NYSCF Scientists Develop, Optimize Stem Cell Derivation Technique for the Clinic
Press Release
A team of New York Stem Cell Foundation (NYSCF) Research Institute scientists led by David Kahler, PhD, NYSCF Director of Laboratory Automation, have developed a new way to generate induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell lines from human skin cells, from both healthy and diseased donors. Reported in PLOS ONE, this cell-sorting method consistently selects the highest quality, standardized iPS cells, representing a major step forward for drug discovery and the development of cell therapies. This process provides the basis for a new technology developed by NYSCF, The NYSCF Global Stem Cell Array (Array), a fully automated, robotic platform to generate cell lines in parallel. Currently underway at the NYSCF Laboratory, the Array reprograms thousands of healthy donors’ and diseased patients’ skin and/or blood samples into iPS cell lines. Sorting and characterizing cells at an early stage of reprogramming allows efficient development of iPS cell clones and derivation of adult cell types.