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Regenerative Medicine: The road to healing
Blood vessels from the bioreactor
One example of a promising strategic partnership is the Company’s collaboration with Humacyte, Inc. The u.s.-based biotechnology and regenerative medicine start-up has developed a revolutionary technology: Humacyte grows blood vessels from donated smooth muscle cells in a bioreactor. Dr. Jeffrey Lawson, CEO of Humacyte and a vascular surgeon, describes the benefits for dialysis patients: “Because our human acellular vessel no longer contains human cells, this vessel can be implanted in the patient without the risk of rejection.” Compared to synthetic transplants, the technology is expected to result in fewer complications, infections, and fewer surgical procedures. “In the future, our blood vessels could potentially offer hemodialysis patients a safer and more durable vascular access, as well as a shorter catheter contact time depending upon the outcome of our investigation trials,” says Lawson.
In 2018, Fresenius Medical Care acquired a 19 percent stake in Humacyte as well as the global exclusive rights to market the biotechnologically manufactured blood vessel “Humacyl” for a combined investment of 150 million U.S. dollars. “We were immediately impressed by the technology,” says Schermeier, explaining what lies behind the investment. The Company aims to further develop the invention and bring it to global markets.
Humacyl is currently in phase III clinical trials in the U.S., Europe and Israel. Once these trials have been completed, the company intends to apply for regulatory approval in the U.S. and Europe. The strategic partnership is a win for both companies: “Fresenius Medical Care gets new technology from us that will allow them to help improve vascular access for dialysis patients even further in the future,” says Lawson. “We at Humacyte have the opportunity of early and direct market entry.”
About Regenerative Medicine
Regenerative medicine is all about healing rather than repairing. The aim is to fully restore body functions that have been lost as a result of an accident or illness. It might even enable us to slow down our aging process. The new technologies include lab-grown biomaterials, tissue engineering, and stem cell or gene therapies. The goal is always the same: to permanently restore the healthy, functional, original state of affected tissue as far as possible.