D., President and Chief Medical Officer of Stemedica. "These results are also interesting in light of the fact that patients enrolled in the study had a minimum post-stroke time of 6 months at baseline with some patients having suffered a stroke more than 20 years prior to treatment."

Following a meeting with the FDA anticipated in the first half of 2019, Stemedica plans to initiate a Phase IIb trial. Detailed safety data and clinical results from the Phase I/IIa study with itMSCs will be published and presented at a future medical conference.

The Phase I/IIa, multi-center, open-label, two-part study assessed the safety, tolerability, and preliminary efficacy of a single intravenous dose of itMSCs to subjects with ischemic stroke. In the first part of the study, 15 subjects received intravenously one dose of 0.5 million cells per kilogram of itMSCs (n = 5), 1.0 million cells per kilogram of itMSCs (n = 5), or 1.5 million cells per kilogram of itMSCs (n = 5). In the second part of the study, 21 subjects received 1.5 million cells per kilogram of itMSCs. The primary endpoint was the safety of treatment with itMSCs during the twelve-month study period as determined by the incidence and severity of adverse events, clinically-significant changes on clinical laboratory tests, vital signs, physical and neurologic examinations.

Ischemic Stroke is a sudden neurological deficit caused by the occlusion of an artery delivering blood to the brain. When this happens, a part of the brain is deprived of oxygen and nutrients. This deprivation results in a cerebral infarction, which provokes neurological damages that result in severe disabilities or death if it lasts more than several minutes or hours. It is characterized by a quick onset, instantaneously or within minutes, and typically affects one half of the body with hemiplegia and unilateral blindness but also speech impairment.

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