The Human Embryonic Stem Cell Toolbox (HEST) Workshop was held this fall from Aug. 30 to Sept. 3 at the Rhodes Center for Animal and Dairy Sciences.
The whole group
The HEST participants
The Stice Lab
Taking a breakThe HEST workshop is an intensive four-day course that gives participants the rare opportunity to work and train with instructors experienced in developing and propagating NIH-approved human embryonic stem cell lines. New for this year will be a major emphasis on induced pluripotent stem cells. These cells have the same potential as embryonic stem cells to generate diverse cell types but are generated from adult cells. Funded by the National Institutes of Health, the program has trained well over 100 investigators since in its start in 2003. Participants have come from research institutions across the U.S., Canada, Mexico, India, Korea, Japan, and Europe.
The HEST workshop is held at UGA each fall and moves to Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Va. each spring. The spring HEST had 14 participants mainly from the NIH campus. We had a section on induced pluripotent stem cell culture and generation. Sponsors this year included Thermo Fischer, Invitrogen, Millipore, ArunA Biomedical and Stem Cell Technologies. Instructors for each session include both VCU and UGA faculty, as well as scientists from industry.
Participation is limited for this workshop and scholarship opportunities are available. To learn more, visit www.biomed.uga.edu/initiatives/rbc.
