Sun Yat-sen University Licenses Breakthrough iPSC-Derived Bone Marrow Stromal Cell Technology for RMB 52,000
Recently, the Academy of Advanced Technology at Sun Yat-sen University released a public notice, planning to“A Method for Inducing Bone Marrow Stromal Cells Using Pluripotent Stem Cells”transfer the ownership of the invention patent. The transferee in this transaction is Shanghai Yichen Cell Biotechnology Co., Ltd., as mutually agreed upon by both partiesThe transfer price is RMB 52,000.
The core technology of this patent employs a specific induction protocol and specialized culture medium to direct pluripotent stem cells (including induced pluripotent stem cells or embryonic stem cells) through the somitic mesoderm cell stage, ultimately yielding bone marrow stromal cells. The resulting cells exhibit distinct advantages, including well-defined origins, rapid proliferation rates, and low heterogeneity. Furthermore, they demonstrate superior osteogenic, chondrogenic, and hematopoietic support capabilities compared to traditional bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells. Consequently, these cells not only serve as a high-quality cell source for clinical translation in the field of cell therapy but also provide an ideal in vitro model for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, limb skeletal development, and research into the pathogenesis of related diseases. In the future, this technology is expected to play a significant role in clinical and scientific applications, such as bone injury repair and reconstruction of the bone marrow hematopoietic microenvironment.
The invention team of this patent consists of four core members: Xiang Peng, Li Weiqiang, Wei Yili, and Wang Bin.Among them,Professor Xiang PengRecipient of the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars, he currently serves as Director of the Key Laboratory of Stem Cells and Tissue Engineering, Ministry of Education. He has long been dedicated to research in the field of “stem cell transplantation and organ regeneration and repair,” achieving significant accomplishments in allogeneic organ reconstruction, mechanisms of mesenchymal stem cell therapy, and clinical translation. Professor Xiang Peng also serves as the principal investigator for projects under the National Key Research and Development Program."Special Program for Stem Cell and Translational Research"1 item,“Stem Cell Research and Organ Repair”1 item, as well as a total of 9 grants from the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars, Key Programs, and General Programs of the National Natural Science Foundation of China; and more than 10 major projects at the provincial and ministerial levels.
TransfereeShanghai Yichen Cell Biotechnology Co., Ltd.It is an innovative enterprise deeply engaged in the field of cellular biotechnology. The company focuses on the industrial application of cell technologies. This patent acquisition aims to enrich its technical reserves in the field of induced pluripotent stem cells, with the goal of advancing the patented technology from laboratory research to clinical application, thereby achieving precise alignment between scientific achievements and market demands.
Marrow stromal cells (MSCs) are among the most abundant cell types in the body and are essential for the development, maintenance, function, and regeneration of most tissues. They can differentiate along multiple connective lineages; however, unlike most other stem/progenitor cells, MSCs perform a variety of additional functions while retaining their developmental potential. For instance, they respond to tissue injury by secreting trophic factors and promoting the regeneration of extracellular matrix (ECM) molecules, and they facilitate fibrotic repair processes when regeneration fails (Cell Stem Cell. 2021 Oct 7; 28(10): 1690-1707).
Furthermore, stromal cells in the bone marrow participate in forming the hematopoietic microenvironment, supporting processes such as hematopoiesis and osteogenic differentiation (Nature. 2014 Jan 16; 505(7483): 327-34). Due to their low immunogenicity, stromal cells play an irreplaceable role in bone injury repair and in reconstructing the bone marrow hematopoietic microenvironment or niche, demonstrating broad prospects for clinical application.
However, the acquisition of bone marrow stromal cells is not only highly invasive, but also exhibits significant heterogeneity among individuals. Furthermore, these cells are difficult to serially passage and expand in large quantities in vitro, failing to meet the demands of clinical therapy. Therefore,How to Stable and Efficiently Obtain Bone Marrow Stromal Cells In Vitro,has become the key issue limiting its clinical translation.
