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Fate Therapeutics Granted Exclusive License for Stem Cell Modulators by Children's Hospital Boston and Massachusetts General Hospital

Posted on: Friday, 15 May 2009, 07:00 CDT

LA JOLLA, Calif., May 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Fate Therapeutics, Inc. announced today that it has acquired exclusive intellectual property rights jointly owned by Children's Hospital Boston and Massachusetts General Hospital. This intellectual property covers compositions and methods for supporting hematopoietic stem cells. These proprietary technologies developed by Leonard Zon, M.D., director of the Stem Cell Program at Children's Hospital Boston and a scientific founder of Fate Therapeutics, expand the Company's broad intellectual property portfolio for modulating the activity and state of stem cells. Fate Therapeutics is utilizing its adult stem cell biology engine and induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell technology platform to develop Stem Cell Modulators (SCMs) - small molecules and biologics that guide cell fate for therapeutic purposes.

"Over the past two years, Fate Therapeutics has amassed extensive intellectual property assets as a foundation for our adult stem cell biology engine," said Paul Grayson, president and CEO of Fate Therapeutics. "The agreement we signed today with Children's Hospital and the technologies associated with it continue to expand our engine and accelerate the Company's core mission to develop small molecules and biologics that modulate adult stem cells for regenerative medicine."

The exclusive rights acquired today will be incorporated into Fate Therapeutics' growing adult stem cell biology engine, which also includes exclusive rights to the pioneering work of the Company's scientific founders and other leaders in the field. Adult stem cells are naturally-occurring cells found in almost all tissues or organs in the body and are primarily responsible for maintaining and repairing their native tissue. An adult stem cell has unique properties, in that it can renew itself and differentiate to become some or all of the major specialized cell types of the particular tissue or organ in which it is found. The discovery of a number of conserved mechanisms from developmental biology and tissue repair has led to the identification of small molecules and biologics that can direct stem cell proliferation and function. Fate Therapeutics is developing these small molecule and biologic SCMs to modulate the activity of adult stem cells to stimulate healing or block cancer growth.

About Fate Therapeutics, Inc.

Fate Therapeutics is interrogating adult stem cell biology and applying induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell technology to develop Stem Cell Modulators (SCMs), small molecule or biologic compounds that guide cell fate for therapeutic purposes. Fate's approach has broad therapeutic potential in areas such as regenerative medicine, hematological diseases, metastatic cancer, traumatic injury and degenerative diseases. The Company's first therapeutic candidate is scheduled to enter clinical trials in early 2009 in hematopoietic stem cell support. In addition, Fate Therapeutics and Stemgent have formed an alliance - Catalyst - a collaborative program to provide its partners with first access to the most advanced induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell technologies for drug discovery and development. Fate Therapeutics is headquartered in La Jolla, CA. For more information, please visit http://www.fatetherapeutics.com.

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Fate Therapeutics along with Stemgent, Genzyme, Burrill & Company and WIRED Magazine, will be featured in a panel presentation entitled "Mastering Your (Cell) Fate: Stem Cells, iPSCs and the Future of Medicine" on May 18, 2009 at 2 p.m. at the 2009 BIO International Convention in Atlanta, GA.

SOURCE Fate Therapeutics, Inc.

Source: PR Newswire

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