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Hollywood Media Completes Transformational Investment in NewStem, Israel-Based Developer of Haploid Stem Cell-Based Diagnostics to Predict Chemotherapy Resistance
Hollywood Media Completes Transformational Investment in NewStem, Israel-Based Developer of Haploid Stem Cell-Based Diagnostics to Predict Chemotherapy Resistance.
About this update from Novelstem International Corp.
[{"type":"text","content":"\nRaises $1.925 Million to Support a $2 Million Initial Investment in NewStem Ltd.Appoints New Board of Directors Led by Jan Loeb as ChairmanForms New Leadership Team with Deep Healthcare ExpertisePlans to Rename Company NovelStem International Corp. JERUSALEM and BOCA RATON, Fla., July 16, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Hollywood Media Corp. (OTC Pink:HOLL) (HMC) today announced the strategic transformation of the Company, its management and Board through an initial $2 million investment in Jerusalem, Israel-based NewStem Ltd. and a refocusing of HMC on the substantial commercial potential of NewStem’s novel diagnostic technology which can predict patients’ resistance to chemotherapy allowing for better, targeted cancer treatments and the potential to reduce resistance to chemotherapy. Drug resistance is a major cause of treatment failure in cancer chemotherapy, and currently it is only recognized after the first course of treatment has been completed. In nearly 50% of all cancer cases, resistance to chemotherapy already exists in the tumors before initiation of the treatment.\n NewStem’s diagnostic solutions are based on the research of human haploid (1) pluripotent (2) stem cells (3) (hHPSCs) by Chief Science Officer, Professor Nissim Benvenisty of the Azrieli Center for Stem Cells and Genetic Research at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. NewStem’s technology enables informed, personalized selection of chemotherapy treatments for cancer patients. Genetic screenings performed on haploid cells provide a unique opportunity to identify the genes responsible for resistance to chemotherapeutic agents. NewStem’s genetic screenings of hHPSCs are creating a comprehensive library of mutated genes which confer resistance to individual chemotherapeutic agents. Integration of this proprietary database with the genetic profile of the patient's tumor will enable the prediction of resistance to chemotherapy prior to treatment. NewStem is a spinoff of Yissum, The Technology Transfer Company of The Hebrew University, and is led by CEO Ayelet Dilion-Mashiah. NewStem holds the intellectual property, reagents and experience required for hHPSC isolation, differentiation, genetic manipulation, immunogenicity and tumorigenicity. In addition to its in-house development of chemotherapy resistance diagnostics, NewSte...