NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – Life Technologies today announced a worldwide, non-exclusive deal with iPS Academia Japan for its induced pluripotent stem cell patent portfolio.
The agreement grants Life Tech the rights to commercialize a range of products and services designed to create iPS cells and differentiate them into any cell type for drug discovery and pre-clinical research. Life Tech will also be able to provide iPS cell creation, differentiation, and screening services to the scientific community.
"Because iPS cells are gaining greater attention for uses in drug discovery and disease research as well as other areas of biotechnology, distribution of iPS cell products or provision of services is important for gaining momentum in iPS cell research," Shosaku Murayama, president and CEO of iPS Academia Japan, said in a statement. "We believe that Life Technologies' business will contribute to boost research and development for practical application of iPS cell technology."
Life Tech President and COO Mark Stevenson added, "With this license now in place, we are furthering our commitment to the stem cell field and to developing a full breadth of products and services for our customers whether they are in basic research, drug discovery and development, or moving toward clinical applications."
Financial and other terms were not disclosed.
The deal is the second announced by Life Tech this week in the area of stem cells. Earlier it said it had reached a product commercialization agreement with Cellular Dynamics International.