Germany maintains stem cell impetus:
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
Germany's Robert Koch Institute (RKI) has granted a third licence for the import of human embryonic stem cells for research. It has authorised senior doctor Wolfgang-Michael Franz from the Munich University Hospital to use imported cells in research on in vitro differentiation of human embryonic stem cells in heart muscles, their purification and enrichment, and functional characterisation. Following their immunological, electrophysiological and pharmacological characterisation, the heart muscle cells will be transplanted in immune-deficient mice so that their potential value in during a heart infarct can be monitored. The RKI made its first import licence award in December 2002 (see Clinica No 1040, p 4).