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  • Thursday, July 11, 2024
  • CONCURRENT TRACK AND FOCUS SESSIONS - 8:15 AM THURSDAY
  • 8:15 AM – 9:45 AM CEST
    EMERGING NEW THERAPIES

    Concurrent Speaker: Ganna Bilousova, PhD (she/her/hers) – University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

    Concurrent Speaker: Ludovic Vallier, PhD – Berlin Institute of Health at Charite

    Presenting Author: Tatsuma Kondo, MD – Nagoya University

    Presenting Author: Jacqueline Bliley – Carnegie Mellon University

    Presenting Author: Shulin Li, PhD, PhD – The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

    Presenting Author: Holly K. Voges, PhD – Murdoch Childrens Research Institute

    Therapies spanning a range of modalities, including in-situ / direct reprogramming, direct gene editing, and gene-edited cell therapies will be highlighted in this session.

    Clinical Applications

  • 8:15 AM – 9:45 AM CEST
    ADVANCING IN VITRO MODELS

    Concurrent Speaker: David Elliott – MCRI

    Presenting Author: Helmuth Gehart, PhD – ETH Zürich

    Presenting Author: Deepali Pal, PhD – University of Bristol

    Presenting Author: Esther Fousert – Leiden University Medical Center

    Presenting Author: Shalaka Chitale, PhD – CytoTronics Inc.

    Concurrent Speaker: Meritxell Huch, PhD (she/her/hers) – Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology & Genetics (MPI-CBG)

    Disease models have been under development for a number of years but recent advances in technology, from readouts to complexity of tissue types included, have increasingly improved capture of normal physiology and disease. Recent advances in this space will be presented.

    Disease Modeling and Drug Discovery

  • 8:15 AM – 9:45 AM CEST
    IMAGING STEM CELL SYSTEMS ACROSS SCALES

    Concurrent Speaker: Kate McDole, PhD – MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology 

    Concurrent Speaker: Bernd Bodenmiller, PhD (he/him/his) – University of Zurich and ETH Zurich

    Presenting Author: Daniel Postrach – German Cancer Research Center

    Presenting Author: Duncan M. Chadly – Caltech

    Presenting Author: Ramon Pfaendler – ETH Zürich

    Presenting Author: Laura A. Fischer – Washington University in St. Louis

    This concurrent session will visualize how molecules and stem cells organize to build tissues and form organs, which is essential to capture mechanisms underlying normal physiology and disease. This session will cover examples on imaging approaches to map stem cells and watch development as it unfolds.

    New Technologies

  • 8:15 AM – 9:45 AM CEST
    INTEGRATED STEM CELL MODELS OF EARLY EMBRYO DEVELOPMENT

    Concurrent Speaker: Aydan Bulut-Karslioglu, PhD (she/her/hers) – Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics

    Concurrent Speaker: Sophie Petropoulos, PhD – Karolinska Institutet, Sweden and University of Montreal

    Presenting Author: Bernardo Oldak, MD, MSc, PhD student – Weizmann Institute of Science

    Presenting Author: Anchel de Jaime-Soguero, PhD – Heidelberg University

    Presenting Author: Karlien Van Nerum – University of Copenhagen

    Presenting Author: Raquel Fueyo – Stanford University

    Embryo models formed from stem cells open a scientifically and ethically conducive path for embryology. Here, speakers will focus on ‘Integrated Embryo Models’ that contain the relevant embryonic and extraembryonic cell types that could support a capacity for further integrated development.

    Pluripotency and Development

  • 8:15 AM – 9:45 AM CEST
    AGING AND METABOLIC REGULATION OF TISSUE STEM CELLS

    Concurrent Speaker: Kyoko Miura, PhD (she/her/hers) – Kumamoto University

    Concurrent Speaker: Salvador Aznar Benitah, PhD – Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona)

    Presenting Author: Silvia Sighinolfi – IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute

    Presenting Author: Jonathan Bayerl, PhD – University of California, San Francisco

    Presenting Author: Elisa Gabassi – University of Innsbruck

    Presenting Author: Rui Yue, PhD – Tongji University

    Aging and metabolism exert profound, intertwined effects on stem cell dynamics in vivo. This session will explore the molecular mechanisms that underpin these broad-ranging impacts and define their cellular consequences.

