Stem cell biotech stays afloat

Written byBob Grant

| 1 min read

Listen with Speechify

0:00

1:00

Embryonic stem cell biotech company linkurl:Advanced Cell Technology;http://www.advancedcell.com/ (ACT), announced today (Oct. 7) that it will be selling off $500,000 in convertible bonds in the next three months, following the company's linkurl:disclosure;http://www.the-scientist.com/blog/display/54884/ this summer that it was experiencing financial troubles. The Massachusetts-based company told linkurl:__Mass High Tech__;http://www.masshightech.com/stories/2008/10/06/daily29-Advanced-Cell-Tech-sells-500K-in-bonds.html that it will devote money from the sale (to an Irish investment firm) towards advancing its clinical program and for general corporate use. Recently, linkurl:ACT;http://www.the-scientist.com/blog/display/54544/ has been seeking a partner to help with its preclinical programs to use embryonic stem cell therapy in treating retinal disease, blood disorders and cardiovascular disease. The company also needs funding for a program, called Myoblast, which uses adult stem cell therapy to treat heart disease. Myoblast successfully completed four Phase I clinical trials, and ACT has received clearance from the FDA to begin Phase II trials. Selling the one-year, seven percent bonds is the latest move to keep the struggling company alive in the face of waning investments in yet-to-be-developed embryonic stem cell therapies. This past July, after telling the Securities and Exchange Commission that it was essentially going out of business, an ACT spokesperson told __The Scientist__ that company officials were "killing ourselves to secure funding."

Interested in reading more?

The Scientist ARCHIVES

Become a Member of

Receive full access to more than 35 years of archives, as well as TS Digest, digital editions of The Scientist, feature stories, and much more!

Join for free today

Already a member? Login Here

Add The Scientist as a preferred Google source to see more of our trusted coverage.

Meet the Author

Bob Grant
From 2017 to 2022, Bob Grant was Editor in Chief of The Scientist, where he started in 2007 as a Staff Writer. Before joining the team, he worked as a reporter at Audubon and earned a master’s degree in science journalism from New York University. In his previous life, he pursued a career in science, getting a bachelor’s degree in wildlife biology from Montana State University and a master’s degree in marine biology from the College of Charleston in South Carolina. Bob edited Reading Frames and other sections of the magazine.
View Full Profile