Cuorips, a spinout from Osaka University, has sold an option right for the commercialisation of a treatment for severe heart failure to Daiichi Sankyo in return for an undisclosed sum.
Cuorips, a Japan-based cardiac therapy developer spun out from Osaka University, has secured an undisclosed amount from pharmaceutical firm Daiichi Sankyo.
The investment was made as part of an agreement that gives the corporate an option right for the worldwide commercialisation of Cuorip’s technology, called iPS-derived cardiomyocyte sheet, a cell therapy for patients suffering from severe heart failure.
The treatment uses induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells, which can be generated directly from a donor’s mature cells and differentiated into any organ. It offers an alternative to patients who would otherwise require a heart or artificial heart transplant.
The technology is based on research led by Yoshiki Sawa, professor at the Graduate School of Medicine’s Department of Cardiovascular Surgery.
Sawa developed the therapy through his participation in the Research Center Network for Realization of Regenerative Medicine, operated by the research organisation Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development.
Cuorips is currently gearing up for clinical research and an investigator-initiated clinical trial.