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Those who know Xytex’s history understand the passion of its founder and president, Armand M. Karow, Ph.D., to return to the research setting that gave birth to one of the country’s first sperm banks in 1975.  Thirty years ago, the Medical College of Georgia, where Dr. Karow was a professor and researcher in Pharmacology, declined the opportunity to initiate private cryobank services, thus the founding of Xytex Corporation in 300 square feet of space adjacent to the college campus.

Today, thinking has changed at the Medical College of Georgia, where the MCG Business Incubator encourages, nurtures and fosters entrepreneurial enterprises like Xytex Research Inc.  Under the direction of Ying C. Song, M.D., Ph.D., Xytex Research occupies 1,500 square feet of laboratory and office space in the Life Sciences Business Development Center on the MCG campus.  Dr. Song is also serving on the adjunct faculty at MCG.

Speaking of the “big picture,” Dr. Song says that his research will focus on developing technologies using vitrification to preserve fertility of men and women whose fertility has been destroyed by disease, such as cancer.  Simultaneously, he will be developing technology for regenerative medicine, which he calls “tissue engineering” to repair and replace damaged cells, tissues and organs.

Dr. Song hopes one day to apply ice-free preservation (vitrification) to cells, organs and reproductive tissues, such as testicle tissues damaged by childhood cancers to preserve this tissue and transplant it back to grow sperm for the patient.  One day, he hopes to apply this same principle to ovarian tissue and ooyctes for female fertility.

While he was trained in the People’s Republic of China as a surgeon, it was during a fellowship in cryobiology at Cambridge University in England that he discovered his “niche” in this field of research.  Following five years at Cambridge, he moved to Ann Arbor, Mich., where he worked in research at the University of Michigan and at Children’s Hospital and Medical Center.  From here he moved to Seattle, Wash., to continue research at the University of Washington.  Before joining Xytex Research in Augusta, Ga., he worked with Organ Recovery Systems in Charleston, S.C., on vitrification research.  Since 2000 Dr. Song has also served as adjunct full professor in the Tissue Engineering Research Center, Beijing Institute of Basic Medical Science, Beijing, China.

“Xytex Research provides the component companies of Xytex International Ltd. the means to give back to reproductive medicine a measure of appreciation for its confidence in our services for 30 years – the gift of advanced, innovative technologies for the benefit of patient care.

“I have confidence that Dr. Song will develop a world-class laboratory of outstanding scientists nurtured by the academic heritage in reproductive medicine at the Medical College of Georgia,” says Dr. Karow.

Xytex Corporation
Creating Families Through Innovation

www.xytex.com/706.733.0130

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