    Somatic Stem Cells, Cancer and Regeneration

  • 8:15 AM – 9:45 AM CEST
    STRATEGIES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF ALLOGENIC iPSC-DERIVED CELL THERAPIES

    Focus Session Speaker: Audrey Holtzinger, PhD – Evotec

    Focus Session Speaker: Matthias Austen, PhD – Evotec

    Focus Session Speaker: Nico Lachmann, PhD – Medizinische Hochschule Hannover

    Focus Session Speaker: Lorenzo Piemonti, MD – Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan

    Focus Session Speaker: Marius Ader, PhD – Technische University Dresden/CRTD

    Organized by Evotec iPSCs can serve as starting material for generating potentially limitless amounts of cells for therapeutic applications, especially when focusing on allogenic, off-the-shelf approaches in regenerative and anti-tumor medicine. This session emphasizes distinct strategies for different categories of therapeutic cells, such as mature cells derived from organoids, cell clusters, and single-cell populations. Predictive and efficient functional assays both for cellular maturation and immune-evasion are essential to determine the chances of product success.

    Focus Session

  • 8:15 AM – 9:45 AM CEST
    BEST PRACTICES FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF PSC-DERIVED CELLULAR THERAPIES

    Panelist: Jacqueline Barry, PhD – Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult

    Panelist: Kapil Bharti, PhD – National Eye Institute; National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, National Institutes of Health

    The development of a set of best practices is part of the ISSCR’s Standards Initiative and leverages the Society’s strength in rigorous basic stem cell research. The goal of the project is to provide a jurisdictionally neutral “roadmap” from starting materials through clinical trials for scientists, regulators, and others involved in the development of PSC-derived therapies. This program will present the first draft of the Best Practices for public review and feedback.

    Ethics, Policy and Standards

  • PLENARY SESSION - 10:00 AM THURSDAY
  • 10:00 AM – 11:45 AM CEST
    PLENARY III: EXPLORING THE BASIC PRINCIPLES OF DEVELOPMENT USING STEM CELLS

    Plenary Speaker: Jennifer Nichols, PhD – University of Edinburgh

    Plenary Speaker: Maria Elena Torres-Padilla, PhD – Helmholtz Zentrum München

    Plenary Speaker: Mansi Srivastava, PhD – Harvard University

    Plenary Speaker: Alfonso Martinez Arias, PhD – Universitat Pompeu Fabra Barcelona

    The principles of embryogenesis provide the foundation for expanding our knowledge of health and disease. Invited researchers that model embryogenesis using stem cells to explore such basic principles will present in this session.

    Pluripotency and Development

  • INNOVATION SHOWCASES - 12:00 PM THURSDAY
  • 12:00 PM – 12:30 PM CEST
    CEPT COCKTAIL - A NEW CHEMICAL PLATFORM FOR STRESS-FREE AND SAFE CULTURE OF iPSCS

    Showcase Presenter: Ilyas Singeç – FUJIFILM Cellular Dynamics, Inc.

    Human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) offer unprecedented opportunities for biomedical research, drug discovery, and regenerative medicine. However, to fully capitalize on the potential of iPSCs, it is necessary to culture and differentiate them under optimal conditions. Poor cell survival, cell stress, and accumulation of genetic abnormalities have been long-standing challenges. This presentation will introduce and discuss the discovery and application of CEPT, a four-part small molecule cocktail for cytoprotective and stress-free cell culture. CEPT represents a novel end-to-end solution for iPSCs and other sensitive cell types and can be utilized for routine cell passaging, cryopreservation/thawing, single-cell cloning, gene editing, and organoid formation. At this Innovation Showcase, Dr. Ilyas Singeç, who led the discovery of the CEPT cocktail at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and is currently the Chief Scientific Officer for FUJIFILM Cellular Dynamics Inc., will discuss the scientific rationale and practical advantages of culturing iPSCs with this new and safer approach.

    Innovation Showcase

  • 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM CEST
    UNLOCKING THE POWER OF DETERMINISTIC CELL PROGRAMMING IN BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH AND DRUG DISCOVERY

    Showcase Presenter: Roger Pedersen – Stanford University

    Showcase Presenter: Matthias Pawlowski – University of Münster

    Showcase Presenter: Sejla Salic-Hainzl – bit.bio Vienna

    The session is split into 3 parts. 1) Transcription factor-mediated cell programming. Roger Pedersen (Stanford University) will discuss the paradigm shift achieved using transcription factor-mediated cell programming to alter pluripotent stem cell fate. He will detail how transcription factor-based programming impacts reproducibility and scalability and dramatically improves stem cell utility in research and future therapeutic applications. 2) Unravelling Alzheimer’s disease: Insights into pathogenesis, promising therapies, and the potential of stem cells. Matthias Pawlowski (University of Münster) will explore genetic, protein misfolding, and neuroinflammation roles in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease, alongside promising treatment strategies including small molecule inhibitors and immunotherapies as well as research on pluripotent stem cells as a transformative approach for advanced disease modelling and drug development. 3) hiPSC-derived cell models for functional genomics and neural network formation studies. Sejla Salic-Hainzl (bit.bio) will present on the use of human iPSC-derived cells in functional genomics and drug candidate characterisation. She will discuss the integration of CRISPR-Cas9 technologies with these cells, exploring their potential for disease modelling, target identification and validation. Additionally, she will showcase data on co-cultured neural cells forming functional networks, highlighting their importance in understanding disease mechanisms and developing targeted treatments.

