Thursday, August 1, 2013

AMD stem cell trial began

World's 1st iPS cell clinical study for regeneration of retina begins

TOKYO — 8/1/2013
The world’s first clinical study using stem cells harvested from a patient’s own body began Thursday. A government committee last month approved proposals for the tests, which will be jointly conducted by the Riken Center for Developmental Biology and the Institute of Biomedical Research and Innovation (IBRI) Hospital in Kobe.

Health Minister Norihisa Tamura signed off on a proposal by two research institutes that will allow them to begin tests aimed at treating age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a common medical condition that causes blindness in older people, using “induced Pluripotent Stem (iPS) cells”.