A study involving 112 patients has shown that stem cells grown in the laboratory can be used to restore sight after certain kinds of eye damage.
In research published in the New England Journal of Medicine, scientists from the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia and the San Raffaele Scientific Institute in Italy grew stem cells in the laboratory then grafted them onto patients' eyes to restore their sight.
Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Sweden, has received a grant of SEK 100 million (over 10 million Euros) from the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation for a new regenerative medicine research centre – the Wallenberg Institute for Regenerative Medicine (WIRM). The centre will concentrate on new and pioneering research, with a special focus on the blood system.Growing knowledge of stem cells and regenerative medicine has opened up completely new avenues for the treatment of a number of diseases.
Launch of national research programme "Stem cells and regenerative medicine" (NRP 63)
Scientists from the Pierre & Marie Curie University in Paris have discovered a previously unknown type of muscle stem cell. These cells, dubbed "PICs", appear to be as important for muscle regeneration and repair as satellite cells – the “stemlike” cells involved in the normal growth of muscle and regeneration following disease or injury. As such, PICs may have implications for treatment of muscle diseases like muscular dystrophies.
Scientists from San Raffaele Institute and the University of Milan have uncovered the developmental switch that turns embryonic into fetal muscle in mice. The research, led by Graziella Messina and coordinated by Giulio Cossu, has been published in the February issue of Cell and identifies a single gene – called Nuclear Factor I X, Nfix – that acts as this switch.
Research efforts to help the world’s ageing population live longer healthier lives have been given a major boost with the announcement of six new transatlantic research projects aiming to understanding the biology of the ageing process.
OptiStem is an EU-funded research project that brings together stem celli biologists and
clinical experts from 18 partner institutions in six European countries.
The project combines basic research about stem cells with pre-clinical work, and ultimately clinical trials. It will investigate the possible use of stem cells from adult tissues to treat degenerative diseases of epithelia and skeletal muscle.
One of the most promising areas of stem celli research involves transforming adult cells into embryonic stem-like cells. In a landmark study in 2006, Shinya Yamanaka and his colleagues at Kyoto University used genetic manipulation to turn mouse skin cells into induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cellsi – or artificially-created stem cells.
The Bioethics-Clinical Ethics Unit at the University of Marburg in cooperation with the Stem Cell Network North Rhine Westphalia and the Institute of Science and Ethics at the University of Bonn are currently conducting an internet survey on experiences and attitudes of scientists with German citizenship, working in the field of stem cell research in Sweden, UK and the USA.
Haematopoietic stem cells (HS cells) are the body's blood bank, giving rise to all types of blood cell including leukocytes and erythrocytes. Each time an HS cell produces a mature blood cell, it also produces a replica of itself, which continues to function as an "immortal" inexhaustible stem cell. This way, our supply of HS cells - a rare cell population lodging mainly in the adult bone marrow - is never used up.