In recent years, numerous studies have reported the application of pluripotent stem cells, including induced pluripotent stem cells and embryonic stem cells, in their differentiation into various germ layer cell types. However, there are currently no reports on methods for inducing the differentiation of pluripotent stem cells into bone marrow stromal cells via the somatic mesoderm stage. Somatic mesoderm cells (SMCs) are a population of cells belonging to the lateral plate mesoderm stage during embryonic development, located between the ectoderm and the intraembryonic coelom, and serve as progenitors for connective tissues and skeletal elements of the limbs, such as bone and cartilage. Previous studies have indicated that stromal cells derived from somatic mesoderm cells are present in the bone marrow of long bones (Front Genet. 2019 Oct 11; 10:977; Development. 2020 Jun 19; 147(12): dev175059).
Furthermore, existing technical approaches (such as the Chinese patent “Immortalized Rat Bone Marrow Stromal Cell Line and Its Preparation Method”) involve introducing the human telomerase reverse transcriptase catalytic subunit gene into rat bone marrow stromal cells via a retroviral vector to obtain an immortalized rat bone marrow stromal cell line. Although this cell line can be expanded in vitro for extended periods, it is unsuitable for clinical cell therapy due to interspecies differences.
To overcome the challenge in existing technologies of being unable to generate bone marrow stromal cells from pluripotent stem cells, the research team, approaching from the perspective of cellular developmental origin, successfully obtained bone marrow stromal cells following a specific developmental pathway through a defined in vitro induction and differentiation protocol.The present invention provides a novel method for inducing bone marrow stromal cells from pluripotent stem cells,This method enables the stable and efficient preparation of body wall mesoderm-derived bone marrow stromal cells. The resulting body wall mesoderm-derived bone marrow stromal cells not only exhibit high reproducibility, low heterogeneity, and scalability for large-scale expansion, but also demonstrate enhanced osteogenic potential and superior hematopoietic support capacity.
This innovative approach not only provides a new, high-quality source of cells for the clinical translation of cell therapies, but also offers an ideal in vitro model for studying the mechanisms underlying hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, limb skeletal development, and related diseases.
From the perspective of current market practices in the field of cell therapy and regenerative medicine, bone marrow stromal cells, as a key cell type with both therapeutic and research value, have long been constrained by multiple pain points in their acquisition and application. These challenges collectively hinder cell therapy companies from achieving standardized and large-scale supply of bone marrow stromal cells, becoming a core bottleneck that restricts the clinical translation of technologies in related areas such as bone injury repair and reconstruction of the hematopoietic microenvironment.
This patent centers on the efficient acquisition and quality enhancement of bone marrow stromal cells, incorporating multiple innovations whose advantages precisely address key market pain points. In terms of technical approach, it innovatively adopts“Pluripotent Stem Cells—Somitic Mesoderm Cells—Bone Marrow Stromal Cells” Directed Induction System,Overcomes the limitations of traditional direct extraction.
Specifically, using induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) or embryonic stem cells as starting materials—which can be obtained through somatic cell reprogramming or from standardized cell banks—addresses the scarcity of cell sources and donor dependency at the source. Theoretically, this approach enables unlimited passaging and large-scale expansion of cells, laying a solid foundation for mass production.
During the induction process,The patent innovatively introduces somatic mesodermal cells as an intermediate stage, precisely regulating signaling pathways to guide cell differentiation, thereby effectively addressing the issues of low differentiation efficiency and high cellular heterogeneity associated with conventional induction methods. This innovation increases the induction efficiency of bone marrow stromal cells to over 85%, significantly reducing the cost of subsequent cell screening.
In Terms of Core Technology Support，The proprietary culture medium developed under patent has emerged as a major innovation highlight. Based on a basal medium, this formulation incorporates multiple regulatory factors, including fibroblast growth factor (FGF) and bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs), with precisely controlled concentrations and ratios of each component. This approach not only effectively promotes rapid cell proliferation but also maintains cell stemness and core functions.
Compared with traditional cultivation systems,Bone Marrow Stromal Cells Cultured in This Medium Exhibit Enhanced In Vitro Proliferation Rates>30%, inAfter 10 passagesstill maintain stable cell morphology and chromosomal karyotype, as well as osteogenic and chondrogenic differentiation capacityOnly a 5% decrease, significantly superior to the degree of functional decline observed after traditional cell passaging.
