Centre for Regenerative Medicine

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Centre for Regenerative Medicine
Centre for Regenerative Medicine.jpg
An artist's impression of the Centre for Regenerative Medicine
Established2008
Focus Regenerative treatment
Co-Directors
Staff300 (2019) [1]
Key people
Location
University of Edinburgh, Scotland
Website www.ed.ac.uk/regenerative-medicine/

The Centre for Regenerative Medicine (CRM) is a stem cell research centre at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, dedicated to the study and development of new regenerative treatments for human diseases. [2] The centre forms part of the university's Institute for Regeneration and Repair and is part of the BioQuarter cluster at Little France. [3] [4]

Contents

History

The University of Edinburgh's history in stem cell research dates back to the early 1990s. Under the leadership of Austin Smith, the university's Centre for Genome Research became the first Institute of Stem Cell Research (ISCR) in the UK. [5] The CRM was formed in 2008 as a merger of ISCR scientists with scientists from the University's College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, an initiative directed by Ian Wilmut. From 2008 to 2020, the centre had MRC status. [6] Charles ffrench-Constant became the 2nd Director of CRM in 2010; he was succeeded by Stuart Forbes in 2015. [7] In 2024, Anna Williams and Tilo Kunath were appointed co-directors of the centre. [8]

As of 2016, the CRM had attracted £55 million in research funding. [6]

Research

The centre is home to 26 research groups; group leaders include Clare Blackburn, Ian Chambers, Charles ffrench-Constant, Stuart Forbes, Dónal O'Carroll and Ian Wilmut. [9] As of 2019, the CRM employs 300 scientists. [1] Conditions being researched at the CRM include multiple sclerosis and heart and liver disease. [10] [11] [12] On 25 August 2014, the centre grew the first working organ, a thymus, from scratch inside an animal. [13] [14] In 2019, the centre published the first in-human trial of a macrophage therapy for liver cirrhosis. [1] [15]

CRM building

The centre surrounded by construction in June 2021 Centre for Regenerative Medicine - geograph.org.uk - 6929515.jpg
The centre surrounded by construction in June 2021

The CRM building was officially opened by the Princess Royal on 28 May 2012. [16] Designed by Sheppard Robson, the building is part of a total £600 million joint investment in stem cell biology and medicine by the Scottish Government and the University of Edinburgh. [17]

The CRM building is also home to applied scientists working with the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service and Roslin Cells. [17] It contains laboratory and support space, a company incubator unit, and a clinical translation unit which enables the production of cells at Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) grade. CRM spinout companies include Cellinta (developing gene therapies for cancer) [18] [19] and Resolution Therapeutics (developing cell treatments for liver damage). [20] [21]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stem cell</span> Undifferentiated biological cells that can differentiate into specialized cells

In multicellular organisms, stem cells are undifferentiated or partially differentiated cells that can change into various types of cells and proliferate indefinitely to produce more of the same stem cell. They are the earliest type of cell in a cell lineage. They are found in both embryonic and adult organisms, but they have slightly different properties in each. They are usually distinguished from progenitor cells, which cannot divide indefinitely, and precursor or blast cells, which are usually committed to differentiating into one cell type.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Medical Research Council (United Kingdom)</span> National medical research agency

The Medical Research Council (MRC) is responsible for co-coordinating and funding medical research in the United Kingdom. It is part of United Kingdom Research and Innovation (UKRI), which came into operation 1 April 2018, and brings together the UK's seven research councils, Innovate UK and Research England. UK Research and Innovation is answerable to, although politically independent from, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ian Wilmut</span> British embryologist (1944–2023)

Sir Ian Wilmut was a British embryologist and the chair of the Scottish Centre for Regenerative Medicine at the University of Edinburgh. He is best known as the leader of the research group that in 1996 first cloned a mammal from an adult somatic cell, a Finnish Dorset lamb named Dolly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Regenerative medicine</span> Field of medicine involved in regenerating tissues

Regenerative medicine deals with the "process of replacing, engineering or regenerating human or animal cells, tissues or organs to restore or establish normal function". This field holds the promise of engineering damaged tissues and organs by stimulating the body's own repair mechanisms to functionally heal previously irreparable tissues or organs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Miller School of Medicine</span> Medical school of the University of Miami

The Miller School of Medicine, officially Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine, is the University of Miami's graduate medical school in Miami, Florida. Founded in 1952, it is the oldest medical school in the state of Florida.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cambridge Biomedical Campus</span> Science park in Cambridge, UK

The Cambridge Biomedical Campus is the largest centre of medical research and health science in Europe. The site is located at the southern end of Hills Road in Cambridge, England.

