KAWASAKI, Japan – March 23, 2021 – Jiksak Bioengineering, Inc. (Jiksak), a biotechnology company focused on finding a cure for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), today announced the first closing of Series B investment led by Cyberdyne, Inc. and CEJ Fund, an investment fund managed by a Cyberdyne subsidiary. Jiksak plans to use this latest funding to accelerate and advance its projects, focusing on ALS drug discovery and regenerative medicine businesses.
In addition to the investment, Jiksak and Cyberdyne have entered into a business alliance in which they will combine Jiksak’s unique nerve organoid technology with Cyberdyne’s expertise in Cybernics Treatment using the wearable cyborg HAL. The partners plan to develop therapies for ALS and other neuromuscular diseases.
Jiksak owns a proprietary phenotyping technology for nerve organoids, neural tissues derived from human iPS cells. Using this core technology, Jiksak successfully launched its organoid business through joint research with major companies as well as sales of nerve organoid products. The company has also accumulated data necessary for ALS drug discovery through analysis of ALS patient iPS-derived nerve organoids, necessitating additional funding to advance to the next stage of drug discovery.
Jiksak Bioengineering, Inc. is a biotechnology company based in Kawasaki, Japan, which focuses on finding a cure for neurodegenerative and neuromuscular diseases, especially amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Founded in 2017, the company has developed both synapse induction technology and a unique iPS cell-derived neural tissue analysis organoid. Jiksak’s platform provides an efficient method to actively drive drug discovery and toxicity testing.
For more information, please visit www.jiksak.co.jp/