    Innovation Showcase

  • 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM CEST
    STEM CELLS: FROM RESEARCH TO MANUFACTURING AND CLINICAL APPLICATIONS

    Showcase Presenter: Lucienne Vonk – Xintela

    Showcase Presenter: Nicolas Andre – Corning Life Sciences

    Corning has been committed to stem cell research for decades, developing the necessary tools that allow you to advance groundbreaking research in the field. Whether your stem cell research requires advanced cell culture surfaces, state-of-the-art vessels, nutrient-rich media, or innovative closed system solutions, look to Corning products to ensure cell viability and reproducibility, and streamline regulatory compliance in your lab. From isolation to analysis, Corning is committed to supporting cutting-edge innovation across the spectrum of stem cell research. Nicolas Andre, Scientific Manager at Corning Life Sciences, will show case examples of how Corning technologies enabled stem cells research and development of new models. Lucienne Vonk, Xintela CSO, will present Xintela’s journey going from an idea in the lab to preclinical studies, GMP manufacturing and clinical studies. Xintela develops medical products in stem cell therapy based on the Company's cell surface marker integrin α10β1. The stem cell marker is used to select and quality-assure the patent-protected stem cell product XSTEM®, which is in clinical development for treatment of knee osteoarthritis and difficult-to-heal leg ulcers. The company produces XSTEM for the clinical studies in its GMP-approved manufacturing facility.

    Innovation Showcase

  • 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM CEST
    ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL CHARACTERIZATION OF iPSC-DERIVED IN VITRO MODELS IN DISEASE MODELLING AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

    Showcase Presenter: Feng Guo – Indiana University Bloomington

    Showcase Presenter: Marian Hruska-Plochan – University of Zurich

    Two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) cell cultures, designed to mimic in vivo conditions to varying extents, particularly when derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), serve as a valuable substitute for conventional animal models. These cellular models not only provide a crucial avenue in disease modeling but also offer significant opportunities in artificial intelligence. Our guest speakers will explore innovative applications and methodologies of iPSC-derived neural cultures for modeling neurodegeneration and showcasing the computational capabilities of 3D biological neural networks. Following the seminar, we will engage in an interactive Q&A session to shed light on diverse perspectives regarding the future of iPSC in vitro models.

    Innovation Showcase

  • 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM CEST
    INNOVATION ACROSS PLURIPOTENT STEM CELL RESEARCH: FROM REPROGRAMMING TO MANUFACTURING AND ORGANOID IMAGING

    Showcase Presenter: Sebastian Knöbel – Miltenyi Biotec

    Showcase Presenter: Stephan Werk – Miltenyi Biotec

    In the first part of the talk, Sebastian Knöbel, PhD, Senior R&D Manager at Miltenyi Biotec, will guide us through a comprehensive array of solutions that cover the whole journey of pluripotent stem cell (PSC) research from bench to bedside. These include product developments for mRNA-based reprogramming, pluripotent stem cell expansion, differentiation, and characterization. With a focus on PSC workflows, he will showcase how these developments can pave the way for manufacturing in the closed CliniMACS Prodigy® Adherent Cell Culture. Afterwards, we will have the pleasure of hearing from Stephan Werk, Instrument Sales Specialist Imaging Business, who will introduce light sheet imaging through the lens of the UltraMicroscope Blaze™. Delving further into the topic, he will unveil light sheet imaging capabilities in visualizing organoids, organs, and organisms. In addition, he will discuss the in-depth analysis of organoids regarding morphology, cellular composition and architecture, made possible by the UltraMicroscope Blaze. He'll also discuss leveraging in-depth phenotyping to refine cell culture conditions and quality control measures.

    Innovation Showcase

  • 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM CEST
    USING HUMAN PLURIPOTENT STEM CELL-DERIVED NEURAL ORGANOIDS FOR DISEASE MODELING

    Showcase Presenter: Jinyuan Wang, PhD – STEMCELL Technologies Inc.

