Following medical product safety tests, Ina Research Inc. announced positive results in their new joint research project on August 17, 2015. The project, entitled “Preclinical transplantation study of iPS cell-derived cardiomyocytes for cardiac repair in non-human primates”, is a collaborative endeavor with the team of Senior Assistant Professor Yuji Shiba of the Institute for Biomedical Sciences that was formalized on May 1, 2015.

The research involves transplanting iPS cell-derived cardiomyocytes from healthy monkeys into those having experienced a myocardial infarction to recover cardiac function. Successful cardiomyocyte engraftment for 12 weeks was confirmed to recover cardiac performance as well. Ina Research is providing major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-matched cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis), which are known for less rejection phenomena, in addition to test facilities and the latest equipment, such as a 3D micro CT scanning device and engineers, to the project team.

They will continue to advance their research findings towards clinical applications.