Vancouver-based Aspect Biosystems has received a $79 million investment from the Government of Canada to accelerate clinical development and strengthen biomanufacturing capabilities for Aspect’s bioengineered cellular medicines.
The investment will support a $280 million, multi-year project to accelerate the advancement of Aspect’s pipeline of bioengineered cellular medicines for serious metabolic and endocrine diseases. Aspect is applying its full-stack platform, which combines proprietary AI-powered bioprinting technology and hypoimmune cell engineering, to create scalable bioengineered cellular medicines designed to restore complex functions in the body while avoiding immune rejection.
By bioprinting allogeneic stem-cell islet clusters encapsulated within immune-protective materials, Aspect is creating functional and retrievable pancreatic bioprinted tissue therapeutics (BTTs), capable of sensing glucose and releasing insulin. These tissues are surgically implanted into the body to maintain normal glycemia without the need for immune suppression. This therapeutic would represent a transformative functional cure for type 1 diabetes patients dependent on insulin injections.
Aspect has a pact with Novo Nordisk, expanded this past January, to develop advanced cellular medicines for diabetes. The deal, which builds on work that began in 2023, involves integrating select Novo Nordisk cell therapy research, development, and manufacturing capabilities and expertise into Aspect’s full-stack tissue therapeutic platform.
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