DETROIT ? Human tissue bank company Asterand said it is making
available new research materials that can be used to study rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, cancer and other diseases.
The company is offering researchers cells that have been isolated
from various parts of the body, including synovium from the joints of
patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis and cartilage from
patients with osteoarthritis.
“Cells are available from cultures preserved after minimal time in the laboratory,” says Vici Blanc, Director of Product Development. “This approach is important because cells can change over time under laboratory conditions and scientists need them to remain closely resembling those which are in the body.”
Minimal and zero passage cells provide researchers with excellent
systems for analyzing drug action in living human cells and for
understanding the molecular progression of diseases.
Asterand produces these cells in its laboratories by propagating
them for limited periods of time and then cryo-preserving them after a
minimal number of passages. The full range of cells available includes
chondrocytes, synovial fibroblasts, epithelial cells and carcinoma
associated fibroblasts.
“Much of this material is very hard to obtain,? Blanc said. ?We may be the only
company in the world that is able to offer this research approach. We are uniquely positioned to obtain these samples because we operate a worldwide network of collection sites where patients have the opportunity to donate fully de-identified samples for research.?
“We are able to collect samples for cell culture and
cryopreservation on a custom basis,” Blanc said. “So if
researchers have special needs for isolated cells which are not
immediately available, Asterand may be able to help them.”
Researchers anywhere in the world will be able to order synovial
cells for arthritis research through Asterand’s online catalogue by clicking on Solutions.Asterand.Com
