Aastrom Biosciences Inc has received a $100,000 Phase I Small Business Innovation Research grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop a bone marrow stem cell-based treatment of circulation ischemia caused by vascular diseases and diabetes.

In this six-month study, undertaken in collaboration with Case Western Reserve University, Aastrom's patented single-pass perfusion stem cell technology will be utilized to create a clinically suitable cell therapy for regeneration of vascular tissue (veins and arteries).

The Company's proprietary AastromReplicell System will be used to produce the expanded bone marrow stem and endothelial progenitor cell (EPC) product that will be tested in an in vivo animal model for hind limb ischemia. The Company anticipates that successful completion of this study will lead to further grant applications as well as clinical trials for the treatment of vascular diseases.

"The expansion of our tissue engineering program is extremely exciting for the Company. Our movement into the major market of vascular tissue regeneration is a natural 'next step' in broadening the potential applications of our technology," said R. Douglas Armstrong, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Aastrom. "Our vascular tissue program is based on the same internal infrastructure as our bone regeneration program, which has shown ongoing positive achievements such as the recent FDA approval to initiate a multi-center trial for our bone grafting product. We are now building upon that strong foundation to further develop the therapeutic potential of our bone marrow stem cell products."

Ischemia is a blood circulation deficiency in an organ or tissue caused by constriction or obstruction of its blood vessels, and is commonly associated with arteriosclerosis and diabetes. Small artery obstruction is a major contributor to stroke, heart disease, and limb loss. For certain severe peripheral vascular diseases, current surgical treatment methodologies have been proven ineffective in the long-term management of the disease. As a result, the medical and research communities have recently turned to the development of cell-based therapies as alternative treatments.