Stem Cells Portal Monthly Newsletter - Dec 2007

Volume 1, Issue 1 December 2007

In this Issue:
Welcome to the Stem Cells Portal Newsletter
About the Stem Cells Portal
Editorial: Stem Cells Secures its Niche
New Resources on the Portal: Tulane Center for Gene Therapy - Distribution of MSCs for Academic Research
Meeting Highlights: IFATS 2007, Oct 18-20, Indianapolis, IN
Coming Soon to the Stem Cells Portal
Contact Us/Add Your Resources and Announcements

Welcome to the Stem Cells Portal Newsletter

I would like to welcome you to the first issue of the Stem Cells Portal Newsletter! This monthly e-publication is designed to keep you updated about new resources available on the Stem Cells Portal, stem cells meeting and news highlights, announcements, and ways in which you can become involved in our Stem Cells Community. To share resources, highlight information, or post announcements on the Portal and in the Newsletter, please contact me!

Susan Rainey Daher, PhD
Portal Editor
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About the Stem Cells Portal

The Stem Cells Portal (www.StemCellsPortal.com) is a free resource brought to you by the internationally recognized, per-reviewed scientific journal Stem Cells®. Our aim is to bring together a network of stem cell researchers, resources, societies, and information. In the interest of encouraging and stimulating research, we are providing a unique location in which the stem cell community can share resources, connect with new resources, communicate with each other, network, hold discussions, and keep updated on the latest news and products.

The Portal will cover all aspects of stem cells: Embryonic Stem Cells, tissue-specific stem cells, cancer stem cells, the stem cell niche, stem cell genomics and proteomics, translational and clinical research, and technology development.

The Portal will also include stem cell educational resources and will serve as a source of information and interaction for members of the public interested in stem cell research.

Editorial: Stem Cells Secures its Niche

Scientists in the lab delight as they observe some of the fundamental traits of hematopoietic, embryonic and Mesenchymal Stem Cells; they grow, flourish, and give rise to differentiated progeny when cultured with care in their optimal environment. Now, akin to their cellular namesakes, the Stem Cells Journal has shown that it too displays these remarkable characteristics. The journal is thriving, developing, and securing its place in its publishing niche as a top journal, having recently attained its highest ever impact factor ranking of 7.924. And, the Journal has produced a new offspring, the Stem Cells Portal (www.StemCellsPortal.com).

Published by Thomson Scientific/ISI, the impressive impact factor of 7.924 for 2006 continues our steady growth over the last five years (see Figure 1) and solidifies Stem Cells' position as the highest impact factor ranking for a journal devoted solely to stem cell research. In addition, Stem Cells remains one of the leading journals in several distinguished categories, including 4th of 61 journals in hematology, 9th of 127 journals in Oncology, 5th out of 140 journals in the Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology, and 21st of 156 journals in Cell Biology.

An even more impressive view of our development is demonstrated by a comparative analysis of the impact factor achievements in Stem Cells and some of our competing journals over the last 10 years (see Figure 2). While other top journals in the field have maintained their impact factors with little variation (? 1.1.65) during this time, Stem Cells' impact factor has undergone a strong and steady increase, rising by a substantial 5.582.

Now, Stem Cells has developed a new website, the Stem Cells Portal (www.StemCellsPortal.com), with a mission of providing scientists with access to the best research tools available, as well as an interactive platform with the highest level of scientific quality. We are developing an on-line community of stem cell labs, societies, and research centers, and we are partnering with stem cell banks, organizations, and companies to bring you the latest available research tools, products, news, and community information, all from one easy access point. We envision the portal being as interactive as possible, with discussions, featured articles, meeting updates, and anything else scientists may need to support and advance their work in this field.

Our impressive impact factor growth has been due in large part to the excellence of our submitted research and review articles, and by an editorial team working at the forefront of their fields. Now, with the addition of the Stem Cells Portal as a significant gathering site and source of the highest quality resources and information, we plan to strengthen and broaden the Stem Cells community even further, and to continue to flourish and develop in our niche. We look forward to your participation!

Susan Rainey Daher, PhD
Portal Editor
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New Resources on the Portal:

Tulane Center for Gene Therapy - Distribution of MSCs for Academic Research

Highlights from the IFATS 2007 Meeting

Oct 18-20,  Indianapolis IN
The International Federation of Adipose Therapy and Science (IFATS) is the only organization that focuses on the understanding and treatment of disease by probing into the characteristics of adipose tissue and its rich repository of stem cells.  These mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have the potential to regenerate and repair many different tissues in the body.  This field has shown remarkable growth over the last year, and this year’s 5th annual meeting was well attended by over 150 researchers from at least 9 different countries. 