    The human brain is a complex system, and neither traditional 2D tissue culture techniques nor animal models can fully recapitulate the complexity necessary for understanding neural pathologies. In contrast, cutting-edge culture models such as human neural organoids contain diverse tissue-specific cell types—progenitors, neurons, and glial cells—thereby offering enhanced physiological relevance. Here, we will introduce the STEMdiff™ neural organoid portfolio, which can generate unguided or guided neural organoids from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) with high efficiency. We will showcase the generation of unguided cerebral organoids for modeling microcephaly and epilepsy, and how to generate guided spinal cord organoids for modeling Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. This presentation will feature our latest state-of-the-art product: Human iPSC-Derived Midbrain Organoids, which are shipped fully differentiated and ready for immediate use. We will showcase the quality of these organoids and their use in a variety of applications, such as studying Parkinson's disease and neuroinflammation.

    Innovation Showcase

  • 12:30 PM – 1:00 PM CEST
    STRATEGIES AND SOLUTIONS FOR ACCELERATING DRUG DISCOVERY AND DEVELOPMENT IN ATMPS AND BIOPHARMA

    Showcase Presenter: Gonçalo Regalo – FUJIFILM PORTUGAL S.A.

    The concept and development of advanced therapies and innovative biopharmaceutical products face many challenges. In the identification and assessment of novel molecules and therapeutic strategies lack of reproducibility of pre-clinical test methods, costs and time are factors that developers have to factor in to maximize the success of a pipeline. Concurrently, in the optimization of the manufacturing processes for early clinical development, the understanding of the impact of critical raw materials choices in the attributes of the drug product, while keeping scalability and quality in sight, is key to assure manufacturability and a seamless transition to late stage clinical and commercial development phases. Fujifilm offers developers a range of services and products which assist developers in tackling these challenges early on. Together with the expanding manufacturing capacity and expertise of our CDMOs, Fujifilm aims at being a complete solution provider and partner to accelerate the way to market of innovative therapies.

    Innovation Showcase

  • PLENARY SESSION - 1:30 PM THURSDAY
  • 1:30 PM – 3:00 PM CEST
    PLENARY IV: TISSUE ARCHITECTURE AND STEM CELL FUNCTION IN HEALTH AND DISEASE

    Plenary Speaker: Cristina Lo Celso, PhD (she/her/hers) – Imperial College London

    Plenary Speaker: Heinrich Jasper, PhD (he/him/his) – Genentech

    Plenary Speaker: Fiona Doetsch, PhD – University of Basel

    Plenary Speaker: Elaine Fuchs, PhD – HHMI, The Rockefeller University

    Stem cells are linchpins of healthy organ renewal over an organism's lifetime, and stem cell dysfunction is a driver of regeneration, ageing and disease. This session spotlights emerging behaviors and strategies used by stem cells across organs and organisms.

    Somatic Stem Cells, Cancer and Regeneration

  • 3:00 PM – 6:00 PM CEST
    EXHIBIT HALL PUB CRAWL
    New this year, the ISSCR will host an Exhibit Booth Pub Crawl from 3:00pm - 6:00pm on Thursday, 11 July. Enjoy a complimentary beverage or snack from participating exhibitors as you connect with exhibitors, colleagues, and friends!

    Participating Exhibitors:
    • Axion Biosystems at Booth #1202
    • MCRI iPSC Gene Editing and Derivation Facility at Booth #1210
    • PBS Biotech at Booth #503
    • Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening (SLAS) at Booth #1206
  • POSTER SESSIONS & EXHIBIT HALL EVENTS - 3:45 PM THURSDAY
  • 3:40 PM – 5:45 PM CEST
    POSTER SESSIONS and EXHIBIT HALL EVENTS
    Join us for these events in the Poster and Exhibit Hall:

    3:45 PM – 4:45 PM POSTER SESSION II: ODD

    4:45 PM – 5:45 PM POSTER SESSION II: EVEN

    Schedules to be announced:
    EXHIBIT HALL THEATER TALKS
    Bite-sized, 15-minute sessions on specialized topics. Pop in and out of the Exhibit Hall Theater to catch these brief presentations from scientific and industry leaders.

    MEET-UP HUBS: Connect with your colleagues and engage in conversation and networking at these common interest discussion forums. 
  • MEET-UP HUBS - THURSDAY 3:45 PM - 5:45 PM
  • 3:45 PM – 5:45 PM CEST
    MEET-UP HUB 1: GET-TOGETHER GERMAN STEM CELL NETWORK
    Organized by the German Stem Cell Network (GSCN).

