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Sysmex Invests in iPS PORTAL, Inc., Aiming to Contribute to Regenerative Medicine

  Sysmex Corporation (HQ: Kobe, Japan; Chairman & CEO: Hisashi Ietsugu) announced today its investment in iPS PORTAL, Inc. (HQ: Kamigyo-ku, Kyoto, Japan; President & CEO: Shosaku Murayama) to put iPS cells* to practical use.

  iPS cells, which are capable of differentiation into many types of cells in tissue and organ, play a vital role in the realization of regenerative medicine. iPS cells, developed using technology pioneered in Japan, have myriad potential applications. These include use in regenerative medicine to restore functions that have been lost, and new drug testing by reproducing cancerous cells.
 

  iPS PORTAL was established on July 31, 2014. Positioning itself between academia and the corporate world, such as by supporting the industrialization of iPS cell technologies and jointly developing instruments to analyze and measure cells, the company aims to serve as a portal for business related to iPS cells. The company's mission is to facilitate the rapid dissemination of world-leading iPS cell technologies by turning up and unveiling iPS cell research results and accelerating the broad application and commercialization of iPS cell technologies.
 

  To promote the commercialization of iPS cell technologies, iPS PORTAL has raised ¥1.42 billion through a third-party allocation of new shares, some of which Sysmex acquired. Through this investment, Sysmex aims to contribute to the commercialization of iPS cells by applying iPS cells to the field of diagnostic reagents and addressing R&D of iPS cell analysis under the collaboration with iPS PORTAL.
 

  Going forward, Sysmex will promote technological developments that increase healthcare quality and efficiency and take part in R&D toward the commercialization of leading-edge technologies. 

Overview of iPS PORTAL

Established:  

July 31, 2014

Head Office Location:  

448-5, Imadegawa Sagaru Kajii-cho, Kawara-machi-dori,
Kamigyo-ku, Kyoto

Capital:   ¥744.6 million (as of February 27, 2015)
President & CEO:   Shosaku Murayama (formerly, President & CEO of iPS Academia Japan, Inc.)
Directors:   Ichiro Nakatomi (President & CEO, NanoCarrier Co., Ltd.)
Yoshio Yamaoka (Professor Emeritus, Kyoto University; Director, The Japan Baptist Medical Foundation)
Auditor:   Yoshito Fujikawa (Attorney, Yodoyabashi & Yamagami LPC)

*iPS cells:   An abbreviation for induced pluripotent stem cells, iPS cells are capable of differentiation into many types of cells in tissue or organ by introducing a several genes into human skin or other cells.

 

  • Information contained in the news release is current as of the date of the announcement,
    but may be subject to change without prior notice.

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