Cartherics, ARMI and CCRM Australia announce new agreement for closer cooperation and collaboration
Cartherics Pty Ltd (“Cartherics”) and the Australian Regenerative Medicine Institute, including commercialisation initiative CCRM Australia, announced agreements for closer cooperation and collaboration today.
“Cartherics affiliation with ARMI is an important step in our development and will embed industry and academic excellence in regenerative medicine and translation to clinical medicine in cancer,” said Prof Alan Trounson, Cartherics CEO.
Specifically, academic appointments and access to related ARMI and Monash resources will be a key benefit to Cartherics as it further develops its novel, “off-the-shelf” (allogeneic) immune therapy products.
In turn, Institute staff and students will benefit from closer association with the rapidly developing Victorian regenerative medicine company. Immediate benefits to the Institute will include access to Cartherics’ development and commercialisation mindset, and mentoring and related support for staff and students, noted Institute Director, Prof Peter Currie.
“The Australian Regenerative Medicine Institute can only be strengthened by more closely connecting with carefully selected companies from the growing number of Australian regenerative medicine-focused start-ups and SMEs,” he said.
“ARMI is delighted to provide this opportunity for our researchers and students to align with Cartherics, a leading Victorian immunotherapy company.”
The Institute focusses on translational companies and individuals best placed to support and drive the commercial translation of ARMI research. As a result of this agreement, Institute researchers will develop a greater understanding and appreciation of industry needs, the commercialisation process and how their research can be protected and translated for commercial and healthcare gain.
Silvio Tiziani, Director, External Strategy and Planning at ARMI and CEO of CCRM Australia, added that Cartherics will also benefit as an industry member of CCRM Australia. CCRM is the commercialisation initiative hosted by the Institute that is modelled on the successful Centre for Commercialization for Regenerative medicine in Toronto, Canada.
“As a partner organisation to CCRM Australia, Cartherics will gain increased visibility to a global network of world-leading companies and access the business skills, leadership, potential funds for product development and receptor capacity for technologies and products available through the global CCRM network,” Mr Tiziani stated.
According to Prof Trounson, the affiliation of Cartherics with ARMI coincides neatly with the establishment of a new state-of-the-art facility for Cartherics just north of Monash University. He said: “It will herald a new horizon of industry-academic partnerships involving innovation and commercialization in human medicine”.
Cartherics Pty. Ltd. is a privately-held biotechnology company based in Melbourne, Australia. It is developing cell-based immunotherapies for the treatment of cancer, with a portfolio of CAR-T and CAR-NK cell products. The Company’s allogeneic (“off-the-shelf”) cell platform is based upon induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) generated from donated cord blood that can be differentiated into NK cells, T cells and other cells of the immune system. The iPSCs are genetically engineered to provide enhanced function for the derived NK and other immune cells. For further information see http://www.cartherics.com/.
About ARMI
The Australian Regenerative Medicine Institute is one of the largest regenerative medicine and stem cell research organizations globally and Australia’s only research institute specializing in regeneration and stem cells. Located on the Clayton campus of Monash University, researchers at ARMI focus on understanding the basic mechanisms of the regenerative process, aiming to eventually enable doctors to prevent, halt and reverse damage to vital organs due to disease, injury or genetic conditions. The Australian Regenerative Medicine Institute is supported by grants from the State Government of Victoria and the Australian Government.
About CCRM Australia
CCRM Australia is an Australian not-for-profit organisation supporting the development of foundational technologies to accelerate the commercialisation of regenerative medicine products and therapies. CCRM Australia’s focus is to bridge the commercialisation gap through a network of scientists, entrepreneurs, academic institutions and industry partners and address bottlenecks in the industry. CCRM Australia is modelled on the highly successful CCRM in Canada and is legally separate from CCRM. As a Global CCRM network member, CCRM Australia is a partner to a leading-edge industry consortium. MTPConnect and the Victorian State Government support CCRM Australia.
For More Information
Dr Leigh Dayton:
M: +61 (0)4 1124-4428
leighdayton@iinet.net.au
Silvio Tiziani:
M: +61 (0)4 1853 6209
silvio.tiziani@monash.edu