Osteoarthritis of the Knee

Osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the most common debilitating diseases experienced within an ageing population and constitutes an urgent medical need. Obesity, a major risk factor, is further increasing prevalence and occurrence of OA. Approximately 30% of the global population over 60 years of age, suffers from OA and have no disease modifying treatment options. OA largely affects weight bearing joints such as the knee joint & hip joint amongst others. Existing treatment options available include NSAIDs, glucosamine & chondroitin sulphate, Hyaluronic Acid injections (HA), Diacerin (IL-1 inhibitor), or steroid injections. All of these treatments focus on providing temporary pain relief and reducing inflammation during early stages of disease without affecting the course of the disease. All patients ultimately, if able to undergo surgery, will require total knee replacement.

Our in-licensing partner has developed and obtained marketing authorization Stem-One Cell Drug Product for treatment of Grade 2&3 Knee OA patients in India. Results from randomized, blinded, placebo-controlled trials with single injection of Stempeucel-OA [CTRI/2018/09/015785 (National Institutes of Health and Clinical Trials Registry-India)] demonstrated statistically significant reduction in pain, and improvement in function; (Ref: Am J Sports Med. 2023 Jul;51(9):2254-2266); with robust quality & thickness of cartilage tissue demonstrating halt in further disease progression, even at 2 years post-treatment.

Our lead indication is Osteoarthritis of the knee. We intend to develop additional products using the pooling technology and enhancements to it for several additional indications including for example Chronic Limb Ischemia, Diabetic Foot Ulcers, and Degenerative Disc Disease.