Bio-Matrix Scientific has retained a private grant R&D firm to pursue both private and public sector grant funding of research in the area of stem cell therapy for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), conducted by Entest BioMedical (Entest).
Reportedly, Entest is preparing to undertake small sample testing of its patent pending stem cell technology for COPD. Grant funding from private and public sources will allow the company to move rapidly towards filing an Investigational New Drug (IND) application with the FDA on this novel treatment. Once the IND has been approved, the company anticipates moving forward into large scale clinical trials.
A company spokesperson noted that substantial grant funding opportunities exist for the company in this area. Both private and public organisations are extremely interested in supporting stem cell therapy research which demonstrates a potential for the successful treatment of COPD as there is currently no cure for COPD.
David Koos, chairman and CEO of Bio-Matrix, said: “We believe our research in COPD could offer improvement and new hope for patients suffering from this debilitating condition. Utilizing a firm that specialises in sourcing private and public sector grant funding will allow us to move our research forward much faster, so that we may make stem cell treatment for COPD available to physicians and patients as quickly as possible. More than 12m people are currently diagnosed with COPD. An additional 12m likely have the disease but are not yet diagnosed.”