    The meet-up of the German Stem Cell Network (GSCN) is open to all those in the German scientific stem cell community as well as attendees of the 2024 Annual Meeting. We will discuss the dialog platform for stem cell research and national strategies in this field in Germany as well as the ongoing activities of the GSCN.
  • 3:45 PM – 5:45 PM CEST
    MEET-UP HUB 2: EARLY CAREER PIs/GROUP LEADERS NETWORKING
    Organized by the ISSCR Early Career Scientists Task Force

    If you are an early career Principal Investigator or Group Leader (0-8 years after your final postdoc), we invite you to network with other early career group leader attendees. Join the Early Career Scientist Task Force members at this meet up and bring your challenges to discuss with your peers, or just come to socialize and meet other early career group leaders. Don’t miss this unique opportunity to network with your peers from around the world.
  • 3:45 PM – 5:45 PM CEST
    MEET-UP HUB 3: STEM CELLS FOR HIRSCHSPRUNG'S DISEASE
    Organized by Peter Andrews, University of Sheffield, UK

    Hirschsprung disease (HSCR), a potentially lethal condition affecting 1 in 5,000 newborn children, is caused by the absence of enteric neurons in the distal bowel. This leads to a loss of propulsive gut motility, ultimately resulting in potentially lethal intestinal obstruction. Current treatment is complex, involves surgical removal of the affected region of the bowel, and often leaves patients with lifelong problems. Several groups around the world, that will be present at this ISSCR meeting, are well advanced in developing approaches using pluripotent stem cells or endogenous stem cells to provide enteric neural progenitors for transplant into the affected gut to relieve the condition. This Meet-up will bring together different teams and initiate an ongoing forum for addressing common issues in taking this approach forward to the clinic, e.g., comparing different cell lines, confirming safety, immunogenicity, appropriate clinical parameters and relevant endpoints for first-in-child clinical trials.
  • 3:45 PM – 5:45 PM CEST
    MEET-UP HUB 1: MEET THE EDITORS OF STEM CELL REPORTS
    Organized by Stem Cell Reports

    Meet the editors of Stem Cell Reports to discuss a potential submission, your paper in review or new trends in scientific publishing. Bring your questions about Stem Cell Reports and publishing in your society’s journal.
  • 3:45 PM – 5:45 PM CEST
    MEET-UP HUB 2: POLICY, ETHICS, AND REGULATORY ISSUES
    Organized by the ISSCR Policy Staff

    Are you curious about how lawmakers and regulators create the legal frameworks that govern your research? Would you like to know how you can help shape those policies? Join ISSCR’s policy team for an open discussion about the legislation, regulation, and ethical issues around the globe impacting stem cell scientists and their work.
  • 3:45 PM – 5:45 PM CEST
    MEET-UP HUB 3: LGBTQIA+ STEM CELL NETWORKING
    Organized by Ya-Wan Chen, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, USA

    Join us for an exciting opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals in the stem cell field who identify as LGBTQIA+ or support the LGBTQIA+ community! This meet-up provides a safe and inclusive space to network, discuss current academic and industry trends, and support each other’s professional growth. Don’t miss out on this chance to build community and advance in your career!
  • EXHIBIT HALL THEATER - THURSDAY
  • 3:40 PM – 3:55 PM CEST
    MOVING iPSC BASED CGT INTO A GMP SETTING

    Theater Speaker: Lise Munsie, PhD – CCRM

    CCRM is a not-for-profit regenerative medicine innovation incubator spearheading technology commercialization and clinical translation with a strong focus on induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC)-based therapies. iPSC-based therapies offer advantages in their potential to address clinical applicability and scalable manufacturing to meet patient demand. As the number of iPSC-based therapies in clinical development is increasing, the industry is seeing significant advancement following decades of the industry’s iPSC development efforts. Despite these noteworthy strides, there are still many existing dilemmas to address for sustained progress and commercial viability. CCRM has spent the last 10 years tackling both manufacturing and commercialization challenges in iPSC to produce GMP platform programs to broadly enable iPSC therapy companies. This talk will describe CCRMs platform program and touch on crucial elements impacting efficient and effective clinical translation of these cell therapies. The talk will explore key areas such as material access and readiness, operational intricacies, technological innovations, and standardization for iPSC reprogramming, cell banking, scale-up, gene editing and differentiation all through a manufacturing lens.

    Exhibit Hall Theater

  • 4:00 PM – 4:15 PM CEST
    UNVEILING VERLOTM: THE FUTURE OF IMAGE-GUIDED CELL SORTING

    Theater Speaker: Rea Dabelic – NanoCellect Biomedical, Inc.

