Stem Cell Headlines: Thursday, 2.25.10

Burns patients' stem cells help doctors grow skin - 2.25.10

• Doctors at the newly created Sydney Burns Foundation say they are advancing towards the "holy grail" in burns treatment: full thickness replacement skin.

 

CIRM launches online stem cell curriculum - 2.25.10

• The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, based in San Francisco, said the course materials and resources on its “Stem Cell EDU Portal” will help high school and other educators prepare students to join the biotech workforce.

 

Advanced Cell re-signs chief exec - 2.25.10

• Advanced Cell Technology Inc. (ACTC), which is developing stem cell technology for medical treatments, has signed Chief Executive William M. Caldwell IV to a new employment agreement paying him a base salary of $480,000 per year.

 

Stem Cell Approvals May Move Faster Under U.S. Panel - 2.25.10

• The effort announced today by the Food and Drug Administration and National Institutes of Health includes $6.75 million in grants for researchers to develop new methods for turning scientific breakthroughs into treatments available to the public. FDA and NIH will form a council to oversee an “unprecedented” collaboration between the two agencies, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said.
• FDA Announces an Initiative to Boost Regulatory Science

 

Tobacco settlement trust approves new adult stem cell center at OU Health Sciences Center - 2.25.10

• A new adult stem cell research center to be located at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center has been approved by the Oklahoma Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust. The trust will provide $490,000 for the remainder of the fiscal year that ends June 30 — and may provide an addition $1 million per year for each of the next five years.

 

Gene-based stem cell therapy specifically removes cell receptor that attracts HIV - 2.25.10

• UCLA AIDS Institute researchers successfully removed CCR5 — a cell receptor to which HIV-1 binds for infection but which the human body does not need — from human cells. Individuals who naturally lack the CCR5 receptor have been found to be essentially resistant to HIV.

 

Professor on research team that makes new advancement with stem cells - 2.25.10

• University professor of bioengineering Sina Rabbany was among the team of scientists that recently made a new advancement involving stem cells. The team of scientists was able to generate endothelial cells, also known as blood vessel-forming cells, from stem cells.

 

StemCyte opens it first UCB stem cell bank of India at Apollo - 2.25.10

• StemCyte Inc, USA, today announced the opening of it's first umblical cord blood(UCB) stem cell banking facility in India, at Apollo

 

Adult Stem Cell Therapy Shows Promise for Heart Attack Patients - 2.25.10

• Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center is participating in a national research study testing the restorative effect that adult bone marrow stem cells have on damaged heart muscle in heart attack patients.

 

Osiris reports on stem-cell breakthroughs, earnings - 2.25.10

• Columbia-based Osiris Therapeutics Inc. reported several breakthroughs in clinical trials of its stem-cell therapy and improved fourth-quarter earnings on Wednesday.

 

Healthy Links: Stems cells used to restore sight in blind mice - 2.25.10

• An international research team led by Columbia University Medical Center successfully used mouse embryonic stem cells to replace diseased retinal cells and restore sight in a mouse model of retinitis pigmentosa. This strategy could potentially become a new treatment for retinitis pigmentosa, a leading cause of blindness that affects approximately one in 3,000 to 4,000 people, or 1.5 million people worldwide.

 

Lifebank Becomes the First and Only Canadian Cord Blood Bank To Achieve Industry-Leading FACT Accreditation - 2.25.10

• Lifebank Corp. (CA:LBK) announced today that it has become the first and only cord blood bank in Canada to earn the industry's highest accreditation from the Foundation of Accreditation of Cellular Therapy ("FACT").

 

Hard to Treat Diseases (HTDS) Melem Secrets' Completes Merger - 2.25.10

• Hard to Treat Diseases (HTDS) - Further to the previously announced cosmetics merger (press release Feb 5, 2010) negotiations with the cosmetic company Melem Secrets, and other business matters the company is pleased to report that it has completed a cosmetic micro-conglomerate merger.

 

Company in Discussions With Several Niche Biotechnology Companies - 2.25.10

• Bio-Matrix Scientific Group Inc. (OTCBB: BMSN) announced today its growth strategy for 2010. The Company announced that it will apply its resources toward conducting stem cell related research aimed at developing and commercializing innovative new therapies.

 

Celgene announce launch of R&D centre in Europe - 2.25.10

• Celgene has announced the launch of a new European hub for cutting-edge translational science called the Celgene Institute of Translational Research Europe (CITRE).

