UK: investissements importants dans la recherche sur les celules souches embryonnaires.

£16.5 millions cash pour 57 projets relatifs à la recherche sur les cellules souches, pour permettre au royaume-Uni de se positionner en leader au niveau mondial dans ce domaine.

( Sheffield University et Cambridge University en sont les principales bénéficiaires) 'It would be wrong to raise expectations of immediate benefits for human patients, but if we can harness the potential of these incredible cells, we might be standing at the threshold of one of the greatest contributions science has made to human health'. He added that the grants would allow scientists to treat diseases 'from cancer to Parkinson's and from diabetes to heart disease'.

Stem cells are the body's 'master cells', which can renew themselves and grow into a range of other, more specialised types of cell. researchers are studying stem cells from adult tissues, as well as those derived from early human embryos. Some of the money will go to projects aiming to develop stem cell treatments for particular diseases, while other funding will be pumped into work aiming to understand more about the basic biology of these versatile cells. A Human Embryonic Stem Cell Resource Centre at Sheffield University will also receive funds. The centre, lead by Professor Peter Andrews, will provide expertise, training, resources and facilities for stem cell researchers.

The grants follow the recent opening of the world's first national stem cell bank, which will be housed at the National Institute for Biological Standards and Control at Potter's Bar, Hertfordshire, in the .

BBC News Online: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3752651.stm

The Scientist 28/5/2004 ' doles out stem cell funds'

News-Medical 27/5/2004 '16.5 million investment in stem cell research'

News-Medical: http://www.news-medical.net/view_article.asp?id=1959