ACell

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Acell Incorporated is a Jessup, Maryland-based biotechnology company. They work in regenerative medicine, in which they own several valuable extracellular matrix patents [1]. They develop, manufacture and market products for medical and veterinary applications [2]. The company is founded and run by Alan R. Spievack, a former associate professor at Harvard Medical School [3].


Their use of porcine cellular structure as a scaffold for human tissue regeneration was called the "medical breakthrough of the year by Esquire[4]. The use of pig bladder ground up into "magical pixie dust" to regrow Spievak's brother's finger received considerable mainstream coverage[5][6]. Ken Muneoka of Tulane University, who works with ACell's scientific advisors on US-government funded investigations into regenerative medicine, said that the news should be viewed with caution because it was not a controlled study[4].

[edit] References

  1. ^ ACell wins extracellular matrix patent battle initiated by Cook Biotech and Purdue.. BIOTECH Patent News (August, 2006). Retrieved on 2008-05-01.
  2. ^ Acell Inc. completes $6M round of financing. The Daily Record. Retrieved on 2008-05-01.
  3. ^ Reborn, ACell enters medical wound healing. Maryland Gazette. Retrieved on 2008-05-01.
  4. ^ a b No. 3: Medical Breakthrough of the Year. Esquire. Retrieved on 2008-05-01.
  5. ^ Man regrew finger - with pig powder?. New York Daily News. Retrieved on 2008-05-01.
  6. ^ "The man who grew a finger", BBC, 2008-04-30. Retrieved on 2008-05-01.