Crioestaminal

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Crioestaminal - Saúde e Tecnologia, SA, was founded in 2003, becoming the first umbilical cord blood bank in the Iberian Peninsula. [1] Since then, it has developed into the largest Portuguese and one of the five largest cryo-preservation banks in Europe with over 60,000 stored samples. Crioestaminal was the first company to be authorized by the Portuguese Ministry of Health and is the only family bank with an AABB (American Association of Blood Banks) accreditation in Portugal. In Europe, there are only five banks with an AABB accreditation. [2]

Iberian Peninsula Peninsula located in southwest Europe

The Iberian Peninsula, also known as Iberia, is located in the southwest corner of Europe. The peninsula is principally divided between Spain and Portugal, comprising most of their territory. It also includes Andorra, small areas of France, and the British overseas territory of Gibraltar. With an area of approximately 596,740 square kilometres (230,400 sq mi)), it is both the second largest European peninsula by area, after the Scandinavian Peninsula, and by population, after the Balkan Peninsula.

Portugal Republic in Southwestern Europe

Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country located mostly on the Iberian Peninsula in southwestern Europe. It is the westernmost sovereign state of mainland Europe. It is bordered to the west and south by the Atlantic Ocean and to the north and east by Spain. Its territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of the Azores and Madeira, both autonomous regions with their own regional governments.

AABB organization

AABB is an international, not-for-profit association representing individuals and institutions involved in the fields of transfusion medicine and cellular therapies. The association works to improve health through the development and delivery of standards, accreditation and educational programs that focus on optimizing patient and donor care and safety.

Contents

History

Crioestaminal was founded by a group of scientists and health care professionals in 2003.

In 2006, Crioestaminal opened its state-of-the-art laboratory in the Biocant Park, Portugal first Biotechnology Park.

During the same year, Crioestaminal founded a company focused molecular biology diagnostics: Genelab – Diagnóstico Molecular.

In 2007, Crioestaminal released a first sample to be used in a transplant. The cord blood stem cells were used to treat a child with Severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID). The sample belonged to the child’s sibling and had been stored since 2003.

Severe combined immunodeficiency combined T cell and B cell immunodeficiency that is caused by a defect in several genes encoding for B and T lymphocytes resulting in individuals with non-functional immune systems

Severe combined immunodeficiency, SCID, also known as alymphocytosis, Glanzmann–Riniker syndrome, severe mixed immunodeficiency syndrome, and thymic alymphoplasia, is a rare genetic disorder characterized by the disturbed development of functional T cells and B cells caused by numerous genetic mutations that result in differing clinical presentations. SCID involves defective antibody response due to either direct involvement with B lymphocytes or through improper B lymphocyte activation due to non-functional T-helper cells. Consequently, both "arms" of the adaptive immune system are impaired due to a defect in one of several possible genes. SCID is the most severe form of primary immunodeficiencies, and there are now at least nine different known genes in which mutations lead to a form of SCID. It is also known as the bubble boy disease and bubble baby disease because its victims are extremely vulnerable to infectious diseases and some of them, such as David Vetter, have become famous for living in a sterile environment. SCID is the result of an immune system so highly compromised that it is considered almost absent.

In 2009, The Riverside Group became the company’s main shareholder. During the last years, the US investment company has contributed to Crioestaminal’s growth in Portugal and abroad.

Crioestaminal acquired Celvitae, [3] a Spanish company, in 2010 to strengthen its presence in the neighboring country.

In 2013, Crioestaminal announced a new investment project that will transform the company into the second-largest cord blood and tissue cryopreservation bank in Europe by storage capacity. During the same year, the company won the customer choice award Escolha do Consumidor.

A cord blood bank is a facility which stores umbilical cord blood for future use. Both private and public cord blood banks have developed in response to the potential for cord blood in treating diseases of the blood and immune systems. Public cord blood banks accept donations to be used for anyone in need, and as such function like public blood banks. Traditionally, public cord blood banking has been more widely accepted by the medical community. Private cord blood banks store cord blood solely for potential use by the donor or donor's family. Private banks typically charge around $2,000 for the collection and around $200 a year for storage.

Research and development

Crioestaminal invests a significant share of its revenues in R&D projects. [4] The projects aim to develop stem cell-based therapies to further expand the number the clinical applications of cord blood and tissue. It has built a network of partnerships with local institutions such as [Instituto Superior Técnico|Instituto Superior Técnico de Lisboa], [5] and the Centro de Histocompatibilidade do Centro.

In 2012, Crioestaminal received its first patent for a technology based on cord blood stem cells. The invention is a formulation containing a gel and cord blood stem cells that can be used to treat chronic wounds in diabetic patients. The investigation was led by Lino Ferreira, a scientist from the Centro de Neurociências e Biologia Celular da Universidade de Coimbra. [6]

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References

  1. ↑ Crioestaminal - Saúde e Tecnologia, SA
  2. ↑ AABB - American Association of Blood Banks
  3. ↑ Official website of Celvitae
  4. ↑ "Discovery is in our DNA" (PDF). Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  5. ↑ Centro de Neurociências e Biologia Celular da Universidade de Coimbra
  6. ↑ Seminário - Inhibition of DPP-IV: a new therapeutic approach for diabetic retinopathy?
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