StemCells Shares Gain Ground On Licensing Deal

NEW YORK (AP) — Shares of StemCells Inc. jumped Thursday after the company said it signed a non-exclusive licensing deal with a major pharmaceutical company.

The Palo Alto, Calif.-based company did not disclose the name of the company or financial details of the agreement.

Shares rose 13 cents, or 8 percent, to $1.75 in midday trading. The stock has traded between 66 cents and $3.07 per share over the past 52 weeks.

The license deals with the company's gene insertion technology, which allows researchers to genetically modify and monitor the activity of a particular gene in living cells without blocking the gene's function.

The company, which focuses on developing stem cell-based treatments for central nervous system and liver disorders, said it has so far signed three non-exclusive licensing deals with large pharmaceutical or research-based companies. Revenue from those licenses exceeds $1.2 million.

StemCells focuses on adult stem cells and already has a drug in early stage studies. Adult stem cells can be gathered from a person's skin, for example, while embryonic stem are collected by cloning embryos in a laboratory.