LAUSR

Stem cell (SC) research is rapidly evolving, holding great therapeutic potential for the treatment of many diseases, which were previously considered as incurable. In the last few years, the scientific community has held SC research in high regard with efforts in this area receiving an impressive two Nobel Prizes in the past decade: in 2007, Mario R. Capecchi, Martin J. Evans, and Oliver Smithies for their discoveries of ‘principles for introducing specific gene modifications in mice by the use of embryonic stem cells’ [1] and John B. Gurdon and Shinya Yamanaka, for the discovery that ‘mature cells can be reprogrammed to become pluripotent,’ in 2012 [2]. This rapid expansion has created a great demand for SC-related biomaterials, giving birth to repositories strictly orientated around the collection, storage, and distribution of SC, commonly referred to as Stem Cell Biobanks (SCBs). These SCBs have evolved in a relatively short time span, from simple extensions of already existing biobanks to internationally coordinated repositories with the purpose of simultaneously collecting SCs from different sources, storing and organizing samples and outsourcing them for research-related activities [3].