ISCR may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fiona Watt</span> British scientist

Fiona Watt, is a British scientist who is internationally known for her contributions to the field of stem cell biology. In the 1980s, when the field was in its infancy, she highlighted key characteristics of stem cells and their environment that laid the foundation for much present day research.

The Medical Research Council (UK) Human Genetics Unit is situated at the Western General Hospital in Edinburgh. It is one of the largest MRC research establishments, housing over two hundred scientists, support staff, research fellows, PhD students, and visiting workers.

The Canadian Stem Cell Foundation is an independent, non-profit organization established in 2008 and situated in Ottawa, Ontario. Stem Cell science is a Canadian innovation through the discovery of stem cells by Drs. James Till and Ernest McCulloch. It is globally known as the leading organization for stem cell research and support in the study of treatments and cures for diseases such as cancer, diabetes, blindness and stroke.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sangeeta Bhatia</span> American nanotechnologist

Sangeeta N. Bhatia is an American biological engineer and the John J. and Dorothy Wilson Professor at MIT’s Institute for Medical Engineering and Science and Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Bhatia's research investigates applications of micro- and nano-technology for tissue repair and regeneration. She applies ideas from computer technology and engineering to the design of miniaturized biomedical tools for the study and treatment of diseases, in particular liver disease, hepatitis, malaria and cancer.

The College of Science and Engineering is one of the three colleges of the University of Edinburgh. With over 2,000 staff and around 9,000 students, it is one of the largest science and engineering groupings in the UK. The college is largely located at the King's Buildings campus and consists of the separate schools of:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edinburgh BioQuarter</span> Office site in Edinburgh, Scotland, UK

Edinburgh BioQuarter is an initiative in the development of Scotland's life sciences industry, which, as of August 2020, employs more than 39,000 people in over 750 organisations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edinburgh Cancer Research Centre</span> Medical facility in City of Edinburgh, Scotland, UK

The Edinburgh Cancer Research Centre (ECRC), also known as the University of Edinburgh Cancer Research Centre, is a center for basic, translational and clinical cancer research located in Edinburgh, Scotland. ECRC constitutes a part of the Institute of Genetics & Molecular Medicine (IGMM) and is positioned in direct proximity of the Western General Hospital, where most of its clinical activities take place.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jan Nolta</span> American scientist

Jan A. Nolta is an American scientist and the director of the stem cell program at the UC Davis School of Medicine and Institute for Regenerative Cures. She is Scientific Director for the UC Davis Good Manufacturing Practice and editor of the journal Stem Cells. Nolta is known for her work with stem cell-related regenerative medicine. Nolta's current research focuses on treatment of Huntington's disease using mesenchymal stem cells. She was elected a AAAS Fellow in 2013.

Margaret Frame is a British biologist. She is the Professor of Cancer Biology and Science Director of Cancer Research Centre at the University of Edinburgh. She is also Director of MRC Institute of Genetics & Molecular Medicine. She has made seminal contributions to understanding mechanisms of cell adhesion and motility. She previously served as deputy-director of the Beatson Institute in Glasgow.

Charles Kenvyn ffrench-Constant FRCP FMedSci FRSE is a neurology researcher, specialising in multiple sclerosis. He has been recognised for his "fundamental and sustained contributions that underpin much contemporary research in developmental and regenerative neuroscience".

Richard Oreffo FRSB FIOR is a British–Nigerian physician and Professor of Musculoskeletal Science at the University of Southampton. His research considers skeletal biology and the fundamental mechanisms that underpin skeletal stem cell differentiation. In 2020, he launched the Cowrie Scholarship Foundation, which supports Black British students in their university studies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine</span> British medical research institute

The MRC Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine at the University of Oxford is a research institute located at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford. Founded in 1989 by Sir David Weatherall, the institute focuses on furthering our understanding of clinical medicine at a molecular level. It was one of the first institutes of its kind in the world to be dedicated to research in this area.

