Biotech company opens high-end adult stem cell production facility for the development of regenerative therapies at Europarc Dreilinden.

Berlin-Brandenburg, 27 November 2006. The Korean company FCB (Future Cell Bank)-Pharmicell has invested 2 million US$ in the establishment of its European base. A laboratory facility for the production of adult stem cells under GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) conditions has been set up at Europarc Dreilinden. The cells produced will be made available for research purposes and for future regenerative therapy applications. The company’s head office is in Berlin, where a research laboratory is located close to the Charité. Research into stem cell therapies will be carried out in cooperation with the Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin (Europe’s largest university hospital), the German Heart Institute Berlin and, in particular, with the newly established translation centre „Berlin-Brandenburg Center for Regenerative Therapies (BCRT)“, which is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Education and Research.

FCB-Pharmicell is one of the most successful Korean companies in the area of adult stem cell therapy development. With over 30 employees it is the first Korean stem cell company to expand internationally. By 2008, 10 jobs will have been created in Berlin-Brandenburg. The company’s management is made up of an international team.  “We want to help the people” is the credo of the Korean physician and company founder, Dr. Hyunsoo Kim. The company philosophy is highly therapy-oriented, focusing on the development of new meth-ods to treat patients suffering from diseases such as stroke, heart failure or organ rejection following transplantation.

“The development of new therapies using the patient’s own (autologous) adult stem cells holds great promise for the future of medicine. Research into such therapies must be ad-vanced so that this promise can be accurately assessed and applied responsibly in the future”, says Dr. Andreas Kurtz, biologist and Scientific Director of Pharmicell Europe. Initially these therapies involve the harvesting of adult stem cells from the patient, for instance from the bone marrow. With the use of special techniques the cells are then cultivated and proliferated in the laboratory and are subsequently applied therapeutically to the same patient. Worldwide the growing field of regenerative medicine has attracted much attention; considerable amounts of money are being invested in basic research and therapy development.

On successful completion of the pre-clinical studies planned for 2007, further clinical studies are planned in cooperation with other partners in Germany and in Europe. The central location of Pharmicell Europe in the Berlin-Brandenburg region with its numerous renowned clinical and scientific institutions and outstanding business development support provides an excellent foundation for such partnerships. The decision to locate the company in Berlin-Brandenburg was made on the basis of a Europe-wide evaluation by FCB-Pharmicell Co., Ltd. and was supported, in particular, by the Technology Transfer Agency of the Technology Foundation Berlin (TSB) and the Korean Health Industry Development Initiative (KHIDI). The establishment of this innovative enterprise is supported by the TSB and the Zukunftsagentur Brandenburg (ZAB), as well as by the Interdisciplinary Research Network Regenerative Medicine (“CellNet”).