Merakris Therapeutics’ Lead Scientist, Sam Fagg MSc, PhD, Presents the Research Triangle Park-based Company’s Amniotic Stem Cell Co-culture
RALEIGH, NC, Feb. 28, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NEWMEDIAWIRE -- Merakris Therapeutics has developed a system designed to mimic cell-cell interactions in utero to produce maximal secreted protein output that is harvested from co-cultured stem cells. Initial experiments indicate it is a strong candidate to support early-phase wound healing.
The company’s innovative system mimics the amniotic environment through the co-culturing of amniotic epithelial cells with amniotic fluid cells, which generates a more robust secreted proteome than either cell type alone. The company's research has shown the product activates epithelial to mesenchymal transition, a critical step in early phase wound closure. Additionally, a complementary technique the company has developed also supports late-phase wound healing events known as re-epithelialization and keratinization.
Merakris Therapeutics is developing multiple regenerative medicine approaches by using stem cell secreted factors rather than live stem cells. This focus is intended to produce solutions that are scalable, stable, and contain well-characterized target therapeutic components with various applications in disease treatment as well as potential use in cosmetic applications.
The company also presented research based on its purified amniotic fluid exosome technology it is developing. The results of this research indicate that exosomes isolated from amniotic fluid promote wound healing in an in vitro assay as efficiently as total amniotic fluid. It has also developed a topical hydrogel system to provide an optimal carrier for these amniotic exosomes that shows promising results in reducing the signs of skin aging in its proof of concept studies. The company has filed multiple patents to protect its research and development discoveries.
Currently, Merakris Therapeutics supplies amniotic tissue allografts to various healthcare markets and is working to develop a comprehensive market access program for its Dermacyte® Regenerative Wound Care product line to support product adoption into physician offices.
Merakris Therapeutics, based in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, is focused on researching, developing, and marketing regenerative healthcare products. Merakris is pioneering commercially scalable biotherapeutic technologies derived from stem cells that have various clinical applications. Our vision is to improve global patient care and outcomes through the pioneering and innovation of extracellular regenerative biotechnologies.