h.p://www.cellr4.org Editor in Chief Camillo Ricordi Cell Transplant Center and Diabetes Research Ins%tute, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA Associate Editor for Asia Jianming Tan Fuzhou General Hospital, Xiamen University, China Assistant Editor Antonello Pileggi Cell Transplant Center and Diabetes Research Ins%tute, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA Verduci Internaonal LLC Miami, Florida, USA http://www.cellr4.org - e-mail: [email protected] Editorial Office ([email protected]) Editorial Office Director Patrizia Verduci Editorial Office Deputy Directors Gianni Lombardi and Mariella Verduci Editorial Office Assistant Valen-na Doria CellR4 – Repair, Replacement, Regenera-on & Reprogramming Official Journal of The Cure Alliance Copyright © 2013 Verduci Interna%onal Miami, Florida, USA Editorial Board Reza Abdi Bruno Gridelli Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA ISMETT, Palermo, Italy Rodolfo Alejandro Joshua M. Hare University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA Julie G. Allickson Karin Hehenberger Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC, USA Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden Piero Anversa Jeffrey A. Hubbell Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), Lausanne, CH Anthony Atala Suzanne Ildstad Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC, USA University of Louisville, Louisville, KY Per-Olof Berggren Luca Inverardi Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden University of Miami, Miami FL, USA Federico Bertuzzi Jonathan Lakey University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA Ospedale Niguarda Ca' Granda, Milan, Italy Robert Langer Tiziana Brevini MIT and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy Livio Luzi F. Charles Brunicardi Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy University of California at Los Angeles, Mario Marazzi Los Angeles, CA, USA Peter Buchwald Ospedale Niguarda Ca' Granda, Milan, Italy Claudia Montero-Menei University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA University of Angers, Angers, France Richard K. Burt Philip O’Connell Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA University of Sydney at Westmead Hospital, Australia Arnold I. Caplan Ricardo Pastori Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA Diego Correa Bruno Péault Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA Gianluca D'Ippolito Lorenzo Piemonti University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy Gennaro D'urso Mark F. Pittenger University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, USA Paolo De Coppi Paul Robbins UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL, USA Dalton Dietrich Paul Schiller University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Miami, FL, USA Juan Dominguez-Bendala James Shapiro University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada Massimo Dominici Bernard Siegel Università degli studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Genetics Policy Institute, Wellington, FL, USA Modena, Italy Cherie Stabler Helena Edlund University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA University of Umea, Umea Sweden Stephen Strom Chris Evans Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden H. Thomas Temple Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA Vincent Falanga University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA Alice A. Tomei Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA Sarah Ferber University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA Carlo Tremolada Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer, Israel Istituto Image, Milan, Italy Chris Fraker Massimo Trucco University of Miami, Miami FL, USA University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA Fulvio Gandolfi Carlo Ventura Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy Università di Bologna, Bologna, Italy Alfredo Gorio Michael D. West Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy BioTime, Alameda, CA, USA Fabio Grassi Xiumin Xu Institute for Research in Biomedicine, Bellinzona, CH University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA Aims and Scope The journal CellR4 is a multidisciplinary, cross-platform “open source” e-publication in the areas of cell repair, replacement, regeneration, reprogramming and differentiation. CellR4 also serves as the official journal of The Cure Alliance (www.thecurealliance.org) and of the Fondazione Cure Alliance Onlus, two linked non-profit international organizations that include physicians, scientists, patients, patient advoca- tes, business and philanthropy leaders, with the mission to promote collaborative efforts worldwide, while addressing and working to resolve impediments and challenges on the path to develop cures for diseases now afflicting humankind. In this direction, the publication will also serve as a shared communication plat- form to discuss challenges and opportunities on the path to develop new treatments. Many of these topics are shared by most translational efforts in the fields of cell therapy and regenerative medicine, indepen- dently from the specific disease area they are targeting. Therefore CellR4 will also have sections on regu- latory, legal, and ethical issues, as well as global collaborative platforms and funding opportunities of interest. CellR4 is grateful to the Editorial Board for their enthusiastic support to this initiative and is loo- king forward to welcoming your contributions to the journal. NOTE: Any editorial compensation has been donated to The Cure Alliance and Fondazione Cure Al- liance Onlus, in support of their strategic mission. Contents < MOVING TOWARDS A DETENTE IN THE STEM CELL DEBATE ...................................... 1 Richard K Burt, Piero Anversa and Camillo Ricordi < TOWARDS A CONSTRUCTIVE DEBATE AND ............................................................................ 2 COLLABORATIVE EFFORTS TO RESOLVE CURRENT CHALLENGES IN THE DELIVERY OF NOVEL CELL BASED THERAPEUTIC STRATEGIES Camillo Ricordi < 25 YEARS OF THE RICORDI .............................................................................................................. 8 AUTOMATED METHOD FOR ISLET ISOLATION Lorenzo Piemonti and Antonello Pileggi < CELL TRANSPLANT SOCIETY ............................................................................................................. 23 Abstracts from the 12th Congress ORALS < CELL TRANSPLANT SOCIETY ............................................................................................................. 76 Abstracts from the 12th Congress POSTERS MESSAGE FROM THE EDITOR IN CHIEF 4 Welcome to the first issue of CellR , a multidisci- the development of new treatments. Many of these plinary, cross-platform “open source” e-publication topics are shared by most translational efforts in the in the exponentially growing fields of cell repair, re- fields of cell therapy and regenerative medicine, in- placement, regeneration, reprogramming and dif- dependently from the specific disease area they are ferentiation. The journal will be published primarily targeting. CellR4 will, thus, also have sections on on-line with a dedicated website and will also serve regulatory, legal, and ethical issues, as well as global as the official journal of The Cure Alliance collaborative platforms and funding opportunities of (www.thecurealliance.org) and Fondazione Cure Al- interest. I am grateful to the founding editorial board liance Onlus, two linked non-profit international or- for their enthusiastic support of this initiative, and I ganizations that include physicians, scientists, am looking forward to your contributions to the patients, patient advocates, business and philan- journal and to the fields of cell repair, replacement, thropy leaders, with the mission of promoting col- regeneration and reprogramming/differentiation. laborative efforts worldwide, while addressing and Any editorial compensation will be entirely donated working to resolve impediments and challenges on to The Cure Alliance and the Fondazione Cure Al- the path to develop cures for diseases now afflicting liance Onlus, in support of their strategic mission to humankind. In this direction, the publication will promote collaborative efforts and resolve challenges also serve as a shared communication platform to and impediments to the development of clinically discuss challenges and opportunities on the path to relevant treatment strategies. Camillo Ricordi Editor-in-Chief CellR4 2013; 1(1): 1-1 MOVING TOWARDS A DETENTE IN THE STEM CELL DEBATE Richard K Burt1, Piero Anversa2 and Camillo Ricordi3 1Division of Immunotherapy, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, USA [email protected] 2Department of Anesthesia and Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA [email protected] 3Cell Transplant Center and Diabetes Research Institute, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA [email protected] The Nature Editorial titled “Smoke and Mirrors”1 on speech or ethical concerns ridiculed or made to fear the Second International Vatican Adult Stem Cell collaboration especially from a scientific journal. meeting was ironically itself a collection of smoke On the other hand, there are historical concerns and and mirrors beginning with the lack of a named au- lessons why religion, business, science, and State thor. The editorial focused on an Italian parliamen- require transparency, independence, and separation. tary decision to allow stem cell treatment for a child Unfortunately, the Nature editorial missed the op- with a devastating