MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Makana™ Therapeutics, a global leader in the field of xenotransplantation, announced today that it has relocated its corporate headquarters to Miami, Florida from Eagan, Minnesota. The move enables closer synergy with the Miami Transplant Institute (MTI), a collaboration between Jackson Memorial Hospital and the University of Miami Health System. The xenotransplant program at MTI is led by Joe Tector, MD, PhD, FACS, who is also the founder of Makana.
Xenotransplantation is the process of transplanting organs or tissues between members of different species. Makana is working to help solve the organ donor shortage through xenotransplantation.
“Makana is making great strides in the development of genetically-modified pigs suitable for xenotransplantation,” said Mark Platt, the company’s President and Chief Executive Officer. “In addition, our unique immunosuppression regimen combined with our proprietary crossmatch assay puts us in a strong position to move our work into the clinic.”
Platt said moving the company’s corporate headquarters to Miami streamlines communication and collaboration with researchers at the xenotransplant program at MTI. “Dr. Tector is an internationally recognized researcher and transplant surgeon whose expertise in xenotransplantation has helped advance the entire field tremendously,” Platt added. “Having Dr. Tector on the Makana team puts us in position to lead the xenotransplantation field into the clinic.”
Makana has demonstrated compelling results in xenotransplantation to date. The Triple Knockout (TKO) pig (which was developed by Makana) removes three key xenoantigens which contribute to antibody-mediated rejection of the transplanted organ. “The TKO pig combined with our advancements in immunosuppression and patient matching has resulted in the longest and most consistent preclinical survival data in the xenotransplantation field,” Platt said. “We are now focusing our efforts to translate that success in the clinic starting with kidney transplantation,” Platt said.
Platt also reported that the company recently launched its corporate website at www.makanatherapeutics.com. “We’re excited to start telling Makana’s story and keep everyone up-to-date on our rapidly advancing clinical developments.”
About Makana Therapeutics
Founded in 2009, Makana Therapeutics is focused on developing swine with reduced xenoantigen expression, making human transplantation of cells, tissues and organs from these animals possible. Makana's focus on simplified genetics, optimized pig cloning techniques and careful patient selection is expected to streamline product development and result in safer, more efficacious products. For more information on Makana, please visit www.makanatherapeutics.com.
