Arteriocyte Announces the Launch of NANEX™ Stem Cell Expansion System at the Upcoming American Society of Cell Biology Meeting

CLEVELAND, Dec. 2, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Arteriocyte, Inc., a leading clinical stage biotechnology company with offices in Cleveland, Ohio, and Hopkinton, Massachusetts, that develops proprietary stem cell and tissue engineering based therapies announced today the launch of its first commercially available Stem Cell Expansion System for research use. The NANEX™ Hematopoietic stem cell expansion kit will be featured at the 50th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Cell Biology in Philadelphia December 11th-15th. The NANEX™ platform consists of a biofunctional nanofiber-based 3D scaffold designed to mimic the microenvironmental cues from the bone marrow niche, permitting rapid ex vivo proliferation of hematopoietic stem cells with minimal differentiation. The NANEX™ Stem Cell Expansion Kit will enable researchers to more cost effectively expand hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) for use in studying mechanisms of hematopoiesis and angiogenesis, investigating disease mechanisms for cardiovascular and blood diseases, and for the pre-clinical development of cell-based therapies using cultured HSCs.

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Arteriocyte's NANEX™ Hematopoietic Stem Cell Expansion Kit represents the company's first commercial research product offering based on propriety stem cell expansion technology developed by Dr. Hai-Quan Mao of the Johns Hopkins University, supported by funding from the National Institutes of Health and National Science Foundation, and under exclusive license to Arteriocyte.

"The introduction of our NANEX™ stem cell culturing plates into the research community represents another important step in Arteriocyte's continued commitment to advancing the understanding of the mechanisms of stem cell growth and differentiation with the ultimate goal of enabling cell based clinical therapies," said Don Brown, Chief Executive Officer, Arteriocyte, Inc. "The NANEX™ cell expansion kit is one of the first complete, easy to use kits that will enable cell-biology and cell-based research teams to rapidly and more cost effectively expand HSC's for use in their research."

Arteriocyte has multiple pre-clinical research programs centered on the NANEX technology targeting clinical applications including the treatment of ischemia, cancers of the blood system and rapid high volume ex vivo red blood cell production. Arteriocyte's clinical research collaborations include many of the world's leading academic and clinical research institutions. With support from the Ohio Third Frontier Research Commercialization Program, the company was able to establish and scale up NANEX™ manufacturing systems in its new Cleveland-based Research and Development Center.

The NANEX™ Hematopoietic Stem Cell Expansion Kit, including cultureware, expansion medium and growth supplements will be available for order following its formal launch at the American Society of Cell Biology 50th Annual Meeting at the Pennsylvania Convention Center (Philadelphia, PA). Attendees can learn more about the product at Booth 1335 from December 12th to 14th.

About Arteriocyte

Arteriocyte, a leading clinical stage biotechnology company, is dedicated in developing novel stem cell products and medical devices for unmet research and clinical needs. Arteriocyte leverages its expertise in stem cell and tissue engineering in order to develop a broad portfolio of products from enabling research tools to cell based therapeutics that improve patient outcomes. In October of 2007, Arteriocyte partnered with DW Healthcare Partners and Comerica to create Arteriocyte Medical Systems Inc., in order to commercialize and distribute novel medical devices and point of care surgical solutions to address serious unmet medical needs in cardiac, orthopedic and vascular surgeries. Today, Arteriocyte Medical Systems manufactures and distributes the Magellan® Autologous Platelet Separator System which is used in over 800 surgical centers worldwide.

For Detailed NANEX™ Product Information, Ordering, or Business Partnering Opportunities, please call Customer Service at (866) 660-2674.

SOURCE Arteriocyte, Inc.