New Retinal Disease Collaboration, NeoStem (NBS)
NBS has entered into a sponsored research agreement (SRA) with the Schepens Eye Research Institute, a charitable corporation of Massachusetts and an affiliate of Harvard Medical School. The focus of the research will be on the development of therapies for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and Glaucoma.
The research will examine in animal models the regenerative potential of NeoStem’s VSEL™ Technology in the visual system through the engraftment of very small embryonic-like stem cells.
- Very small embryonic-like stem cells are a heterogeneous population of stem cells found in adult bone marrow that have properties similar to those of embryonic stem cells;
- NeoStem has shown that very small embryonic-like stem cells can be mobilized into the peripheral blood, enabling a minimally invasive means for collecting what NeoStem believes to be an important population of stem cells that may have the potential to achieve the positive benefits associated with embryonic stem cells without the ethical or moral dilemmas or the potential negative effects associated with embryonic stem cells.
Retinal degenerative diseases such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and Glaucoma are currently the leading cause of incurable blindness in the western world. 1.8 M Americans suffer from vision loss due to AMD and an additional 7 M people are at substantial risk of suffering vision loss from AMD. By 2013, some experts agree that the cost domestically relating to AMD will be nearly $2.3 B. Currently, 4 M Americans suffer from Glaucoma at a total cost of approximately $1.5 B dollars domestically.
