RegStem project wins the 2017 award from the Béatrice Denys Foundation for Therapeutic Innovation

The Béatrice Denys Foundation for Therapeutic Innovation, set up in 2006 under the aegis of the French Foundation for Medical Research, supports scientific projects based on French academic biomedical research that aim to bring therapeutic benefits to patients, healthcare professionals and healthcare systems, while also offering prospects for company start-up. The Béatrice Denys Foundation for Therapeutic Innovation promotes and strengthens links between scientists and entrepreneurs, and generally encourages a virtuous cycle of economic value creation in the field of health.

The main aim is to contribute to the emergence of projects that strive for excellence and offer immediate economic visibility. The foundation's overall goal is to enable the development of the most innovative, relevant start-ups for the biomedical industry.

Each year, the foundation selects one or more projects following a national call for proposals. All scientists working in the public sector are eligible, regardless of their supervisory authority.

For its 2017 edition, the foundation selected the RegStem project, led by Pierre Rocheteau, for the creation of a start-up that repositions and creates drugs in the field of regenerative medicine. Currently in the construction phase, the start-up incubated at Paris Biotech Santé and on the Institut Pasteur campus was spawned from research conducted in the Human Histopathology and Animal Models laboratory directed by Prof. Fabrice Chrétien, and co-directed by Prof. Raphael Gaillard. The project also involves Sainte-Anne Hospital and Paris Descartes University.

The team has shown the beneficial effects on stem cells and muscle regeneration of a molecule used for some forty years. This research led to the filing of several patents.

The award was presented to the project leaders on May 18.