Sigma-Aldrich has entered into an exclusive worldwide distribution agreement with Stemgent, to offer Stemgent’s portfolio of lentivirus-based delivery systems for the generation of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells.
The company said that its agreement with Stemgent complements Sigma-Aldrich’s over 1,100 products and services that support the entire cycle of stem cell research, including reprogramming, isolation, characterisation, expansion, differentiation, functional profiling and in-vitro/in-vivo tracking.
The reprogramming technologies offered under the terms of the agreement involve proprietary viral vectors from Stemgent, lentivirus technology from Sigma-Aldrich and Dox Inducible expression from TET Systems.
Reportedly, these technologies have been fully validated in Stemgent’s laboratories and are expected to allow researchers to efficiently reprogram mouse and human cells into iPS cells, enabling researchers to investigate and address the challenges facing the field of regenerative medicine.
David Smoller, president of research biotech business unit at Sigma-Aldrich, said: “Induced pluripotent stem cells have emerged as immensely useful tools for the modeling of human diseases, research and development of therapeutics, regenerative medicine and the development of personalized cell replacement therapies. Stemgent has made great strides developing lentivirus-based gene delivery vectors, and Sigma-Aldrich has made it a priority to provide products and services for the iPS cell research community.”