A new study to assess the safety, tolerability and preliminary efficacy of allogeneic stem cells in persons with mild to moderate dementia due to Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is beginning enrollment at Emory University and University of California, Irvine. It is the first clinical trial in the U.S. to use this stem cell-based treatment.

The randomized, single-blind, placebo-controlled study uses a treatment developed by Stemedica Cell Technologies, Inc. and its subsidiary, Stemedica International, SA that involves implanting stem cells from healthy people to the study participants.

The study will enroll approximately 40 subjects diagnosed with mild to moderate dementia due to Alzheimer’s disease (AD) at least three months prior to enrollment, based on the National Institute of Neurological and Communicative Disorders and Stroke and the Alzheimer's disease and Related Disorders Association (NINCDS-ADRDA) Alzheimer’s criteria.

 "Since therapeutic options for Alzheimer’s disease are limited, stem cells may offer new ways to manage this illness," says Ihab Hajjar, MD, associate professor of medicine and neurology at Emory University School of Medicine, researcher for the Emory Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center and principal investigator at Emory for this trial. "This study’s main goal is to demonstrate the safety of using stem cells in AD and we are pleased to be a site for this Stemedica International trial."

"As we begin the enrollment process at Emory and UCI, we get closer to reaching our vision for an effective treatment for this devastating disease," says Nikolai Tankovich, MD, PhD, president and chief medical officer of Stemedica Cell Technologies and executive chairman of Stemedica International.

More information about this clinical trial, including enrollment details, can be found at: https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02833792?term=stemedica&rank=1