From Racecars To Regenerative Medicine - BioProcess Online

Jason Matuszewski earned a grade successful mechanical engineering successful 2013. He worked for Mazda Motorsports, applying his engineering know-how to physique better, safer contention cars for nonrecreational drivers. But by 2014, Matuszewski was co-founder of a biotech institution called BioStem Technologies, which develops regenerative therapeutic products derived from quality perinatal insubstantial for surgical and coiled attraction applications.

I cognize you person questions astir that abrupt transition. Bear with maine portion I marque different introduction.

Andrew Van Vurst, Chief Operating Officer, BioStem Technologies

Andrew Van Vurst was a U.S. Marine. From 2010 done 2013, helium managed attraction and formation schedules for USMC grooming squadron HMHT 302. In 2014, helium teamed up with Matuszewski to recovered BioStem.

Now you’re saying, possibly aloud, “wait, what?”

Hang successful there. One much introduction.

Until recently, Chip Van Vurst was a nonrecreational racecar operator who spent overmuch of his vocation driving Mazda racecars. He’s a multi-time nationalist champion, a two-time encephalon tumor survivor, and the begetter of Andrew Van Vurst.

Now, let’s commencement putting these pieces together.

The Genesis Of A Commercial-Stage Regenerative Medicine Company

Jason Matuszewski, Chief Executive Officer, BioStem Technologies

Chip Van Vurst’s attack to his crab diagnosis was what you mightiness expect from a nonrecreational racecar driver. Told determination were nary approved, nor experimental therapies successful the U.S. to dainty his condition, helium travelled repeatedly to the Karolinska Institute for grey substance radiation treatments. Those treatments near Chip with stroke-like symptoms including flimsy paralysis, impaired speech, and fatigue. The acquisition led him connected a planetary hunt for alternate treatments. He became a aesculapian tourist, receiving umbilical-derived compartment therapy treatments successful the Dominican Republic and Guadalajara Mexico. Impressed by the results, Chip began a travel down the compartment therapy rabbit hole. That was much than a decennary ago, erstwhile experimental compartment therapy treatments were uncommon and inactive arguable present successful the U.S.

With firsthand regenerative medicine acquisition and an insider’s presumption of the concern accidental it presented, Chip decided to marque a move. He’d get Caribbean International Holdings, the institution that facilitated the aesculapian tourism that led him to compartment therapy options successful the Dominican and Mexico, and alteration it into a U.S.-based regenerative medicine company. As those wheels started turning successful 2013, Chip acceptable retired to physique a absorption team

His son, Jason, was the cleanable operations guy. Militaristically task-oriented, logistically gifted, and committed to his father’s cause, the younger Van Vurst was all-in connected the Chief Operating Officer Role. To pb the beforehand office, Chip needed idiosyncratic who would rapidly recognize the mechanics of regenerative medicine and who would enactment astatine a accelerated gait to get the institution connected its feet. That leads america backmost to Jason Matuszewski, the Mazda Factory Race Team mechanic who Chip had Jason had some worked with trackside. Chip trusted Matuszewski with his life, aft all. Matuszewski was the feline liable for ensuring Chip, and his car, finished races successful 1 piece. For his part, Matuszewski didn’t balk astatine the opportunity. Fascinated by worldly science, helium jumped connected committee and rapidly shifted his mindset from engineering the synthetic materials recovered successful machines to the cellular ones grown successful humans.

From Steering Stems To Stem Cells

At this constituent successful the story, you’d beryllium excused to question the legitimacy of what mightiness look similar a fly-by-night beingness sciences institution formed up connected emotion and escaped change. But, successful 2018, BioStem acquired assets from ANU Life sciences to accelerate its improvement of quality insubstantial allografts. Today, it’s already taken aggregate perinatal insubstantial allograft products to market, each of them developed and manufactured successful the company’s 6,100 quadrate foot, AATB accredited, cGMP manufacturing installation successful Pompano Beach, Fl. The installation features aggregate ISO 5 and ISO 7 suites designed for commercialized accumulation of HCT/Ps.

BioStem is admittedly a tiny subordinate successful the rapidly increasing regenerative therapeutics space, but the gait of the company’s advancement can’t beryllium denied. Want to larn however they’re doing it? Tune successful to episode 116 of the Business of Biotech podcast and perceive it from Jason and Andrew themselves.