Organovo Subsidiary Samsara Sciences Launches Commercial Operations
SAN DIEGO — Organovo Holdings, Inc. (NYSE MKT:ONVO) (“Organovo” or the “Company”), a three-dimensional biology company focused on delivering scientific and medical breakthroughs using its 3D bioprinting technology, today announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Samsara Sciences, Inc.(“Samsara”), has launched commercial operations. Samsara’s core mission is the provision of high-quality primary human liver cells for a wide variety of in vivo and in vitro research applications.
Samsara is expected to serve as a key source of primary human liver cells for Organovo’s needs in the preclinical safety and therapeutic tissues markets, allowing the Company to optimize its supply chain and operating expenses related to cell sourcing and procurement. Organovo sought to establish Samsara as a cell provider in part to support the needs of high-quality cell supply for use in the research and development of bioprinted liver tissue as a potential therapeutic product. Samsara will also provide such cells to life science customers through typical commercial channels.
Samsara will offer a comprehensive selection of human hepatic stellate cells – a key cell type in the liver that plays a major role in the development of prevalent diseases such as fatty liver disease and fibrosis. In addition to receiving detailed culture and cryopreservation protocols with each lot of cells, Samsara’s customers will have access to a full portfolio of companion services including the provision of tissue sections, nucleic acids and gene expression data. Human hepatocytes will also be made available through established distribution channels. To achieve its goals, Samsara works closely with key collaborator and liver cell biology expert, Dr. Tatiana Kisseleva and her laboratory at theUniversity of California, San Diego School of Medicine.
“The Samsara team shares a passion for cells and is dedicated to providing the high-quality, well-characterized cellular reagents that are required to support the future of biological research and tissue products,” said Dr. Sharon Presnell, President, Samsara Sciences and Chief Technology Officer and Executive Vice President of Research & Development, Organovo. “Our ultimate vision is to supply a comprehensive portfolio of tissue-specific cells that are tailored for use in the production of the multi-cellular 3D tissues that are poised to change the landscape of drug discovery and regenerative medicine.”
“Cell supply and quality are critical to meeting Organovo’s goal to change the shape of medical research and practice, including our desire to create a bioprinted liver patch for transplant,” said Keith Murphy, CEO, Organovo. “I’m grateful to the team at Samsara and its key collaborators and scientific advisors for enabling us to develop this high-quality cell source, and to offer it to other researchers through Samsara’s commercial efforts.”
About Organovo Holdings Inc.
Organovo designs and creates functional, three-dimensional human tissues for use in medical research and therapeutic applications. The Company develops 3D human disease models through internal development and in collaboration with pharmaceutical and academic partners. Organovo’s 3D human tissues have the potential to accelerate the drug discovery process, enabling treatments to be developed faster and at lower cost. The Company recently launched its initial product of the planned exVive3DTM portfolio offering, the exVive3D Human Liver Tissue for use in toxicology and other preclinical drug testing. Additional products are in development, with the anticipated release of the exVive3D Human Kidney Tissue scheduled for the third quarter of calendar year 2016. The Company also actively conducts early research on specific tissues for therapeutic use in direct surgical applications. In addition to numerous scientific publications, the Company’s technology has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Time Magazine, The Economist, and numerous other media outlets. Organovo is changing the shape of medical research and practice. Learn more at www.organovo.com.
About Samsara Sciences, Inc.
Samsara is dedicated to the provision of high-quality primary human liver cells for use in pharmaceutical and academic research focused on liver health and disease. The Company’s first products, primary human hepatic stellate cells are available now atwww.samsarasciences.com. Primary human hepatocytes will be distributed by a third party distributor. Samsara is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Organovo Holdings, Inc.

