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JDRF continuing support of type 1 diabetes encapsulated cell therapy research
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The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation announced its continued support of upcoming clinical trials for an investigational encapsulated cell therapy to treat type 1 diabetes.
VC-01, a treatment being developed by Viacyte, is a cell replacement therapy that hopes to manage type 1 diabetes by supplying another source of insulin-producing cells and lessening dependence on external insulin. According to the release, this product candidate uses pancreatic progenitor cells from a stem cell line; these cells are then encapsulated within a drug delivery system inserted under the skin.
JDRF pledged up to $7 million to ensure transition of the project to clinical development upon completion of ViaCyte’s investigational new drug application to the FDA. This pledge builds upon the foundation’s previous $6 million of support for the company’s preclinical research.
“We look forward to our continued work with ViaCyte as we help fund the upcoming clinical trials for the VC-01 product candidate, an important milestone to advance this promising encapsulated cell therapy,” Jeffrey Brewer, JDRF president and chief executive officer, said in a press release. “A product like VC-01 could someday be a key step in helping JDRF achieve its vision of creating a world without type 1 diabetes.”
The company plans to submit the IND in the next quarter of 2014 and, if there are no objections, to begin in-patient testing mid-year, according to the release.