 

Hrithik Roshan wants you to Preserve stem cells - 2.25.10

• After endorsing a slew of consumer products, Hrithik Roshan has signed up to endorse a system of stem cell preservation. LifeCell babycord urges parents to preserve their newborn baby's umbilical cord so they can give their child a safe and secure future.

 

Biotech lab gets $6.6M grant - 2.25.10

• The center also provided funds for the Stem Cell Bank and Stem Cell Registry at the University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worcester and is contributing $90 million toward the planned $405 million genetic therapy research center planned at the medical school.

 

Fate Therapeutics modulates stem cells for therapeutic use - 2.25.10

• Founded in 2007, Fate Therapeutics focuses on modulating adult, rather than embryonic, stem cells and on induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC). The company derives its name from the fact that it essentially modulates the stem cell's fate.

 

Induced stem cells can’t replace embryonic ones - 2.25.10

• The discovery of ways to reprogram skin cells from adults so they return to a pluripotent state similar to that found in embryonic stem cells has been heralded as a breakthrough that will enable the field to move on from the ethical rows and controversy that have beset it for the last twelve years.

 

Piedmont Doctors Test Stem Cells for Heart Attack Treatment - 2.25.10

• Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center is the only hospital in North Carolina and one of 40 nationwide studying whether adult bone marrow stem cells can rebuild and repair hearts damaged by heart attacks.

 

Geron Corporation Reports Fourth Quarter and Annual 2009 Financial Results and Highlights - 2.25.10

• Geron Corporation (GERN)  today reported financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2009.

 

China Cord Blood Corporation Acquires Stake in Shandong Cord Blood Bank - 2.25.10

• China Cord Blood Corporation ("CCBC" or "the Company") (NYSE: CO), China's first and largest cord blood bank operator in terms of geographic coverage, today announced that as part of its nationwide expansion strategy, it has entered into an agreement to acquire an effective 19.92% equity interest in Shandong Cord Blood Bank ("SCBB") for US$20.5 million (equivalent to HK$159.36 million) in an all-cash transaction.

 

Athersys to Host Fourth Quarter Financial Results Call - 2.25.10

• Athersys, Inc. (ATHX) today announced it will release its fourth quarter 2009 financial results at approximately 4:00 PM (Eastern Time) on Thursday, March 11, 2010, and host a conference call shortly thereafter at 4:30 PM (Eastern Time) to review the results. Gil Van Bokkelen, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, and William (B.J.) Lehmann, President and Chief Operating Officer, will host the call.

 

Veterinarians Invited to Horse Stem Cell Conference in California - 2.24.10

• Researchers and veterinary practitioners from throughout the United States and abroad are invited to the inaugural North American Veterinary Regenerative Medicine Conference, a two-day event to include scientific presentations, demonstrations and discussion sessions.

 

Aastrom Biosciences ready for new trials with stem cell-based therapy - 2.24.10

• Ann Arbor-based Aastrom Biosciences Inc. (ASTMD) announced Wednesday that based on encouraging results from a Phase 2b clinical study of 46 patients with a condition known as critical limb ischemia, patients will be enrolled in a follow-up Phase 3 study of a stem cell-based therapy known as Restore-CLI.

 

International Stem Cell Upward Momentum Looks to Continue (ISCO) - 2.24.10

• SmarTrend identified an Uptrend for International Stem Cell (NASDAQ:ISCO) on February 16, 2010 at $1.56. In approximately 1 week, International Stem Cell has returned 10.4% as of today's recent price of $1.72.

 

Osiris CEO Flogs Failed Drug: BioBuzz - 2.24.10

• Osiris Therapeutics(OSIR Quote) CEO Randy Mills has a funny way of speaking about Prochymal, his company's experimental stem-cell therapy for graft versus host disease (GVHD).

 

Stem Cell Research: The Debate on Ethics - 2.24.10

• Medical science has come a long way since the days of Hippocrates. The discovery of wonder drugs called antibiotics, the formulation of anaesthesia that revolutionised surgery, the discovery of monoclonal antibodies to treat various diseases etc, are medical milestones that have paved the road to modern medicine that exists today.

 

Stem cell firm changes name to AmStem - 2.24.10

• Stem Cell Therapy International has changed its name to AmStem Corp.