Osiris Therapeutics Inc., once hailed as a bellwether for Baltimore's biotechnology industry only to fall on rough times, now hopes that it has achieved the kind of scientific breakthrough needed to combat investor skepticism.
The company, which has labs and offices in Fells Point, develops products deigned to regenerate human connective tissues such as muscle, bone and cartilage. Its experimental products, two of which are being tested in patients, are derived from stem cells, the progenitor cells that lead to all others in the body.
While the ability to repair damaged heart muscle or to regenerate injured neurons might seem like something out of science fiction, research in the field has been advancing at a number of companies. Among them are: Publicly traded Geron Corp. of Menlo Park, Calif.; NeuralStem Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. of College Park; and PPL Therapeutics PLC, another public company, which cloned the sheep Dolly.
Until recently, Osiris didn't have evidence to show that it might be able to regenerate tissue without using stem cells harvested from the bone marrow of patients or their "matched" relatives. And that, investors worried, would make Osiris' products too costly and inconvenient to be of much use.
"What we've been able to show over the last year is that mesenchymal stem cells are not recognized by the immune system," Osiris Chief Executive Officer Annamarie B. Moseley said, referring to the kind of stem cells Osiris uses.
Early evidence suggests that the cells don't spur patients' bodies to reject the resulting tissues - no matter who donated the stem cells.
"As a result," she said, "these cells have the ability to be used in a broad way without the need for matching."
The company is focusing on "off the shelf" products that can be made from adult stem cells harvested from unrelated donors, then stored until a patient needs them.
The approach would cut the cost of producing Osiris' products 10- to 20-fold, making the prices more in line with traditional therapies, the company said. It also may make it possible for the stem cell products to be used in emergencies.
Still, it remains to be seen whether the preliminary evidence of Osiris' advances, presented at a recent series of scientific conferences, will be enough to attract investors.
Osiris needs an infusion of money because the company has only enough funds to keep operating through the middle of this year, Moseley has said.
