SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Stemedica Cell Technologies Inc., a leading manufacturer of adult, allogeneic stem cells and stem cell factors, welcomes Byung-Geon “BG” Rhee, Ph.D., President of Green Cross Holdings, a South Korean biopharmaceutical company, to its board of directors. Green Cross, whose recent investment closed Stemedica’s Series B funding round, is one of the world’s largest vaccine and plasma product manufacturers, and the company’s influence in Asia, China and the United States spans advanced research and development, biotech manufacturing and product development. Dr. Rhee’s addition to Stemedica’s board supports both companies’ shared vision of moving stem-cell technologies from clinical trials into worldwide medical practice.
“Stemedica is honored to add the President of Green Cross Holdings to our board of directors,” says Roger A. Howe, Ph.D., Executive Chairman of Stemedica. “Dr. Rhee is one of few industry leaders who has a proven track record for bringing innovative new technologies from clinical trials to mainstream medical practice. His expertise will help Stemedica set new standards for stem cell quality and affordability on a global scale.”
“Green Cross conducted extensive due diligence on stem cell technologies before making the investment to close Stemedica’s funding round,” says Dr. Byung-Geon Rhee, President of Green Cross Holdings. “The more we learned about Stemedica, the more we wanted to participate in its next phase of growth. I am happy to have the opportunity to serve as a member of Stemedica’s board of directors.”
Dr. Rhee has more than 27 years of experience in bio industry. For the past 10 years, he has served in executive-level roles at Green Cross Corp. and now parent company Green Cross Holdings. Before joining the South Korean market leader, he founded United States-based gene-therapy company Expression Genetics, Inc. in 2002. He has also served as Samyang Corp.’s pharmaceutical business unit head and LG Chem’s drug-development division head. He is currently Chairman of Korea Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO), Co-President for two forums within the South Korea Ministry of Health and Welfare: Health Technology Forum and Infectious Disease R&D Forum. He is member of the National Academy of Engineering of Korea. He earned his B.Sc. and M.Sc. in chemical engineering from Seoul National University, his Ph.D. in chemical/biomedical engineering from Rice University and completed post-doctoral work at the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
About Green Cross
Green Cross is the largest biopharmaceutical company in Korea. Green Cross provides safe and effective healthcare solutions that address the evolving needs of human health. Headquartered in Yongin, South Korea, Green Cross specializes in the development and manufacture of plasma-derivatives, preventive vaccines, recombinant proteins, therapeutic antibodies and cell therapies. The company can be found online at www.greencross.com.
About Stemedica Cell Technologies Inc.
Stemedica Cell Technologies Inc. is a specialty biopharmaceutical company that is committed to the manufacturing and development of best-in-class, allogeneic, adult stem cells and stem cell factors for use by approved research institutions and hospitals for pre-clinical and clinical (human) trials. The company is a government-licensed manufacturer of clinical-grade stem cells and is approved by the FDA for clinical trials in acute myocardial infarction, chronic heart failure, cutaneous photoaging and ischemic stroke. Stemedica is currently developing regulatory pathways for a number of other medical indications using adult, allogeneic stem cells. The company has headquarters in San Diego, Calif., and can be found online at www.stemedica.com.