Terminally ill patients from around the world, including Turkey, Iran, and Lebanon, have applied for life-saving stem cell treatment in a clinical trial of Brainstorm Cell Therapeutics Ltd. (Bulletin Board:BCLI) at Hadassah Medical Organization Ein Kerem in Jerusalem. The applications followed the company's presentation at international conferences on stem cells held in London and New York.
Brainstorm Cell is developing treatments, based on its NurOwn technology platform, for currently incurable neurodegenerative diseases. The company is focused on developing autologous NTF cells from the patient's own bone marrow in order to treat Parkinson, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease), and spinal cord injury.
In February, Brainstorm Cell and Hadassah signed a cooperation agreement for a clinical trial of the company's ALS treatment, and the company is now waiting for Ministry of Health go-ahead for the trial.
The Turkish applicants applied in writing to the company. The Iranians registered on the company's website, presumably because letters addressed to Israel would not be delivered.
Brainstorm Cell's share closed at $0.25 yesterday, giving a market cap of $22 million. The share price has risen 400% since August 2009, following a series of positive announcements about progress in its research ahead of the planned clinical trial.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on June 8, 2010
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