    This presentation introduces the VERLO™ Image-Guided Cell Sorter, a novel product from NanoCellect. VERLO integrates advanced image-guidance technology with cell sorting, enhancing precision and efficiency. The system captures high-resolution images of individual cells, providing spatial information such as cell morphology and marker localization. Enhanced resolution imaging capabilities allow for the visualization and analysis of subcellular structures and spatial variations in brightfield, darkfield, and fluorescent images. VERLO’s gating strategy incorporates imaging features to define cell phenotypes, increasing the precision of cell sorting. The system combines low-pressure microfluidics with single-cell image acquisition to measure a multitude of features from cell images, generating comprehensive multivariate datasets. Applications of VERLO include label-free cell structure analysis, investigation of cell-cell interactions, study of nuclear translocation, and cell organelle staining. This presentation will delve into the technological details and potential applications of the VERLO, allowing researchers to study cells in their physiologically relevant state in downstream processes.

    Exhibit Hall Theater

  • 4:20 PM – 4:35 PM CEST
    SCALABLE HUMAN IPSC-TO-3D BIOPRINTING PIPELINE: SUCCESSFUL LARGE-SCALE PRODUCTION USING AUTOMATED BIOREACTOR SYSTEMS

    Theater Speaker: Maya Fuerstenau-Sharp – Sartorius Stedim Biotech GmbH

    Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) are pivotal in advancing tissue engineering, particularly for transplantation therapy and disease modeling. A sustainable approach to organ-scale tissue engineering demands the production of billions of human cells for bioprinting, especially wholly cellular bioinks. However, scalability challenges in conventional 2D cell culture methods, such as cost, space, and handling constraints, present significant hurdles. To address these issues, we optimized and developed a robust, scalable pipeline to produce hiPSC aggregates (hAs) at 1L scale using an automated stirred-tank bioreactor system for bioprinting applications. These pluripotent aggregates were subsequently differentiated into derivatives of the three germ layers, including cardiac, vascular, cortical, and intestinal organoids. The aggregates were successfully compacted into wholly cellular bioinks for rheological analysis and 3D bioprinting. The 3D bioprinted tissues exhibited high post-printing viability and the potential for vascular and neuronal differentiation, highlighting a promising pathway for billion cell-scale organ engineering. Our next objective is to further expand this process by implementing a 10L scale bioreactor system to expand and differentiate the cells to enhance cell yield and process efficiency.

    Exhibit Hall Theater

  • 4:40 PM – 4:55 PM CEST
    CRACKING THE CODE: ACCELERATED DIRECTED DIFFERENTIATION OF HIGH PURITY NEURONS AND NEURAL CREST DERIVATIVES FROM ANY HIPSC LINE

    Theater Speaker: Patrick Walsh – Anatomic Incorporated

    Anatomic Incorporated's rapid, directed differentiation platform facilitates the manufacture of high-purity sensory neurons, motor neurons, melanocytes, Schwann cell precursors, and spinal dorsal horn neurons from any human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC) line within just 7 to 9 days. These breakthroughs in manufacturing efficiency are due to precision-engineered protocols that use exclusively growth factors and small molecules, without the need for transcription factor overexpression. This allows for the first time efficient, scaled-out manufacturing of any of our cell types from any pluripotent stem cell line, enabling donor-specific disease modeling. This technology is available in the form of differentiation kits, off-the-shelf human cells, or tailored differentiation services. Our sensory neurons express druggable pain targets and functionally respond to key reference compounds, making them invaluable for pain pathway studies. Our motor neurons, invaluable for the study of ALS, demonstrate robust functionality in electrophysiological assays. Our melanocytes exhibit characteristic pigmentation and gene expression profiles, ideal for investigating skin disorders and cosmetic applications. Our Schwann cell precursors provide the only scalable model for peripheral myelination in conjunction with our neuronal cell types. And finally, our dorsal horn population provide the first-ever humanized in vitro model for central pain mechanisms, including central sensitization.

    Exhibit Hall Theater

  • 5:20 PM – 5:35 PM CEST
    SOLUTIONS FOR SINGLE CELL AND ORGANOID SORTING AND ISOLATION

    Theater Speaker: Fabiana Izaguirre

    Cellenion offers solutions and technologies for controlled cell dispensing with applications in the fields of single cell and single organoids isolation. Our systems allow high throughput, image-based automated dispensing onto any substrates of choice. Together with a range of dedicated consumables, the solutions enable miniaturization of sample preparation protocols on the same instrument before downstream analyses. With no dead volumes and outstanding recovery rates, Cellenion’s platforms offer unique capacities for applications including stem cell research, single-cell omics, rare cells, cell line development, microbiology, drug screening and 3D cell model development. Information about Cellenion is available at www.cellenion.com.

