— Archaeologists find new evidence of animals being introduced to prehistoric Caribbean — An archaeological research team from North Carolina State University, the University of Washington and University of Florida has found one of the most diverse collections of prehistoric…
— Microscopic worms could hold the key to living life on Mars — The astrophysicist Stephen Hawking believes that if humanity is to survive we will have up sticks and colonise space. But is the human body up to the challenge?…
— Chemical warfare of stealthy silverfish — A co-evolutionary arms race exists between social insects and their parasites. Army ants (Leptogenys distinguenda) share their nests with several parasites such as beetles, snails and…
— Stinky frogs are a treasure trove of antibiotic substances — Some of the nastiest smelling creatures on Earth have skin that produces the greatest known variety of anti-bacterial substances that hold promise for becoming new weapons in the battle…
— Genetic code of first arachnid cracked — An international team of scientists - including Ghent VIB scientists - has succeeded in deciphering the genome of the spider mite. This is also the first known genome of an arachnid.…
— How bats 'hear' objects in their path — By placing real and virtual objects in the flight paths of bats, scientists at the Universities of Bristol and Munich have shed new light on how echolocation works. Their research is…
— Counting cats: The endangered snow leopards of the Himalayas — The elusive snow leopard (Panthera uncia) lives high in the mountains across Central Asia. Despite potentially living across 12 countries the actual numbers of this beautiful large…
— Surprise role of nuclear structure protein in development — Scientists have long held theories about the importance of proteins called B-type lamins in the process of embryonic stem cells replicating and differentiating into different varieties…
— Pregnancy is a drag for bottlenose dolphins — Lumbering around during the final weeks before delivery is tough for any pregnant mum. Most females adjust their movements to compensate for the extreme physical changes that accompany…
Setting a course for the future of tissue engineering
The editors of Tissue Engineering asked 24 leaders in the field what critical steps are needed for tissue engineering to achieve broad critical success by the year 2021 and published their findings in the December 2007 issue (Volume 13, Number 12). Tissue Engineering is a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. The paper is available free online.
A survey of the journal's editorial board - comprising leaders in the field of tissue engineering from around the globe - yielded a clear picture of the key scientific areas in which researchers need to focus their efforts. Authors Peter Johnson, MD, Co-Editor-in-Chief of Tissue Engineering and President and CEO of Scintellix, LLC, as well as Co-Editor-in-Chief Antonios Mikos, PhD, from Rice University in Houston, TX, John Fisher, PhD, from the University of Maryland, College Park, and John Jansen, DDS, PhD, from Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, The Netherlands, present a consensus opinion of these critical paths for development and discuss their implications for the field in a report entitled, 'Strategic Directions in Tissue Engineering.'
These findings can help scientists in academia and industry, teachers, and funding agencies plan for the future, design research projects and training programs, and set a course to enable the field of tissue engineering to reach its goals and potential for success in clinical medicine.
'Our worldwide editorial board was very helpful in sharing critical opinions regarding the future of tissue engineering. We hope that this offering will prove to be useful to all participants in the field' says Dr Johnson.
Leading the list of strategic initiatives is 'angiogenic control,' which defines the ability to provide engineered tissues with an adequate blood supply to nourish their development and survival. Next on the list is 'stem cell science,' which encompasses an understanding of stem cell behaviour and how to control their growth, development, and function. Also included among the leading strategic goals identified in the survey is 'molecular/systems biology,' which describes the importance of integrating knowledge about tissues at the cellular and molecular level with a broader view of how they affect and are affected by the organism as a whole.
Or subscribe for our Newsletter, a free e-mail publication. It is published practically every day.
Nine new species for disappearing handfish family
Catalogue of Life 2010 launched at UN Biodiversity Meeting in Nairobi
Size matters: Eavesdropping on sexual signals
The strongest animal in the world