“Latest Stem Cells News”

A blood sample databank under the China Marrow Donor Program (CMDP), was officially established Monday at Zhongguancun of Beijing.
The new databank is now the largest for Chinese people in the world, according to Hong Junling, deputy head of CMDP management center.

The databank includes information such as the names and gender of nearly one million donors and information about to which ethnic groups the donors come from, Hong said.
It also covers such medical information as blood types, gene types and health status of the donors.

The CMDP, launched in 2001 by the Red Cross Society of China, aims to help millions of Chinese with blood diseases.
But Hong said the blood sample databank could help genetic analysis for major diseases other than blood diseases.

The blood sample databank has collected 970,000 samples and provided more than 1,200 patients with haematogenous stem cells, including 50-odd cases from abroad, according to Hong.
The number of samples is expected to reach one million by 2010.

China will build Asia’s largest stem cell technology laboratory in its push to increase its stake in the competitive sector.
Health Minister Chen Zhu said there was huge potential for China to grow in this new field, it was reported.

Stem cell technology uses master cells in the body to create new cells. Medical researchers hope these new cells can be used to fight diseases and heal injuries.
“The stem cell and regenerative medicine sector is one of China’s new high-tech biological sectors with the strongest development potential,” Chen said during the launch of the project in eastern Jiangsu province on Tuesday, according to Hong Kong newspaper Ta Kung Pao.