    Exhibit Hall Theater

  • INNOVATION SHOWCASES - 6:00 PM THURSDAY
  • 6:00 PM – 6:30 PM CEST
    REVOLUTIONIZING BRAIN ORGANOID FUNCTIONAL SCREENING: UNVEILING THE POWER OF 3D MICROCHIP TECHNOLOGY FOR ENHANCED LIFE SCIENCES INSIGHTS

    Showcase Presenter: Sercan Deniz

    Human-induced Pluripotent Stem Cell (hiPSC)-derived brain organoids offer invaluable insights into human brain development and disease mechanisms. However, existing technologies struggle to fully capture their intricate 3D functionality. Accura-3D represents a groundbreaking microchip-based plate featuring thousands of ultrathin penetrating electrodes designed to record the inner layers of organoids. This innovation enables a non-destructive, label-free electrical recording method, akin to a "functional microscope": simply retrieve your sample from the incubator, acquire data while visualizing activity in real-time and return it. Fast and easy, it's perfect for lengthy maturation protocols, kinetic studies, or examining organoid dynamics at high resolution. Furthermore, the design of Accura-3D facilitates the creation of microfluidic channels beneath the sample, enhancing oxygenation and compound delivery. Powered by our advanced CorePlate™ technology, Accura-3D allows simultaneous recording from 4096 electrodes, enabling the study of network activity at single-cell resolution. This yields data at exceptional spatiotemporal resolution, markedly improving data quality and reducing experimental variability. Consequently, researchers can conduct in-depth analyses of their samples, extract functional connectivity maps, study local field potentials, and calculate over 100 different activity metrics. At 3Brain, we are dedicated to providing researchers with the most advanced tools for advancing brain organoid research.

    Innovation Showcase

  • 6:00 PM – 6:30 PM CEST
    BIOLAMININ® TECHNOLOGY: SUPPORTING STANDARDIZATION FOR TRANSLATIONAL SUCCESS

    Showcase Presenter: Evan L. Graham – BioLamina

    Showcase Presenter: Terri Gaskell – Rinri Therapeutics Ltd.

    Showcase Presenter: Brian Hawkins – Pluristyx, Inc.

    Showcase Presenter: Ilse Eidhof – Lund University and Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm

    BioLamina can support scientists throughout their cell therapy development process– from concept to commercialized therapy. Our invited speakers will share their stories of translation success. It will be introduced and moderated by Dr. Graham, from BioLamina. Dr. Hawkins will will focus on the development and manufacture of genetically stable, clinical-grade iPSC lines from regulatory-appropriate donor starting material. Dr. Gaskell will share how Rinri Therapeutics has undertaken the journey from academic process to GMP translation. She will outline the fundamentals to building a control strategy to underpin translational success. Finally, Dr. Eidhof will talk about how Defined culture conditions robustly maintain human stem cell pluripotency via tightly controlled Ca2+ signaling.

    Innovation Showcase

  • 6:00 PM – 6:30 PM CEST
    ENABLING iPSC INNOVATION: EXPLORE EBiSC'S CELLS, SCIENCE, AND DATA

    Showcase Presenter: Rachel Steeg – Fraunhofer UK Research Ltd

    Showcase Presenter: Julia Neubauer – Fraunhofer-IBMT

    Showcase Presenter: Jeanette Wihan – Fraunhofer-IBMT

    Showcase Presenter: Ralf Kettenhofen – Fraunhofer-IBMT

    Unlock the vast potential of human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) research with the European Bank for iPSCs (EBiSC). Whether you're an experienced researcher or embarking on your first project, EBiSC offers a centralised, not-for-profit repository designed to democratise access to high quality iPSC lines. With over 950 iPSC lines covering 40+ diseases, healthy controls, isogenic variants and genetically modified 'tool' iPSC lines (e.g. gene reporters and inducible transgenes), EBiSC provides a comprehensive catalogue to support diverse research needs. Additionally, EBiSC provides pre-differentiated neurons to simplify use of iPSC-neurons across diverse applications. EBiSC prioritises transparency and collaboration, offering an openly accessible cell line catalogue with detailed datasets on donor demographics, reprogramming methods, and cell line performance. Managed access to genetic and clinical data ensures GDPR compliance whilst still fostering innovation and collaboration. For those seeking to support open science, EBiSC offers the opportunity for deposition of iPSC lines, allowing researchers to contribute to future R&D while retaining legal rights for use. Join leading EBiSC scientists as they share insights, scientific developments, and an infrastructure to enable iPSC research at industry standards.

