Australian Veterinary Stem Cells Ltd. (AVSC) is now authorized to deliver Vet-Stem Inc.’s stem cell services in Australia, New Zealand and Singapore. This is Vet-Stem’s third license agreement with an affiliate. The other two agreements are with the Central Veterinary Research Laboratory in Dubai, which has rights for 13 Middle East countries, and Chemaphor, a company in Canada that has laboratories in Prince Edward Island. Vet-Stem holds the exclusive worldwide rights to the University of California and University of Pittsburgh (via Artecel Inc.) patent portfolios of more than 55 issued patents covering the use of stem cells derived from fat tissue. The stem cell services are offered to veterinarians for treatment of lameness in horses and for arthritis in dogs and cats. More than 6,500 animals have been treated to date, according to the Poway, Calif.-based company. “Intellectual property rights can be confusing in a rapidly developing market with evolving technology,” said Bob Harman, DVM, CEO of Vet-Stem. “We have licensed the strongest patents in the world to protect the market that we are creating in regenerative veterinary medicine and to ensure that the value of the company is optimized. Now with these three distribution partners, we can utilize these global patents to reach far beyond the U.S. markets and help animals worldwide.” AVSC is closely affiliated with Monash University in Melbourne and the laboratory of Dr. Richard Boyd. Dr. Boyd, who is globally known for his work with adult stem cells, will help AVSC rapidly enter the veterinary markets in their assigned territories, according to Vet-Stem. Vet-Stem expects to expand into other parts of the world in the near future. Negotiations with other companies were under review as of early November. <Home>
