MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Feb. 29, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Complete Genomics Inc. (Nasdaq:GNOM - News), the whole human genome sequencing company, today announced the formation of its Genomic Medicine Advisory Board (GMAB). The GMAB will provide insight and guidance on the best ways for the company to provide sequencing services to healthcare organizations and physicians interested in implementing genomic medicine in their practice. Inaugural board members include distinguished physicians and scientists. Robert Nussbaum, MD, Holly Smith Professor of Medicine, chief of the Division of Medical Genetics in the Department of Medicine, and director of the Cancer Risk and Cardiovascular Genetics Programs at the University of California, San Francisco, will serve as GMAB chairman. "There are a number of major challenges to deploying whole genome sequencing in the clinic," said Dr. Nussbaum. "The Complete Genomics GMAB is a wonderful opportunity to assemble thought leaders in genomic medicine to begin to define the 'clinical genome' and how to make it most useful and accessible to clinicians, establish technical and ethical standards, and address some of the regulatory and reimbursement obstacles that exist in this rapidly-evolving field. Complete Genomics is committed to doing this right." Founding members of the Complete Genomics GMAB include … Continue reading →

Women may make new eggs throughout their reproductive yearschallenging a longstanding tenet that females are born with finite supplies, a new study says. The discovery may also lead to new avenues for improving women's health and fertility. A woman has two ovaries, which release eggs during her monthly ovulation.(Learn more about the human body.) Previous research had suggested that a woman is born with all the egg cells she will ever have in her lifetime. But in recent experiments, scientists discovered a new type of stem cell in the ovaries thatwhen grown in the labgenerates immature egg cells.The same immature cells isolated from adult mouse ovaries canturn into fertile eggs. Stem cells,found in embryos and certain adult body tissues, have the potential to grow into many different types of cells. (See"Liposuction Fat Turned Into Stem Cells, Study Says.") The finding reinforces the team's previous experiments in mice, which had identified a new type of ovarian stem cell that renews a female mouse's source of eggs throughout its fertile years. That study, published in the journal Nature in 2004, was the "first to reach the conclusion that this long-held belief in our fieldthat young girls are given a bank account at … Continue reading →

Regenerative Medicine Institute, Mexico has been granted full accreditation for its clinical stem cell trials Portland, Oregon (PRWEB) February 29, 2012 We are pleased that RMI undertook this process, says David Audley, executive director of the ICMS. The clinic understood that patient safety can only be assured through strict evaluation and rigorous oversight. From day one they have embraced the transparency that this program requires. RMI is the first clinic to achieve this status under the ICMS Accreditation Program. The clinic has undergone two separate site audits as well as an institutional review board review evaluation. Most importantly, the clinic has placed in excess of 50 patients into the Treatment Registry for long-term outcome tracking. The safety profile has been excellent, continued Audley. We have tracked patients over at least two follow-ups and a minimum of six months and not seen a single cell-related adverse event. The ICMS is currently evaluating nearly a dozen clinics worldwide. Accreditation is based upon the Guidelines for the Practice of Cell-Based Medicine developed and published by the ICMS. Key components of these guidelines are the ethical recruitment of patients, proper consent of patients and compliance with local laws and regulations in the treatment of … Continue reading →