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February 2, 2004 |
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Top
Stories |
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Legislation and Regulation |
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Clinical
Research |
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Pharmaceutical
News |
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Association
News |
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Calendar |
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eNews
Archives |
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Tandem BMT Meetings
Feb 13 - 17, 2004
Orlando, Florida
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(Note: Answers to this interactive poll are anonymous.)
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Last Month's
Poll Results
The
Tandem BMT Meetings are traditionally held in February.
Would you be interested in convening the meetings on a
privately booked cruise ship in the Caribbean?
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Yes. I’d like to do this, if the price is right. |
(56)
8% |
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I’m not
really sure. It would be difficult for participants
and speakers who want to attend only a portion of the
meetings. |
(123) 18% |
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No. Holding the meetings at sea has little appeal to
me. |
(503) 74% |
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Other
(Please see "comments") |
(1)
0% |
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Calendar |
•
February
6th International Congress on New Trends in Immunosuppression
Feb. 5-8
Salzburg Congress Centre
Salzburg, Austria
Tandem BMT Meetings
(Combined ASBMT and IBMTR/ABMTR annual meetings)
Feb. 13-17
Coronado Springs Resort
Orlando, Fla.
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March
American Association for Cancer Research (AACR)
95th Annual Meeting
March 27-31
Orange County Convention Center
Orlando, Fla.
European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (EBMT)
30th Annual Meeting
March 28 - 31
Palau de Congressos de Catalunya
Barcelona, Spain
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April
American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology (ASPH/O)
17th Annual Scientific Meeting
April 29-May 2
Westin St. Francis Hotel
San Francisco
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May
International Society for Cellular Therapy (ISCT)
10th Annual Meeting
May 7-10
The Burlington Hotel
Dublin, Ireland
American Society of Transplantation (AST)
American Transplant Congress
May 14-19
Hynes Convention Center
Boston
World Marrow Donor Association (WMDA)
5th International Donor Registry Conference
May 26-29
Keio University Mita Campus
Tokyo, Japan
• June
Canadian Blood and Marrow Transplant Group (CBMTG)
Biennial Meeting
June 3-6
London Convention Centre
London, Ontario
American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO)
40th Annual Meeting
June 5-8
Ernest N. Morial Convention Center
New Orleans
International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR)
2nd Annual Meeting
June 10-13
Boston Seaport Hotel
Boston
• July
Federation of Clinical Immunology Societies (FOCIS)
4th Annual Conference
July 18-23
Palais de Congres de Montreal
Montreal, Quebec
International Society for Experimental Hematology (ISEH)
33rd Annual Scientific Meeting
July 17-20
New Orleans Marriott
New Orleans
2005
Tandem BMT Meetings
(Combined ASBMT and IBMTR/ABMTR annual meetings)
Feb. 10-14
Keystone Resort
Keystone, Colo.
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Top
Stories |
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Human stem cells fuse with pig cells
Adult pigs grown from fetuses that were injected with human
stem cells have been found to contain pig cells, human cells and
hybrid cells in which DNA from the two species is mixed at the
cellular level. Scientists at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester,
Minn., also found that porcine endogenous retrovirus was present
in the hybrid cells, which can then infect human cells.
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Japanese scientists create human embryonic
stem cells
Scientists at Kyoto University’s Institute for Frontier
Medical Sciences have become the first Japanese researchers to
create human embryonic stem cells, following approval of the
research in April 2002. They have developed three lines using
mouse feeder cells and are awaiting government approval to begin
distributing the cells for research purposes.
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Researchers develop gel, use it to grow
neural stem cells
Scientists at Northwestern University have grown neural stem
cells in a specially engineered gel that could be injected
directly at the site of spinal damage, according to a study
published Jan. 22 on the Web site of the journal Science.
The technique is still being tested in mice.
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Word from President Joseph Antin, M.D.
Whatever my opinion of Florida and its electoral
machine has been, I am looking forward to escaping from
the arctic air mass that has been torturing us this winter
here in the Northeast. Even a moderately sunny week in
Orlando at the Tandem BMT Meetings this month will be a
welcome respite.
Along those lines, I have particularly good news about the
2006 meetings. We have signed contracts for the convention
center and hotels in Honolulu. Not only will this be fun
as a change of pace, but I hope that it will encourage
participation from Asian and Australian investigators.
One of the privileges of being president of our Society
this year has been chairing a committee that reviews
applications for the ASBMT new investigator awards. We had
a spectacular group of applications. While it was a
pleasure to review this science, it was tempered by the
understanding that we can support only a couple of awards
out of the 29 research proposals. I would like to
congratulate all of the applicants for a stunning series
of proposals.
And – the envelope please – the winners are:
• Sijie Lu, Ph.D., of the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center at
the University of Texas in Houston. His research proposal,
“Selective Expansion of Anti-Leukemic CTL for Donor
Lymphocyte Infusion,” received the ASBMT/Fujisawa New
Investigator Award.
• Pavan Reddy, M.D., of the University of Michigan in Ann
Arbor. His research proposal, “Role of Antigen Presenting
Cells in Mediating Graft-vs-Leukemia Effect after
Experimental Allogeneic Bone Marrow Transplantation,”
received the ASBMT/ESP Pharma New Investigator Award.
I extend my congratulations, both personally and on behalf
of the Society, to these two excellent scientists. I would
also like to reiterate my appreciation to both ESP Pharma
and Fujisawa for their generous support of these awards.
