News

How CellBank Australia can Help

It is a pleasure to send you the 25 October 2013 issue of our electronic newsletter. This is a special mailing, about the Scientific Advisory Committee of CellBank Australia.

Foreword

Of all the administrative tasks I perform each year, the one I enjoy most is chairing meetings of the Scientific Advisory Committee of CellBank Australia. It is incredibly rewarding to contribute to the activities of a team that is dedicated to improving the quality of research undertaken in this country.

Over the last five years, I have watched CellBank Australia expand its range of pristine cell lines from just a handful to over 1,700. At the same time they have played a major role in increasing global awareness of the extent to which cell line contamination compromises research. It is with great satisfaction that we can now see how this work has influenced journals such as Nature and funding agencies like the NHMRC, to adopt new initiatives aimed at wiping out spurious research.

I’m very pleased today to let you know that at the next meeting of the Scientific Advisory Committee of CellBank Australia, we will be welcoming new members Associate Professor Simon Barry and Professor Anna DeFazio. I can’t wait to hear their perspectives on this very important aspect of biomedical research.

I sincerely thank Professors Heddy Zola and Liz Musgrove, who have both retired from the Scientific Advisory Committee of CellBank Australia, for their generous and valuable contributions.

Professor Joan Heath

Chair of the Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) of CellBank Australia

New Member - Associate Professor Simon Barry

Associate Professor Barry is an immunologist/molecular biologist who Heads the Molecular Immunology Laboratory in the Discipline of Paediatrics at the University of Adelaide and Chief Hospital Scientist at the Women's and Children's Hospital. In addition, Associate Professor Barry is a Senior Research Fellow at the Women's and Children's Health Research Institute. His research is focussed on understanding the molecular basis of immune tolerance, and the role of regulatory T cells in health and disease. A particular interest of his is the production of regulatory T cells in sufficient numbers to treat graft versus host disease in patients, and he is a key researcher in the newly-funded CRC for Cell Therapy Manufacturing. Associate Professor Barry’s work has recently been profiled in the journal Australian Life Scientist.

New Member - Professor Anna deFazio

Professor deFazio is the Head of the Gynaecological Oncology Research Group at the Westmead Millennium Institute, Westmead Hospital, Professor of Translational Cancer Research, University of Sydney, and is on the executive of the Sydney West Translational Cancer Research Centre. In addition, Professor deFazio is on the Management Committee of the Australian Ovarian Cancer Study (AOCS), head of the AOCS Clinical Follow-up Core, and is a chief investigator for the Australasian Biospecimens Network-Oncology.

Good Cell Culture Practice

NHMRC Announces an Update to the Universal Funding Rules

The Australian National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) indicated that the Universal Funding Rules have been updated to note the potential problems of cell line contamination and recommend: "that researchers employ quality assurance procedures to ensure their eukaryotic cell lines are free from mycoplasma and other contaminant cells, and are verified as the cell type required.”

Click here to view full announcement.