As IBO examined in its October 15 issue, induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) and the products for their production in the lab for research applications is a rapidly expanding market. Now public organizations are stepping up their efforts to produce such cells. In November, the UK’s Medical Research Council and Wellcome Trust announced the creation of the £12.75 million ($20.4 million = £0.63 = $1) Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Initiative to create an iPS cell bank for researchers. Cells will be generated from volunteers and patient groups and genetically analyzed. The effort, led by King’s College London and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, aims to create one thousand iPS cell lines.

Also in the EU, this month, Roche and the Innovative Medicines Initiative announced the five-year, €55.6 million ($72.7 million = €0.76 = $1) StemBANCC project. The project is a partnership between 10 pharmaceutical firms and 23 academic organizations. Roche will lead the collaboration, and Oxford University will manage the project. StemBANCC plans to generate and analyze 1,500 iPS cells from 500 patients for use in research of peripheral nervous system disorders, central nervous system disorders, neurodysfunctional diseases and diabetes.

In Japan last month, a working group of the science ministry produced a new version of its 2009 road map for iPSC research. The plan includes new target dates for beginning iPSC clinical research, according to the Asahi Shimbun.