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Type 1 diabetes (T1D), formerly known as juvenile diabetes, is a chronic, life-threatening disease that affects millions of people worldwide. In the United States, 30,000 new cases are estimated every year with half of those cases diagnosed in young children. Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease in which the patient`s immune system goes awry and attacks and destroys the pancreatic beta cells. Beta cells are responsible for regulating blood sugar (glucose) levels by producing precise amounts of the essential hormone insulin. The discovery of injectable insulin in the 1920s changed T1D from a uniformly fatal disease with a life expectancy of months to one that could be carefully managed for decades through multiple daily blood glucose measurements and insulin injections. However, insulin injections are not a cure and patients face a lifetime of difficult disease management and serious complications including kidney failure, blindness and nerve damage. Despite nearly a century passing since the discovery of insulin, insulin injection remains the only treatment available to patients. Semma Therapeutics was founded to develop transformative therapies for patients who currently depend on insulin injections. Recent work in the laboratory of Professor Douglas Melton led to the discovery of a method to generate billions of functional, insulin-producing beta cells in the laboratory. These cells develop in islet-like clusters grown from stem cells. Initial preclinical work in animal models of diabetes has shown that transplantation of these cells are sufficient to control blood glucose levels. This breakthrough technology has been exclusively licensed to Semma Therapeutics for the development of a cell-based therapy for diabetes. Ongoing research at Semma Therapeutics is focused on combining these proprietary cells with a state-of-the-art cell delivery and immune protection strategy that can protect these cells from the patient`s immune system and allow the beta cells to function as they do in non-diabetic individuals. Implantation of the beta cell-filled device has the potential to provide a true replacement for the missing beta cells in a diabetic patient and would not require patient immunosuppression. Semma Therapeutics is working to bring this new therapeutic option to the clinic and improve the lives of patients with diabetes.
Epitopix is a Willmar, MN-based company in the Healthcare, Pharmaceuticals, and Biotech sector.
MonoSol Rx is a specialty pharmaceutical company leveraging its proprietary PharmFilm® drug delivery technology to develop products that improve patient outcomes and address unmet needs. These pharmaceutical and over-the-counter products are developed independently and with partners. PharmFilm can provide a benefit to patients by improving the efficacy, safety, and convenience of currently marketed pharmaceutical products. PharmFilm enhances new pharmaceutical products with the unique, multi-faceted value proposition afforded by film delivery. MonoSol Rx`s leadership in film drug delivery is supported by strong IP protection, a robust pipeline of prescription drug formulations, and two FDA-approved products — Suboxone® (buprenorphine and naloxone) sublingual film and Zuplenz® (ondansetron) oral soluble film.
Audentes is a biotechnology company committed to the development and commercialization of innovative new medicines for people with serious, rare muscle diseases. We are a passionate, energetic team driven by the goals of improving the lives of patients and building a successful business. We take pride in strong, global relationships with the patient, research, and medical communities.
Kyverna Therapeutics is pioneering a new class of therapies and cures for serious autoimmune diseases. Our therapeutic platform combines advanced T cell engineering and synthetic biology technologies to suppress and eliminate the autoreactive immune cells at the root cause of disease. Kyverna is venture-backed and located in the San Francisco East Bay.