StemCells gets FDA nod for eye trial using neural stem cells

An early-stage clinical trial using purified neural stem cells to treat dry age-related macular degeneration was approved by the Food and Drug Administration, said StemCells Inc.
Newark-based StemCells (NASDAQ: STEM) said the Phase I/II trial will administer the cells — extracted from fetal brain tissue — through a single injection in space beneath the retina of 16 patients. Those patients will be evaluated over one year and will be followed for another four years in a separate observational study.