Furthermore, owing to the standardized initial cell sources and controllable induction protocols, the positivity rates of surface markers (such as CD73, CD90, and CD105) on the obtained bone marrow stromal cells remain consistently stable atOver 95%, significantly reducing cellular population heterogeneity and providing a core guarantee for quality standardization in clinical applications. This patented technology also offers the advantages of operational simplicity and strong reproducibility; it does not require complex instruments or equipment, allowing the induction process to be completed in ordinary biological laboratories, which further facilitates technology promotion and industrial translation.
Directed Differentiation Technology of Pluripotent Stem Cells Has Become a Global Research Focus in the Field of Stem Cells.The academic and industrial sectors have extensively explored the development of induction systems for various functional cell types, yielding substantial technological advancements.
In the field of academic research, Peking University’s Deng Hongkui teamThe research findings are highly representative. They not only successfully developed a pluripotent stem cell reprogramming technology entirely reliant on small-molecule chemicals (CiPSC), thereby circumventing the safety risks associated with traditional gene integration methods, but also further achieved the precise directed differentiation of these chemically induced pluripotent stem cells into functionally mature islet cells.
In August 2025, the research group published a study in the prestigious international academic journal *Cell Stem Cell*,First Successful Generation of Pancreatic Islets with a Complete Complement of Endocrine Cell Types from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells.These islets can efficiently respond to changes in blood glucose concentration, not only effectively lowering blood glucose but also possessing a critical hyperglycemic function. They demonstrate excellent hypoglycemia protection effects in diabetic mouse models, thereby addressing the incompleteness of stem cell-derived islet cells in terms of type and functionality.
Technology transfer on the enterprise side is equally active,Multiple entities are deploying pluripotent stem cell-induced differentiation technologies across various therapeutic areas.
In the field of metabolic diseases, Hangzhou Ruipu ChenchuangLeveraging its multiple global-first technologies in the field of cell therapy, including the groundbreaking achievement of the “world’s first” autologous regenerative islet therapy for diabetes, it has recently successfully completed500 Million Yuan A+ RoundFinancing. The clinical study conducted by the company and its partners on the use of autologous regenerative islets for the treatment of type 1 diabetes has achieved functional cures in multiple patients. Following the publication of the data and findings from this clinical study, they received high acclaim from the prestigious international academic journal Nature, being hailed as"World's First Case"。
In the field of neurological disease treatment,Professor Liu Zhongmin’s team at Shanghai East Hospital has entered into a deep collaboration with Dr. Li Xiang’s team at Shize Biotechnology to jointly advance clinical research on the treatment of Parkinson’s disease using dopaminergic neural precursor cells derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). As China’s first nationally filed clinical research project for iPSC-derived cell therapy for Parkinson’s disease, the initiative involves the preparation of clinical-grade regenerative dopaminergic neurons at Shize Biotechnology’s GMP-compliant facility. Multiple patients with moderate-to-severe Parkinson’s disease have been treated via stereotactic transplantation surgery at Shanghai East Hospital. Follow-up results post-surgery have demonstrated significant improvements in patients’ activities of daily living. Furthermore, Shize Biotechnology has independently developed a groundbreaking novel iPSC-derived cell therapy for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), marking a global first.This product was granted global Orphan Drug Designation by the U.S. FDA in 2025 and has completed the world’s first clinical administration to a patient with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in China.
Furthermore, in the latest cell industry development plan released by Beijing Municipality,Explicitly list "large-scale expansion and efficient differentiation of pluripotent stem cells" as a key priority for support.This fully reflects the broad industry consensus on this technological approach and its significant potential for development. With continued strengthening of policy support and ongoing iterative upgrades in industry technology, patented technologies focused on niche sectors are poised to accelerate their practical application. This not only provides new solutions for clinical needs such as bone injury repair and reconstruction of the hematopoietic microenvironment, but will also robustly drive the steady progress of China’s cell therapy industry toward standardization and large-scale development, injecting strong momentum into the sustained advancement of regenerative medicine.