Meeting Announcement 2007 Shanghai International Symposium on Stem Cell Research

We are delighted to announce an international symposium on stem cell research to be held in Shanghai on November 6-9, 2007. This meeting is co-organized by Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences and several other research institutions in China, together with the International Society for Stem Cell Research （ISSCR）. This is the first time ISSCR co-organizes a meeting with other organizations. ISSCR will organize a delegacy of 8-10 members to participate the symposium.[第一段]     

Occupational exposures and reproductive health: 2003 Teratology Society Meeting Symposium summary

Assuring reproductive health in the workplace challenges researchers, occupational safety and health practitioners, and clinicians. Most chemicals in the workplace have not been evaluated for reproductive toxicity. Although occupational exposure limits are established to protect 'nearly all' workers, there is little research that characterizes reproductive hazards. For researchers, improvements in epidemiologic design and exposure assessment methods are needed to conduct adequate reproductive studies. Occupational safety and health programs' qualitative and quantitative evaluations of the workplace for reproductive hazards may differ from standardized approaches used for other occupational hazards in that estimates of exposure intensity must be considered in the context of the time-dependent windows of reproductive susceptibility. Clinicians and counselors should place the risk estimate into context by emphasizing the limitations of the available knowledge and the qualitative nature of the exposure estimates, as well as what is known about other non-occupational risk factors for adverse outcomes. This will allow informed decision-making about the need for added protections or alternative duty assignment when a hazard cannot be eliminated. These policies should preserve a worker's income, benefits, and seniority. Applying hazard control technologies and hazard communication training can minimize a worker's risk. Chemical reproductive hazard training is required for workers by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's Hazard Communication Standard. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has formed a National Occupational Research Agenda Team to promote communication and partnering among reproductive toxicologists, clinicians and epidemiologists, to improve reproductive hazard exposure assessment and management, and to encourage needed research.     

Stem Cell Regulation by the Haemopoietic Stem Cell Niche

Both cellular as well as extracellular matrix components of the stem cell microenvironment, or niche, are critical in stem cell regulation. Recent data highlight a central role for osteoblasts and their by product osteopontin as a key part of the hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) niche. Herein we describe a model for the yin and yang of HSC regulation mediated by osteoblasts. In this respect, osteoblasts synthesise proteins with opposing effects on HSC proliferation and differentiation highlighting their pivotal role in adult hematopoiesis. Although osteoblasts play a central role in HSC regulation other stromal and microenvironmental cell types and their extracellular matrix proteins also contribute to this biology. For example, the glycosaminoglycan hyaluronic acid as well as the membrane bound form of stem cell factor are also key regulators of HSC. Osteopontin and these “niche” molecules are not only involved in regulation of HSC quiescence but also effect HSC homing, trans-marrow migration and lodgement. Accordingly this leads us to expand upon Schofield’s niche hypothesis: we propose that the HSC niche is critical for attraction of primitive hematopoietic progenitors to the endosteal region and tightly tethering them within this location, and by doing so placing them into intimate contact with cells such as osteoblasts whose extracellular products are able to exquisitely regulate their fate.     

Meeting review: a summary of the Label-Free Summit

‘All our knowledge has its origins in our perceptions.’ Leonardo da Vinci

Scientific progress is often enabled by the development of new tools and technologies that have given us new ways of perceiving the world. In the early days of our science, optical microscopy gave us the ability to observe cells for the first time and opened the new world of cell biology. More recently, advances in cloning and labeling technologies have permitted us to study the interactions of individual proteins. Now, label-free detection technology provides another promising advance – the means to generically study signal transduction in living cells through the dynamic mass redistribution (DMR) of intracellular contents. On October 6–7, 2008 a group of researchers gathered in Corning, NY to share recent advances in the field of label-free detection. Attendees came from nearby Ithaca, NY and as far away as Tokyo, Japan, representing a diverse set of institutions engaged in drug discovery research. Topics ranged from seven transmembrane receptor (7TMR) signaling, to high throughput screening and profiling, and to new applications such as ion channels and viral infection assays. Overall, the Label-Free Summit has given us additional perspective on the potential of this promising technology.     

First International Meeting on "Stem Cell Applications in the Craniofacial Region"

During the 1st International Meeting on "Stem Cell Applications in the Craniofacial Region" promoted in Naples (Italy), invited researchers presented theirwork and the most innovative methods regarding stem cells (SCs) and their application to the craniofacial region of the human body. In addition, some researchers showed their case-reports on craniofacial reconstruction using either osteo-distraction or reconstruction surgical methods. The aim of this biannual meeting is to stimulate discussion, improve knowledge and promote scientific collaboration among basic and clinical scientists in the main topics of SC use in therapy. A summary of this meeting is given.     

Stem cells in biology and disease - ESTOOLS International Symposium

ESTOOLS was the first EU-funded project entirely devoted to the study of human embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). The final meeting of the consortium took place in Lisbon from 26 to 28 May 2010 and gathered 298 researchers from 27 countries. A dense programme of scientific sessions and outreach activities and an ethics workshop gave an all-round overview of the challenges, perspectives and ethical issues of this exciting field. The ESTOOLS consortium was launched in 2006 as a 4-year EU-funded 6th Framework (FP6) project, with a total funding of 12 million euro. The project has been the largest European consortium devoted to the study of human ESCs, teaming up 21 research groups in 10 countries. After the discovery of human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) by Shinya Yamanaka and James Thomson in 2007, the consortium opened a new workpackage dedicated to this groundbreaking field, and became the first to devote EU funding to study human iPSCs. The Lisbon meeting marked the end of the consortiums funding cycle, but it was more than a wrap-up of its overall work and achievements, providing a showcase of cutting-edge research in human pluripotent stem cells, with the participation of international leaders in the field.     

干细胞共培养技术在医学研究中的应用

细胞共培养技术是20世纪70年代后期发展起来的将不同种类、不同来源的细胞在同一个体系中进行培养、增殖的技术,该技术的诞生至今已经历了三十多年的时间,在共培养的细胞种类、共培养条件、共培养方法等方面均取得了很大的进展。其中,将骨髓间充质干细胞与其他种类细胞共培养,以诱导骨髓间充质干细胞定向分化的研究最为常见。该文对在神经、骨关节、心血管等系统疾病的替代治疗中有重要价值的共培养研究—骨髓间充质干细胞与不同种类的体细胞共培养作了重点介绍,以期为今后的工作提供借鉴和帮助。     

Stem cell issue: Stem Cell Research Policies around the World

The proliferation of stem cell research, conflated with its ethical and moral implications, has led governments to attempt regulation of both the science and funding of stem cells. Due to a diversity of opinions and cultural viewpoints, no single policy or set of rules exist to govern stem cell research. Instead, each country has developed its own policy. The following map catalogs the general legal and political milleu regarding stem cell research by country.