Washington, DC USA and Cologne GERMANY
Axiogenesis AG, a leading global provider of in vitro models of healthy and diseased human cell types derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC), announced today that they have joined the Cardiac Safety Technical Committee (CSC) of the ILSI Health & Environmental Sciences Institute (HESI).
A leading cause of pharmaceuticals failing in development, and in the market, is due to cardiac safety concerns. The current drug development paradigm, including animal testing, lacks translation to human clinical trials. The pharmaceutical industry is seeking new models early in development to better predict potential safety concerns in patients.
"The goals of the HESI CSC and Axiogenesis align perfectly", said Heribert Bohlen MD, CEO of Axiogenesis. "We need to work together as an industry to establish new and better technologies for early safety assessment."
With the advent of human iPSC-derived cardiac cells, such as Axiogenesis' Cor.4U® human cardiomyocytes, pharmaceutical companies can now easily and cost-effectively test large numbers of drug compounds in early development to evaluate effects on human heart tissue. Further, these cell systems do not involve controversial human embryonic tissue.
Axiogenesis will also participate in the Myocyte Working Group of the Comprehensive in vitro Proarrhythmia Assay (CiPA) initiative, for which HESI is a partner.
"The biggest concern to a drug company is to find a cardiac liability late in development, after already investing millions of dollars", said Bohlen. "It is best to understand the risks early so the compound pipeline can be managed, resulting in more safe therapies for patients."
About Axiogenesis AG
Since 2000, Axiogenesis has been in business to capture the promise of stem cells to revolutionize the fields of drug discovery & development and life sciences research. Axiogenesis develops and commercializes stem cell-derived, in vitro differentiated cardiomyocytes and other cell types, as well as drug development assays and disease models, to help researchers discover cures. Visit www.axiogenesis.com.
About HESI
HESI was established in 1989 as a global branch of the International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI) to provide an international forum to advance the understanding of scientific issues related to human health, toxicology, risk assessment, and the environment. HESI's mission is to engage scientists from academia, government, industry, research institutes, and NGOs to identify and resolve global health and environmental issues. Visit www.hesiglobal.org.
Media Contacts:
Axiogenesis AG
Felix von Haniel
Director of Business Development
+49 221 998818-0
[email protected]
HESI
Jennifer Pierson, MPH
Scientific Program Manager
202-659-3306 ext 158
[email protected]