Kyoto University Hospital to open iPS cell therapy center in 2019

[barbara]

KYODO
FEB 24, 2015
The Japan Times


Kyoto University Hospital says it will open a center to conduct clinical studies on induced pluripotent stem cell therapies in 2019 year.

Officials said the 30-bed ward will test the efficacy and safety of the therapies on volunteer patients.

The hospital aims to break ground at the site next February and complete construction by September 2019.

“As an iPS cell research hub, we hope to apply (the cells) to groundbreaking therapies and make developments in the field of drug discovery,” the hospital said in a statement Monday.

Ongoing research on iPS cells at Kyoto University includes turning the cells into dopamine-releasing neurons for transplant into patients with Parkinson’s disease, and creating a formulation of platelets that helps blood to clot.

Professor Shinya Yamanaka, who shared the 2012 Nobel Prize in medicine, leads the existing iPS cell research center at Kyoto University.

 

[Claire]

Thanks for sharing!!!

 

[barbara]

Tycoons dig deep to fund iPS cell research

April 09, 2015
THE ASAHI SHIMBUN

Two billionaire entrepreneurs, Japanese and American, have pledged 500 million yen ($4.16 million) to fund research on induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells, a field that offers great promise in regenerative medicine.

Hiroshi Mikitani, chairman and CEO of Rakuten Inc., and Marc Benioff, chairman and CEO of Salesforce.com Inc., said April 8 they will each contribute 250 million yen of their respective fortunes to the iPS Cell Research Fund, which was established in 2009.

“I will be happy if I am able to help the masses of people who are sick,” Mikitani said during an event in Tokyo to mark the contributions. He was also given a certificate of appreciation for his donation.

The money will go to Kyoto University’s Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), headed by Shinya Yamanaka, a Nobel laureate and pioneer in the field. The funding will be used to employ staff, nurture researchers and manage intellectual property rights.

The government currently gives Kyoto University substantial funding for research. But the grants can only be spent on the projects for which they are allocated.

The university said an additional 300 million to 500 million yen is needed each year to run CiRA.

“We will strive for clinical applications (of iPS cells) and other goals,” Yamanaka said at the ceremony.