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.

In the summer of 2009, three Italian stem cellⁱ scientists unsuccessfully challenged their government in the courts over its decision to exclude human embryonic stem cellⁱ research from a ministerial funding call for projects on stem cell biology. In correspondence published in Nature on 10th February 2010, the scientists argue that their case is both politically and culturally significant.

The UK’s BBC News has highlighted concerns that high-quality science is going unpublished, while weaker research takes its place in leading scientific journals.

Leading stem cellⁱ scientists Austin Smith and Robin Lovell-Badge spoke out about problems with the peer review process – the system used by scientific journals to decide which research is good enough to publish. In this process, when a researcher sends a report about their latest work to a journal, it is passed on to other scientists in the field for comment. The journal editor then uses the comments from these expert reviewers to decide whether the research is of a high enough quality to be published.

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.

Telethon Italy is one of the biggest biomedical charities in Italy. It aims to advance biomedical research towards diagnosis, cure and prevention of genetic diseases. One such disease is Huntington's disease, an incurable brain disorder.

Call opening 2nd November 2009 

The Thierry Latran Foundation was set up under the aegis of Fondation de France. It aims to foster and promote research in the fields of ALS and protection of motor neuron. The Thierry Latran Foundation is now running its second call for projects.

The call is for an aggregate amount up to  € 1 million . Of this, € 300 000 will be dedicated to the specific topic, Stem cells therapeutic approaches in ALS

Other topics are:

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.

EuroSyStem, the European Federation for Systematic Stem Cellⁱ Biology, developed a free online database of active stem cell researchers in Europe.

StemDirect makes finding other researchers in your field simple:

• Quick contact look-up
• Advanced search tool with multiple search parameters
• Comprehensive profiles, including research area and up-to-date contact details
• Easy-to-use tools and clear, simple data display

A group of 14 leading stem cellⁱ researchers have called for improved transparency in an open letter to peer-review journals publishing in the field of stem cell biology. The letter, which was sent to senior editors of 10 key journals, calls for publication of reviews and editorial correspondence alongside research papers.

Austin Smith of the University of Cambridge, United Kingdom, and his 13 co-signatories propose: