At the MaRs Discovery District earlier today, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that FedDev Ontario and GE Healthcare would contribute a total of $40 million to the Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine (CCRM), which will use the funding to open a new cell therapy centre at MaRS. FedDev Ontario and GE Healthcare are committing $20 million each to the nonprofit to support regenerative medicine development with a focus on cell and gene therapy.
The Centre for Advanced Therapeutic Cell Technologies will be dedicated to accelerating the development and adoption of cell manufacturing technologies that improve patient access to novel regenerative medicine-based therapies, and will house companies in the pharma, biotech, and cell therapy industries.
Thank you to @JustinTrudeau, @cafreeland & @MinisterISED for supporting biomedical innovation. Great things coming! pic.twitter.com/4eHc8hMSms
— MaRS (@MaRSDD) January 13, 2016
“The health of Canadians is a priority,” said Trudeau. “We believe that supporting this new, world-class facility will have significant benefits for innovative health-related technology in Canada and around the world. It will also generate new jobs and make Ontario an even stronger competitor in the biotech industry.”
MaRS, located in the heart of downtown Toronto, is a fitting location for a cell therapy centre to set up thanks to its close proximity to both local hospitals and universities. The centre will provide cell therapy companies with facilities and expertise to help establish manufacturing processes that can produce the large cell numbers required for clinical and commercial use.
“We have built a strong industry consortium of nearly 50 companies to help drive a collaborative approach to realizing the potential of regenerative medicine,” said Michael May, President and CEO, of CCRM. “GE Healthcare already plays a leading role in that consortium, and the company’s deep knowledge of the bioprocessing industry, combined with its global scale and health care insights, makes it the ideal anchor partner for the new centre.”
The centre will also work with industry partners to introduce new technologies that solve emerging technical challenges and bridge gaps in current and future workflows. “We have built a strong industry consortium of nearly 50 companies to help drive a collaborative approach to realizing the potential of regenerative medicine,” May said. “GE Healthcare already plays a leading role in that consortium and the company’s deep knowledge of the bioprocessing industry, combined with its global scale and health care insights, makes it the ideal anchor partner for the new centre. We greatly appreciate FedDev Ontario’s support in making this crucial initiative happen. Both partners are essential to the centre’s success.”
Image courtesy MaRS Discovery District