In vitro models for human skin Tox studies to be made in Frederick

The news keeps coming in for LifeLine, in Walkersville. I was doing research for another project and saw this on their website today:

International Stem Cell Corporation Obtains Exclusive Rights in the US and Canada to Distribute Approved Human Skin Model for Toxicity Testing

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OCEANSIDE, California, April 29, 2008

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International Stem Cell Corporation (OTCBB: ISCO) announced today that it has entered into an exclusive agreement with CellSystems Biotechnologie to distribute laboratory-cultured models of human skin useful for testing the hazardous properties of consumer products and for dermatological and pharmaceutical research. Such testing is likely to be soon required for certain types of consumer products sold into the European Union.

According to International Stem Cell’s (ISCO) President Jeffrey Janus, “This agreement is another positive step in ISCO’s strategic plan to become the primary source of high quality human cells for the therapeutic and research markets by leveraging its manufacturing and distribution resources.”

ISCO’s human cell and cell culture research products are manufactured and distributed under the “Lifeline” brand by wholly-owned subsidiary Lifeline Cell Technology, LLC, based in Walkersville, Maryland (www.lifelinecelltech.com).
The laboratory-cultured models of human skin, called EST-1000 and AST-2000 were developed by CellSystems and contain cells manufactured by Lifeline. These three dimensional skin cell models are used as alternative methods to animal testing in the field of Skin Corrosion, Skin Irritation, Skin Sensitization, Genotoxicity and Phototoxicity.

“We have worked with the Lifeline staff and know their abilities to provide excellent
customer service and their ability to consistently produce high quality products; a critical factor for researchers that depend on human cells for the success of their research,” said Horst W. Fuchs, President of CellSystems Biotechnologie. This agreement between our companies opens a distribution channel for CellSystems’ skin model products to scientific researchers throughout the United States and Canada.”
“While the sale of these Lifeline stem cell and research products provides ISCO
immediate cash flow, it also helps embed ISCO’s products into successful therapeutic and quality control procedures worldwide, providing a revenue stream of shared royalties beyond traditional sales,” added Janus.

Holy Cow!

Yes, I know this is supposed to be a blog about Frederick County Biotech. This story is neither about Fred Co nor biotech, but it’s my blog and I can rant when I want to.

I am at a loss for words. Hold on, they’re coming back to me. In waves, kinda like diarrhea. Maybe this can be my inaugural BPSDB post?

The Global Warming conspiracy, in Nature no less, reports that the ozone-hole recovery is threatening the Antarctic Ice cap. Yes brothers and sisters, the Ozone hole, so widely attributed to be the demise of the planet in the 80’s, a tell-tale, doomsday prophecy of humans ruining the universe due to gluttony and lust of chlorofluorocarbons and exhaust from burning of fossil fuels, the ozone hole shrinketh.

From the article ( a drum roll please):

Antarctic ice threatened by ozone-hole recovery

Global winds could accelerate melting.

Amanda Leigh Haag

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The ozone hole may have delayed Antarctic warming

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Recovery of the ozone hole above Antarctica could warm the Antarctic and cause more ice to melt in coming decades, researchers say. As the ozone hole heals, wind patterns that shield the interior of the polar region from warm air may break down, causing warming in the Antarctica as well as warmer and drier conditions in Australia.

Despite global temperatures rising, the interior of Antarctica has experienced a unique cooling trend during its summer and autumn over the last few decades. Scientists attribute this cooling to the hole in the ozone layer, which alters atmospheric circulation patterns and strengthens the westerly winds that swirl around the continent. These winds have isolated the Antarctic interior from the warming patterns seen on the continent’s peninsula and throughout the rest of the world.

“The warming of the Antarctic may have been delayed because of the ozone hole,” says atmospheric scientist Judith Perlwitz, a climate scientist at the of the University of Colorado at Boulder and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Let it be said, as real climatologists have been telling us for decades, there is no consensus that we are in a period of global warming. As this article supports, the Antarctic (the Southern Hemisphere in general) has been experiencing a “unique cooling trend”.

Sounds like we’re heading for an Ice Age, to me.

Ok. Rant accomplished. I hope my invite to SciFoo ‘08 isn’t retracted. I’ll overblog this with something good I just read about FredCoBio…