Cell Care, Australia’s largest cord blood & tissue bank has announced it has acquired Insception Lifebank, Canada’s largest private cord blood & tissue bank. The combined entity creates one of the world’s top 10 companies in the sector. Together, they store over 100,000 client samples and establish an excellent platform for further international expansion.
The transaction provides the two companies with a stronger base from which to expand current clinical trials and R&D activities globally. Cell Care is currently funding cord blood trials in areas such as cerebral palsy and type-1 diabetes. Insception Lifebank has strong alliances with internationally reputed hospitals in Canada, and the new merged entity will endeavour to extend these relationships into research collaborations similar to those developed in Australia. Led by Dr. Ian Rogers, Insception’s research in the area of induced pluripotent stem cells will be leveraged with Cell Care’s Australian partnerships.
Dr. Rogers said “the merger between Cell Care and Insception creates an exciting opportunity to bring together cord blood innovators and research potential new therapy opportunities. We are refining technologies for generating induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from cord blood which may become a renewable cell source for diverse regenerative medicine applications. Cord blood has the potential to be a very positive starting point for these initiatives”.
Dr Robert Casper, MD, FRCSC, Insception Founder & Medical Director commented, “Insception is enthusiastic about the growth that bringing Cell Care’s R&D and clinical trial experience to Canada will contribute to its business. Insception has a strong quality reputation and excellent collaboration agreements with key Canadian health care institutions who will embrace an expanded R&D agenda.”
Professor Mark Kirkland, Medical Director at Cell Care, reiterated “joining with Insception Lifebank is an important step in our strategy to be a global player in the cord blood industry. We see substantial opportunities to expand our R&D footprint, and believe that bringing together the two organisations will contribute to consolidating their respective market leadership positions.”
Insception Lifebank and Cell Care will continue to provide consumer and health care professional education in their respective local markets, and will always undertake local collection, processing and cryogenic storage of cord blood and tissue in their world-class laboratory facilities.
Cord blood is the blood that remains in a baby’s umbilical cord and placenta after the baby has been born. It is a rich source of particular stem cells which can be used for transplants in place of bone marrow to treat certain cancers. Cord blood is also being actively researched in the area of regenerative medicine with trials underway for conditions such as CP and Type 1 diabetes. Parents can store their baby’s cord blood and tissue for up to 25 years.