Geron Corporation Receives U.S. Patent For Stem Cell Culture Medium
Menlo Park, CA – November 7, 2003 – Geron Corporation (Nasdaq: GERN) announced today that it has been granted U.S. Patent No. 6,642,048, by the U.S. Patent and Trademark office. The patent includes claims that cover methods and compositions for growing human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) using cell–free conditioned medium.
"This new patent addresses an important part of our efforts to scalably produce hESCs for commercial use," said Thomas B. Okarma, Ph.D., M.D., Geron’s president and chief executive officer. "We have developed a way to scale up hESC production by eliminating the use of mouse feeder cells in the hESC culture system. This advance enables the scalable production of hESCs using standard reagents and conditions, criteria important for regulatory approval of our cell production process."
Geron is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapeutic and diagnostic products for cancer based on its telomerase technology, and cell–based therapeutics using its human embryonic stem cell technology.
This news release may contain forward–looking statements made pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Investors are cautioned that such forward–looking statements in this press release regarding potential applications of Geron’s technologies constitute forward–looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, risks inherent in the development and commercialization of potential products, need for future capital and maintenance of our intellectual property rights. Actual results may differ materially from the results anticipated in these forward–looking statements. Additional information on potential factors that could affect our results and other risks and uncertainties are detailed from time to time in Geron’s periodic reports, including the quarterly report on Form 10–Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2003.
Contact: Geron Corporation David L. Greenwood Chief Financial officer 650–473–7765
