Asklepios BioPharmaceutical Inc.
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Asklepios BioPharmaceutical Inc.
Asklepios BioPharmaceutical Inc.
Asklepios BioPharmaceutical Inc. was formed in 2003 by Xiao Xiao, a professor at the School, and Jude Samulski, the director of the UNC Gene Therapy Center. The two combined their groundbreaking research in using adeno-associated virus as a means of delivery in gene therapy. In 2004, AskBio received a $1.6 million grant from the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) to develop gene therapy for DMD.
In March 2006, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted approval for AskBio to conduct human trial on Xiao's minidystrophin gene. The results of the first phase are expected in mid-2007, and the trial should enter its second phase sometime in 2008. In December 2006, AskBio received a $2.5 million grant from MDA for the study’s second phase. This was the largest grant ever awarded by MDA to a for-profit company.