– Joe |
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Legislation and Regulation |
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Congress passes bill to create National Cord Blood Stem
Cell Bank
The U.S. Senate has approved an initial $10 million
appropriation to establish a National Cord Blood Stem Cell Bank
Network. The goal is to collect, over five years, an inventory
of 150,000 cord blood stem cell units. The program is estimated
to cost $150 million and will be administered by the Health
Resources and Services Administration.
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House of Lords set to decide on “designer baby” case
Britain’s House of Lords will meet to determine whether it
is legal to use tissue type selection, as a couple recently did
with an IVF embryo. The couple were granted permission last year
by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority to screen
the tissue type of their IVF embryos to select one whose stem
cells would be genetically compatible to their terminally ill
son’s. The mother later suffered a miscarriage.
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Clinical
Research |
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Chemotherapy and autologous stem cell transplant increases
amyloidosis survival rate
Survival rates increased from one year to nearly five years
after patients suffering from primary amyloidosis received
high-dose chemotherapy and autologous stem cell transplantation,
according to a study published in the Jan. 20 issue of the
journal Annals of Internal Medicine. Forty percent of the
312 patients studied experienced complete remission after
treatment, with half surviving more than 4.5 years and none
having relapses after two years.
Stem cell injections prove effective in treating
osteoarthritis in goats
Stem cell injections have been shown to regenerate joint
tissues and retard cartilage damage in goats suffering from
surgically induced osteoarthritis, according to a report in the
December 2003 issue of the journal Arthritis and Rheumatism.
Researchers injected stem cells taken from the bone marrow of
the goats into the knee and noted marked regeneration of joint
tissues, as well as detecting implanted cells in the new tissue.
Autologous stem cell transplant improves quality of life
for patients with refractory juvenile rheumatoid arthritis
Autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation appears
to be a safe and feasible way to improve quality of life in
patients suffering from refractory juvenile rheumatoid
arthritis, according to a study published in the December 2003
issue of the International Journal of Hematology.
Japanese researchers studied the safety and efficacy of
autologous CD34+ stem cell transplantation in three patients
ages 3, 13 and 21; two of the patients achieved complete disease
remission.
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Pharmaceutical News |
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Stem Cell Preservation Technologies Inc. closing
Clearwater, Fla.-based Cryo-Cell International Inc. is
closing its majority-owned subsidiary, Stem Cell Preservation
Technologies Inc., following the resignation of Stem Cell’s
board of directors and management. Cryo-Cell had rejected a
restructuring proposal from Stem Cell’s management that would
have required substantial additional funding to continue Stem
Cell’s operation.
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Association
News |
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ASBMT journal begins Web-based manuscript acceptance
Biology of Blood and Marrow Transplantation is now
accepting manuscripts via the Web. Beginning this month,
manuscripts and related figures and tables should be submitted
electronically through the journal’s Web site. “I believe that
authors will find the new system very easy to handle, and it
provides us even greater speed in the review process,” said
Robert Korngold, Ph.D., editor-in-chief. Complete instructions
are available at the Web site.
Rob Negrin chosen to lead ASBMT in 2006
Robert Negrin, M.D., has been chosen by mail ballot of ASBMT
members to be the society’s vice president. The office places
him in line to assume the presidency two years from now. Daniel
Weisdorf, M.D., was re-elected secretary of the Board of
Directors. Newly elected directors are Claudio Anasetti, M.D.;
Samuel Silver, M.D., Ph.D.; and Robert Truitt, Ph.D. All will
take office at the close of the Tandem BMT Meetings this month
in Orlando.
New Investigator Award announced for GvL project
The recipient of the ASBMT/ESP Pharma New Investigator Award
is Pavan Reddy, M.D., at the University of Michigan for work on
the “Role of Antigen Presenting Cells in Mediating
Graft-versus-Leukemia Effect After Experimental Allogeneic Bone
Marrow Transplantation.” The $25,000-per-year award was
announced by ASBMT President Joseph H. Antin. Renewable for a
second year, the award is funded by an unrestricted educational
grant from ESP Pharma Inc.
Tandem BMT Meetings to convene in Hawaii in 2006
Hotel and convention center negotiations have been completed
for the 2006 Tandem BMT Meetings that will be held Feb. 15-19 in
Honolulu. The meetings will be at the Hawaii Convention Center,
with the Ala Moana Hotel across the street as the headquarters
hotel. For those wanting to stay on Waikiki Beach, about three
blocks from the convention center, guestrooms also will be
available at special group rates at the Renaissance Ilikai
Waikiki Hotel and the Hilton Hawaiian Village.
Travel grants announced for Tandem BMT Meetings
The ASBMT Board of Directors has awarded travel grants of
$1,000 each to the young investigators invited to give oral
presentations at the 2004 Tandem BMT Meetings. This year, 40 of
the 66 oral abstracts will be presented by young investigators –
those not more than five years past an M.D. or Ph.D. degree.
New Web site for transplantation genomics
The National Institutes of Health, the National Center for
Biotechnology Information and the International
Histocompatibility Working Group in Hematopoietic Cell
Transplantation have announced the debut of "dbMHC-HCT" -- a
Web-based public database to promote collaborative research in
the genomics of transplantation. The official launch of the Web
site will take place at the Tandem BMT Meetings on Feb. 14 in
Orlando. Ongoing demonstrations will be available at the NCBI
exhibit booth.
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