ViaCyte gets $20 million in deal with Janssen

Privately held US regenerative medicine company ViaCyte has entered into a rights agreement with Janssen Research & Development, a subsidiary of US health care giant Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ).

The deal provides Janssen with a future right to evaluate a transaction related to the VC-01 combination product that ViaCyte is developing for type 1 diabetes. This right will continue through the initial evaluation of clinical efficacy of VC-01. ViaCyte received $20 million from Janssen and Johnson & Johnson Development Corp (JJDC). The payment included a rights fee and a note convertible into equity at a later date. JJDC has been a long-standing investor in ViaCyte.

This new infusion of capital, together with the recently-announced $5.4 million private equity financing transaction, provides substantial additional resources for the further development of the company's stem cell derived islet replacement therapy for insulin-dependent diabetes, said ViaCyte. The company plans to use the funds primarily to accelerate the clinical development of the VC-01 product candidate.