US Equity Holdings announces new funding to launch Aelan Cell Technologies

US Equity Holdings announced yesterday that it has secured funding to launch Aelan Cell Technologies, a biotech startup engaged in the research, discovery, development and commercialization of innovative biomedical technologies and diagnostic tools for the advancement of human health and longevity.

US Equity Holdings Chairman and CEO Chester Aldridge co-founded Aelan Cell Technologies with Dr. Victoria Lunyak, Aelan's chief executive officer and president.

"Victoria has a distinguished track record of research discoveries and innovations, from her earliest days as a grant recipient from the International Soros Foundation to her stellar accomplishments while pursuing her academic career in world-leading institutions, including Brown University, the University of California, San Diego and, most recently, at the Buck Institute for Research on Aging," said Aldridge.

Dr. Lunyak's areas of expertise include epigenetics, genomics and stem cell research. Her research discoveries have been published in Science, Cell, Genes and Development and other journals, with more than 5,000 scientific citations and coverage in media across the globe, including The Times, Wired, Popular Mechanics, the San Francisco Business Times, Science Daily, Noticias de la Ciencia y la Tecnología (Spain), Tendencias 21 Científicas (Spain), Futura-Sciences (France), La Hora (Ecuador), El Universal (México) and Diário da Saúde (Portugal). Many of Dr. Lunyak's scientific innovations are patented and licensed worldwide.

For Dr. Lunyak, forming Aelan Cell Technologies with the US Equity Holdings team has meant entering a new chapter in her research career. "After 20 years in academic research, it was time for me to venture out into the private sector to research and develop new technologies that may be commercialized," said Dr. Lunyak. "I valued the opportunity to carry out my research at the Buck Institute, where I met many remarkable scientists and entrepreneurs. I have witnessed firsthand Chester's ability as an active member of the Buck Advisory Council to build companies from the ground up based on technologies from the academic environment."

Aelan Cell Technologies is the latest company to be incubated by US Equity Holdings. Located in the heart of the Bay Area biotech district and armed with high-tech instrumentation platforms in the hands of a highly trained team of scientists, Aelan Cell Technologies is actively building partnerships with companies that share its goals.

Multiple partnerships are already being established. "It's not surprising that people want to be part of Aelan," said Aldridge. "Victoria has made a career out of questioning the current understanding of longevity. Her science paves the way for the development of disruptive technologies and out-of-the-box approaches to regenerative medicine. With our understanding of market positioning and with Victoria leading the way, Aelan will be applying significant resources to the research and development of these initiatives, to the strategic positioning of intellectual property and to its subsequent commercialization," said Aldridge.