USPTO issues Lineage patent for proprietary manufacturing of epithelial cells

Lineage Cell Therapeutics announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office USPTO has issued U.S. Patent No. 11,746,324, entitled “Large Scale Production of Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cells”. The patent, which has been exclusively licensed to Lineage, has an expected expiration date of July 28, 2036. RG6501 is a suspension of human allogeneic RPE cells currently in development for the treatment of geographic atrophy or GA secondary to age-related macular degeneration or AMD . Subretinal delivery of OpRegen has the potential to counteract RPE cell loss in areas of GA lesions by supporting retinal cell health and improving retinal structure and function. The program is being developed under an exclusive worldwide collaboration between Lineage, Roche, and Genentech, a member of the Roche Group. “This U.S. patent further enhances the value of our lead program, OpRegen, which is currently being evaluated in a Phase 2a clinical study in patients with GA secondary to AMD ” stated Brian M. Culley, CEO. “Importantly, Lineage is continuing to demonstrate its ability to benefit from decades of experience in the growth and differentiation of pluripotent cells, while simultaneously inventing and patenting new process development methods, to support long periods of exclusivity to our pipeline of cell transplant programs.”