Reliance plans to triple stem cell units

Mukesh Ambani-owned Reliance Life Sciences plans to almost treble the capacity of its stem-cell enriched cord blood repository to close to 10,000 cell units in this calendar year. The company wants to further scale it up to 30,000 cell units in 3-4 years.

Sources in the industry said the move, aimed at establishing the world's largest cord blood repository network, would cost the company nearly Rs 800 crore (Rs 8 billion) in four years. The blood bank is located at the Dhirubhai Ambani Life Sciences Centre in Navi Mumbai.

When contacted, Reliance Life Sciences executives confirmed the plan to scale up the capacity of the repository to 30,000 stem cell units "over a period of time".

They said, "The cord blood repository initiative of the company is an investment in the future of medicine."

But they declined to say how much the company would invest in the project. The world's largest cord blood repositories are based in the US and Korea.

Stem cells-enriched cord blood is available for treating hematological disorders. The repository stores stem cells from umbilical cord blood from voluntary donors.

Stem cell-enriched cord blood is used as a therapy for the treatment of thalassemia, leukaemia, and sickle cell anaemia, and is an adjunct therapy for aggressive chemotherapy.

"Reliance Life will be in a position to set up five new plants of 6,000 units each over the next three years. It had received approval from the Drug Controller-General of India for growing and marketing of stem cells created from umbilical cord blood to be used as an adjunct therapy for thalassemia and leukaemia, about a year ago," sources in the know of the development said.