Geron Bio-Med Ltd., a U.K. Company, a Geron Wholly-Owned Subsidiary

In May 1999, Geron acquired Roslin Bio-Med, a U.K. company formed by the Roslin Institute in Edinburgh, Scotland. Roslin Bio-Med held the license to the intellectual property portfolio containing the fundamental nuclear transfer patents that were exemplified by the creation of Dolly the sheep. That intellectual property license was transferred to Geron. Roslin Bio-Med became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Geron and was renamed Geron Bio-Med.

The intellectual property portfolio covering nuclear transfer in animals was subsequently conveyed to Exeter Life Sciences to form a joint venture focused on animal reproductive technologies called Start Licensing, Inc. (Start). Start was later merged with ViaGen, Inc., a leading animal genomics and livestock cloning firm.

The work at the Roslin Institute was refocused to GMP derivation of new hESC lines and the differentiation of hepatocytes, chondrocytes and osteoblasts from hESCs. All four objectives were accomplished, and in 2006, Geron formed a collaboration with the University of Edinburgh, at the University Centre for Regenerative Medicine, to advance the development of these three hESC-derived cell types.

Currently all three cell types are under preclinical development at the University of Edinburgh's MRC Centre for Regenerative Medicine (CRM), based at the Centre for Biomedical Research (CBR). The CBR combines an 870-bed teaching hospital with the University of Edinburgh's world-renowned Medical School and Research Institute on a 100-acre science park development. The CRM was launched in December 2005 to advance basic research in stem cells and regenerative medicine with the goal of translating science and technology into clinical application. Under the directorship of Professor Sir Ian Wilmut, who led the team that cloned Dolly the sheep at the Roslin Institute, the CRM is already one of the largest critical masses of basic and clinical researchers in this field in Europe. It recently received an MRC Centre Development award and full status as an MRC Centre of Excellence in stem cell research as part of the U.K.'s strategic investment in the field. For more information, visit www.scrm.ed.ac.uk.

hESC-derived hepatocytes are being developed for the treatment of liver failure and for use in cell-based assays in drug development. Chondrocytes are in development for the treatment of osteoarthritis, and osteoblasts are intended for use in the treatment of musculoskeletal disorders such as osteoporosis, bone fractures and osteoarthritis. See our Products pages for further infomation on these cell types.