A theme emphasized throughout the meeting was teamwork and the development of productive collaborations.  This was exemplified by including speakers not only from the field of adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs), but from across various fields of stem cell research.  And, fitting for the Indianapolis venue, the meeting included a special appearance by Indy 500 race car driver Sarah Fisher, with her exciting presentation on the importance of teamwork in winning a race. 

Some highlights of the presentations:
Keynote speakers:

Dr. Anthony Atala, a leader in the field of amniotic fluid derived stem cells (AFS cells), gave an exciting talk about tissue engineering and Regenerative Medicine. AFS cells have properties of both embryonic and adult stem cells – they can give rise to many different tissue types in culture, yet they do not form tumors and are genetically very stable. These cells are being studied for their ability to re-populate damaged Neurons in brain injuries, form islet-like structures that secrete insulin, and for use in renal, liver, and cardiac diseases. Dr. Atala also discussed his extensive work using scaffolds and stem cells In Vitro to produce organs for transplant, such as the bladder, urethra, trachea, and arteries. Click here to visit Dr. Atala’s website: http://www.wfirm.org/index.htm

Dr. Hal Broxmeyer, discoverer of umbilical cord-blood derived stem cells, gave a wonderful overview of this remarkable area. Because Hematopoietic Stem Cells (HSCs) from bone marrow are still difficult to expand in vivo, Dr. Broxmeyer’s lab is interested in the use of hematopoietic stem cells and progenitor cells from umbilical cord blood for transplantation purposes. Interestingly, cord blood transplantation elicits a lowered level of graft vs. host disease (GVHD) compared to traditional bone marrow transplantation. His laboratory also studies the growth and hematopoietic Differentiation of murine embryonic stem cells (mESCs). Visit Dr. Broxmeyer’s website at http://www.iupui.edu/~micro/broxmeyer.html.

Dr. Katarina LeBlanc, a leader in the field of bone marrow derived MSCs, gave a fascinating presentation on how these cells may act as modulators of the immune system. MSCs from bone marrow and adipose tissue seem to be able to escape detection by the immune system, leading to the possibility of using non-related donor tissue for transplantations. These MSCs may also suppress immune responses, leading to a decrease in GVHD after bone marrow transplants, and improving the engraftments of the HSCs when they are co-transplanted. Their ability to reduce inflammation may also aid in improving the healing of injured organs, such as kidney and liver. Click here to visit Dr. LeBlanc’s lab website: http://ki.se/ki/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=7819&a=21741&l=en.

Other Topics of Interest:

• The biological similarities between mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) derived from bone marrow and adipose tissue, their compartmentalization, and whether ASCs could be a novel source of stem cells for bone marrow transplants.
• The in vitro generation of hepatocytes from ASCs.
• The generation of pre-adiopocytes from ASCs, and the implications of inflammation and endothelial contact.
• Cell –assisted lipotransfer, involving the concurrent transplantation of aspirated fat and ASCs, to improve the survival of transplanted fat
• ASCs to treat lameness and pain in dogs with osteoarthritis.
• The pro-angiogenic effects of ASCs an their use in wound healing.
• Functional cardiomyoctyes derived from ASCs, engrafting into mouse models, and the use of ASCs to promote repair in ischemic tissues.
• Anti-tumoral properties of ASCs.

Congratulations to IFATS president Dr. Keith March, the IFATS Scientific Program Committee Members, and all of the conference organizing team for an outstanding meeting. We look forward to IFATS 2008 in France!

Coming Soon to the Stem Cells Portal

Community of Stem Cell Labs
To facilitate finding and connecting with other stem cell researchers we are developing a keyword searchable listing of stem cell labs around the world, including names, institutions, addresses, email, links to Web pages, and scientific keywords. Contact us to add your lab!

Database of Protocols
We are inviting researchers from across a variety of stem cell fields to share useful and proven protocols with us and are developing a database of these protocols that can be accessed by all members of our community. Please contact us to submit your protocols!

More Stem Cell Databases
To assist you in accessing all the stem cell information you need, we are working with institutions, companies, and individuals to help gather all your important stem cell information in one convenient place, with Portal access to stem cell databases, stem cell lines, products, literature, research, societies, institutions, and more.

Discussion Forums
Discuss current topics, journal articles, Q & As for the public…what would you like to include? Contact us to let us know!                                                                                   

Add Your Resources and Announcements

Our aim is to bring together a network of stem cell researchers, resources, and information, to encourage and stimulate research.

We would like to partner with you to feature:

• work from your stem cell lab
• stem cells resources that you can share with our community
• announcements from your lab/institution
• upcoming meetings and events
• new stem cell research products
• discussion forums
• highlights of the news and literature

To find out more about becoming a part of our Portal please contact the Portal Editor, Susan Rainey Daher, at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .