Year 3

In this third year of progress, we have made final design refinements to the Radially Branched Deployment (RBD) cell transplantation device, which is fully compatible with currently employed interventional MRI stereotactic (iMRI) neurosurgical targeting systems. These design changes increase the “usability” of the device and enhance patient safety. The iMRI-guided RBD technology advances our ability to properly “tailor” the distribution of cell delivery to larger brain target volumes that vary in size and shape due to individual patient anatomy and different disease states. Furthermore, iMRI-guided RBD may increase patient safety by enabling intraoperative MRI monitoring. Importantly, this platform technology is easy-to-use and has a low barrier to implementation, as it can be performed “inside” essentially any typical diagnostic 1.5T MRI scanner found in most hospitals. We believe that this ease of access to the technology will facilitate the conduct of multi-site clinical trials and the future adoption of successful cellular therapies for patient care worldwide. In summary, by improving intracerebral cell delivery to the human brain, iMRI-guided RBD may have a transformative impact on the safety and efficacy of cellular therapeutics for a wide range of neurological disorders, helping ensure that basic science results are not lost in clinical translation.

Working with a California-based medical device manufacturer, we have developed manufacturing and testing procedures that are now being compiled into a design history file, which is a document required for eventual commercial use of the device. We are also working with an FDA regulatory consultant to prepare a 510K application to seek marketing clearance from the FDA.