    Innovation Showcase

  • 6:00 PM – 6:30 PM CEST
    STEM CELLS FOR SPECIES DE-EXTINCTION AND CONSERVATION

    Showcase Presenter: Evan Appleton – Colossal Biosciences

    Colossal is a breakthrough bioscience and genetic engineering company that builds radical new technologies to advance the field of genomics. Colossal creates disruptive technologies for extinct species restoration, critically endangered species protection and the repopulation of critical ecosystems that support the continuation of life on Earth. The company is the first to apply CRISPR technology for the purposes of species de-extinction, beginning with the woolly mammoth, Tasmanian tiger, and dodo. Colossal is accepting humanity’s duty to restore Earth to a healthier state, while also solving for the future economies and biological necessities of the human condition through cutting-edge science and technologies. In this presentation we will discuss Colossal Bioscience’s recent work reprogramming iPSCs of multiple species, including the Asian Elephant. The reprogramming of these species required novel reprogramming protocols and tools that may be of interest to the broader stem cell community attending ISSCR.

    Innovation Showcase

  • 6:00 PM – 6:30 PM CEST
    SYNTHETIC PEPTIDE-BASED GROWTH FACTOR ALTERNATIVE AND THEIR APPLICATION

    Showcase Presenter: Robert Brownlee – PeptiGrowth Inc.

    Conventional growth factors and cytokines used in the manufacturing of regenerative medicine and cell therapy products are facing various challenges such as lot-to-lot quality variations, potential contamination with biological impurities, low stability, and high manufacturing cost. PeptiGrowth Inc. has been working on the development of a series of synthetic peptides that have better qualities, activities and functions than conventional growth factors and cytokines, and that can address and solve all these challenges. These peptides are totally chemically synthesized and animal component-free. PeptiGrowth was established in April 2020 aiming to thoroughly solve these problems and to support the development of industry growth. The alternative peptide for HGF, BDNF, Noggin, VEGF, Wnt3a, EGF, TPO have been already launched in the market and some of their application examples to cell culture models are planned to be introduced in this presentation.

    Innovation Showcase

  • 6:00 PM – 6:30 PM CEST
    EMPOWERING CANCER STUDIES: REVOLUTIONIZING CANCER RESEARCH WITH A UNIVERSAL APPROACH TO ISOLATING STEM CELLS FROM TUMOR BIOPSIES

    Showcase Presenter: Alexander Trampe – PromoCell GmbH

    Tumors comprise various cell types, with only a small portion being cancer stem cells (CSCs) driving malignancy. Identifying CSCs is challenging due to the lack of specific markers and suitable culture methods. Traditional systems favor non-tumorigenic cells, leading to CSC loss. Mouse models aid less malignant tumor cultures, but they're costly and induce changes. Direct isolation of patient-specific tumor cells in defined culture is preferred. PromoCell’s new culture system, the Primary Cancer Culture System, offers universal CSC isolation from patient samples or xenografts. It selectively supports malignant cell traits, preserving original tumor diversity. Unlike traditional media, it depletes benign cells, ensuring CSC enrichment. This system is universally applicable to various CSC types and tumor stages without reliance on uncertain markers. It avoids cytotoxic agents in animal-free environments and is cost-effective. It can enrich CSCs in established cell lines or deplete non-cancerous cells from primary cultures, aiding biomarker identification. Overall, the Primary Cancer Culture System offers a reliable and versatile method for CSC isolation and culture.

    Innovation Showcase

  • 6:00 PM – 6:30 PM CEST
    ADVANCING CELL THERAPIES BY HARNESSING THE POWER OF STEM CELL BIOLOGY & BIOPHYSICS USING THE C-STEM™ TECHNOLOGY PLATFORM

    Showcase Presenter: Maxime Feyeux – TreeFrog Therapeutics

    Showcase Presenter: Joffrey Mianne – TreeFrog Therapeutics

    Showcase Presenter: Clément Rieu – TreeFrog Therapeutics

    TreeFrog Therapeutics is an R&D biotech advancing a pipeline of cell therapies based on a proprietary technology platform, C-Stem™ that overcomes several of the major challenges in cell therapy development - producing safe, high-quality, cell therapies at scale. C-Stem™ is the world’s first GMP-compliant cell encapsulation device capable of generating over 1,000 capsules per second. It enables the seeding of up to 10-liter bioreactors and delivers 15 billion cells in a single batch run. This presentation is the opportunity to learn how TreeFrog crossed the frontiers of biophysics and stem cell biology to invent the GMP-compliant C-Stem™ technology platform and to understand its potential through the presentation of the pre-clinical results achieved to date in their lead program in Parkinson’s Disease. The program is on track for a first-in-human trial in 2026 and is already ready for commercial scale.

    Innovation Showcase