Advanced Cell Technology

Advanced Cell Technology focuses on human cell therapy

Since its foundation in 1994 as a subsidiary of a poultry genetics company, Advanced Cell Technology has changed its agricultural focus into a focus on autologous regenerative medicine. The privately held company also operates the subsidiary Cyagra, Inc., which is involved in animal cloning.

William M. Caldwell IV, CEO
Michael D. West, PhD, President, Chairman & CSO
Robert Lanza, MD, Vice President of Medical & Scientific Development
James G. Stewart, Vice President & CFO
Jonathan F. Atzen, Senior Vice President & General Counsel

Michael West, Chairman
William M. Caldwell,IV
Alan C. Shapiro, PhD
Dr. Erkki Ruoslahti
Dr. Alan G. Walton

Keith H.S. Campbell, PhD
Leonard Hayflick, PhD
Peter Mombaerts, MD, PhD
Malcom A.S. Moore, D. Phil.
Shahin Rafii, MD, PhD
Erkki Ruoslahti, MD, PhD
John Sedivy, PhD

1201 Harbor Bay Parkway
Suite 120
Alameda, CA 94502
USA
Tel: +1-510-748-4900
Fax: +1-510-748-4950

ACT products with regard to regenerative medicine are targeted on Parkinson’s disease, diabetes, heart disease, macular degeneration, arthritis and cancer. In addition, ACT is also engaged in animal cloning.

ACT has developed five proprietary technologies to generate patient-specific embryonic stem cells. These autologous embryonic stem cells can differentiate into any of the approximately 260 human cell types. Somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) technology uses common body cells which are placed next to an egg cell whose nuclear DNA has been removed. By the use of electric shock, the cells fuse and the oocyte is being reprogrammed by the DNA of the body cell. The somatic cell turns into a blastocyst from which embryonic stem cells can be isolated for an immunologically compatible transplant. Advantage of this technology is the ‘rejuvenation’ of the cloned cells through the elongation of the telomers.

The company’s parthenogenesis technology is similar to SCNT except the fact of only using one egg cell from a patient which is stimulated to form an embryo. Because of the requirement of a donation of an egg cell this technology is limited only to women.

In the company’s ooplasmic transfer technology, extracts of the oocyte are fused with or injected into the somatic cells.

The company’s transdifferentiation technology has the potential of transforming a patient’s cell into another medically useful cell type also identical to the patient. Transdifferentiation may have important uses in combination with SCNT. LIFEMap (TM) screening is a process of assembling a robotic screen utilising a strategy to cause cells to emit light at various branches of the human developmental tree. Marking the cells in this manner will allow ACT to discover many of the technologies to differentiate embryonic cells into medically useful products.

The following section contains a selection of the company’s most relevant patents. For comprehensive patent information please refer to the espacenet databases.