The project is being carried out in partnership with assistant professor Magdalene Seiler with the Sue & Bill Gross Stem Cell Research Center at the University of California, Irvine (UC).
The total amount for the CIRM grant is $3.9m. AiVita will produce the 3D-retinal organoids and support the process with its GMP manufacturing and regulatory systems.
UCI will engage in testing the product for safety and efficacy in appropriate models of retinal degeneration.
AiVita said the project aims to address deficits common to macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa by using human stem cells differentiated into sheets of retinal tissue to restore visual responses.
The 3D-transplantable retinas are expected to help in treating retinal disorders at various stages compared to current approaches that can only target limited disease stages through methods such as transient trophic support for degenerating retinal cells within the patient.
AiVita Biomedical CEO Dr Hans Keirstead said: "We are proud to have achieved such a major milestone, the restoration of visual acuity in models of advanced retinal degeneration, using a human stem cell population that is ethically procured, renewable and cost effective.
"We are very thankful to CIRM for supporting the further development of this important program."
AiVita Biomedical has engineered safe and economical manufacturing systems to support the development and commercialization of curative and regenerative medicines.
Image: The blood vessels in a normal human retina. Photo: courtesy of TheGoose aPrisoner.
