The European Court of Justice is scheduled to issue a judgment on 18 October 2011 in a case concerning the patentability of technology based on the use of human embryonic stem cells. The case involves a German researcher, Oliver Brüstle.
A team of US scientists has used cloning technology to create embryos from the skin cells of diabetic patients, and then derived stem cells from these embryos. This is thought to be the first such procedure using patient-specific cells.
Mesoblast Ltd of Australia has received clearance to start a Phase 2 trial of a new allogeneic stem-cell therapy in patients suffering acute heart attacks. The UK’s King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is one of the study sites.
F-Star GmbH of Vienna will discover engineered antibodies for three inflammatory targets supplied by Merck Serono SA of Geneva in a contract that is potentially worth €492 million plus tiered royalties on product sales.
Researchers at the Harvard Stem Cell Institute have reported the reprogramming of adult mouse skin cells directly into a type of motor neuron by a method which they say is more efficient than the process for creating induced pluripotent stem cells.
The European Commission has awarded €5.3 million over four years to a consortium led by Ark Therapeutics Group Plc to investigate the possible use of gene and cell therapy, along with stents, in the treatment of coronary heart disease.
Roslin Cells Ltd has reached an agreement with Pfizer Inc giving the US multinational access to its pluripotent stem cell lines with a view to assessing their potential for specific clinical therapies. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Advanced Cell Technology Inc has announced the dosing of the first patients in each of its two Phase 1/2 clinical trials for eye disorders using retinal pigment epithelial cells derived from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs).
A new method for deriving induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from blood samples has been described in the journal, Blood. According to the authors, the approach could provide a new source of patient-specific cells for disease research and drug discovery.
Sanofi SA has entered into a two-year research collaboration with a small Netherlands-based company, Audion Therapeutics BV, to develop potential treatments for hearing loss by targeting progenitor cells in the inner ear with small molecule compounds.