Date: 2014-09-10
Type of information: Grant
Company: Beta-O2 (Israel)
Investors: JDRF (USA - NY)
Amount: $0.5 million
Funding type: grant
Planned used: The grant will be used to help fund a $1M pilot human study of Beta-O2’s ßAir bio-artificial pancreas, in development as a treatment and potential cure for type 1 diabetes. The two-year study, which will enroll eight participants at Uppsala University Hospital in Sweden, will evaluate the safety, survival and function of implanted human islets of Langerhans in the system. ßAir is an implantable macroencapsulation system composed of an immune protection unit (about two and a half inches across) connected to ports through which oxygen can be periodically injected to support the survival of the enclosed beta cells or islets. Extensive pre-clinical studies demonstrated significantly strong results. ßAir has also experienced early success in the clinic. A 63-year-old patient in Europe with type 1 diabetes received the implant and was followed for 10 months. Persistent graft function in the device was demonstrated, with regulated insulin secretion and preservation of islet morphology and function without any immunosuppressive therapy.
Others: * On September 10, 2014, Beta-O2 announced that it has received a $500K grant from JDRF. This global organization focused on type 1 diabetes research is partnering with Beta-O2 in order to speed up the testing of ßAir, an implantable macroencapsulation system composed of an immune protection unit (about two and a half inches across) connected to ports through which oxygen can be periodically injected to support the survival of the enclosed beta cells or islets.
Therapeutic area: Metabolic diseases - Regenerative medicine
