Editorial from Editor-in-Chief (Stem Cell Advances and Challenges) [Hot Topic Perinatal Stem Cells Revisited: Directions and Indications at the Crossroads Between Tissue Regeneration and Repair].

摘要

2012 was a good year for stem cells. Just a few years after the discovery of induced pluripotent stem cells, the Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine was awarded to Sir John B. Gurdon and Dr. Shinya Yamanaka for their landmark findings. The amount of research funding dedicated to the field in 2012 was the highest it had ever been, despite tight government budgets. Major advances in the discovery and understanding of the basic biology and therapeutic potential of stem cells were also evident for many different cell types, including embryonic, fetal and adult sources. 2012 also saw the first paper published on the outcomes of human embryonic derived stem cells when Professor Steven D. Schwartz et al described the initial pilot results of patients treated for macular degeneration (The Lancet, Volume 379, Issue 9817, Pages 713 - 720, 25 February 2012). The number of clinical trials dedicated to cell therapies kept increasing. More cell technologies were used therapeutically in patients in 2012 than ever before. The first commercially available stem cell product was approved, and went on sale in Canada by Osiris Therapeutics, Inc. By most accounts, 2012 was indeed a good year for our field.