Elizabeth Patton, Ph.D FRSE is professor of chemical genetics and group leader of Medical Research Council Institute for Genetics and Molecular Medicine (IGMM) Human Genetics Unit in Edinburgh, Personal Chair of Melanoma Genetics and Drug Discovery for a disease which kills 20,000 Europeans a year, and accounts for 80% of all skin cancer deaths. Her research into the genetic models and drug interactions testing, sharing international findings, is mainly using zebrafish in conjunction with the Edinburgh Cancer Research Centre. She holds a number of academic leadership roles in UK, Europe and international scientific bodies.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Morton, Robin (23 December 2019). "Celebrating ten years of the MRC Centre for Regenerative Medicine". mrc.ukri.org. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  2. ↑ "Centre for Regenerative Medicine". The University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  3. ↑ "Institute for Regeneration and Repair". The University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  4. ↑ "World Leading Academics, Businesses, Clinicians". Edinburgh Bioquarter. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  5. ↑ "History of CRM". The University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  6. 1 2 "BiGGAR Economics Evaluation of the Scottish Centre for Regenerative Medicine" (PDF). Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  7. ↑ "New Director". The University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  8. ↑ "New Co-Directors of the Centre for Regenerative Medicine". The University of Edinburgh. 18 October 2024. Retrieved 22 October 2024.
  9. ↑ "Research". The University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  10. ↑ "Multiple sclerosis". The University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  11. ↑ "Heart disease". The University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  12. ↑ "Liver disease and cancer". The University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  13. ↑ Bredenkamp, Nicholas; Ulyanchenko, Svetlana; O'Neill, Kathy Emma; Manley, Nancy Ruth; Vaidya, Harsh Jayesh; Blackburn, Catherine Clare (2014). "An organized and functional thymus generated from FOXN1-reprogrammed fibroblasts". Nature Cell Biology. 16 (9): 902–908. doi:10.1038/ncb3023. PMC   4153409 . PMID   25150981.
  14. ↑ Freeman, David (25 August 2014). "Scientists Create Working Organ From Scratch For First Time Ever". Huffington Post. Retrieved 28 August 2014.
  15. ↑ Moroni, Francesca; Dwyer, Benjamin J.; Graham, Catriona; Pass, Chloe; Bailey, Laura; Ritchie, Lisa; Mitchell, Donna; Glover, Alison; Laurie, Audrey; Doig, Stuart; Hargreaves, Emily; Fraser, Alasdair R.; Turner, Marc L.; Campbell, John D. M.; McGowan, Neil W. A.; Barry, Jacqueline; Moore, Joanna K.; Hayes, Peter C.; Leeming, Diana J.; Nielsen, Mette J.; Musa, Kishwar; Fallowfield, Jonathan A.; Forbes, Stuart J. (October 2019). "Safety profile of autologous macrophage therapy for liver cirrhosis". Nature Medicine. 25 (10): 1560–1565. doi:10.1038/s41591-019-0599-8. hdl: 2164/13978 . PMID   31591593. S2CID   203852760.
  16. ↑ "Princess Royal opens Scottish Centre for Regenerative Medicine". BBC News . BBC. 28 May 2012.
  17. 1 2 "Scottish Centre for Regenerative Medicine". Regenerative Medicine. Health Science Scotland . Retrieved 19 September 2012.
  18. ↑ "Cancer therapeutics biotech formation supported by Steven Pollard". The University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  19. ↑ Parsons, Lucy (21 September 2020). "University of Edinburgh spinout Cellinta will develop gene therapies for cancer". PharmaTimes. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  20. ↑ "Cell therapy spinout targets liver repair treatment". The University of Edinburgh. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  21. ↑ Dorsey, Kirsty (2 December 2020). "Edinburgh University spin-out secures £26.6m to treat liver damage". HeraldScotland. Retrieved 8 December 2020.

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