Life Technologies Corporation today announced that it has signed a non-exclusive agreement with iPS Academia Japan (AJ) for its induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell patent portfolio to expand the company’s range of products and services for the iPS cell research community, according to a company press release.
The worldwide license will enable Life Technologies, a provider of life science solutions, to develop and sell products designed to create iPS cells and differentiate them into any cell type for use in drug discovery and pre-clinical research. In additional to directly selling iPS cells, the license enables the company to provide iPS cell creation, differentiation and screening services for scientists around the world.
iPS cells “are adult cells that have been genetically reprogrammed to an embryonic stem cell–like state by being forced to express genes and factors important for maintaining the defining properties of embryonic stem cells.”
Life Technologies will use its expertise in stem cell tool manufacturing and its global distribution network to provide products and services for this marketplace.
Human stem cells can be used in research and labs, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Studies of human embryonic stem cells are so important because they turn out information about how human development occurs.
“A primary goal of this work is to identify how undifferentiated stem cells become the differentiated cells that form the tissues and organs. Scientists know that turning genes on and off is central to this process. Some of the most serious medical conditions, such as cancer and birth defects, are due to abnormal cells and differentiation,” NIH explains on its website.
In addition, the press release notes, the ability to develop cells from people with particular diseases gives researchers the ability to study the genetics behind those illnesses in an effort to test or develop new potential treatments.
"iPS Academia Japan is pleased to grant a non-exclusive license and build a relationship with Life Technologies Corporation. Because iPS cells are gaining greater attention for uses in drug discovery and disease research as well as other areas of biotechnology, distribution of iPS cell products or provision of services is important for gaining momentum in iPS cell research," said Shosaku Murayama, president and CEO of AJ, said. "We believe that Life Technologies' business will contribute to boost research and development for practical application of iPS cell technology. We hope for further advancement of the iPS cell technology and its practical use in the coming years and we continue to support expanding the iPS cell technology by licensing our patent portfolio."
"I am very pleased that Life Technologies, a worldwide biotechnology company, has signed an agreement for Kyoto University Patent," said Professor Shinya Yamanaka, who led the team that was first to generate iPS cells in 2006. "I hope it will speed up the movement towards practical applications of iPS cell technology."
Many scientists think of human embryonic stem cells as wonder cells, because the study of them could lead to cures for heart disease, diabetes, some forms of blindness and even possibly, cancer, according to Rob Stein of npr.com. But human embryos have been destroyed to obtain some of the cells. So the research has long been hotly contested.
Perhaps in Japan researchers can concentrate more on cures than the controversies that beset scientists in America.
Edited by
Rachel Ramsey
