CBA Announces Official Scientific Journal

Issued:  April 3, 2017

Bringing cord blood and tissue research to the health care community is the objective of a new publishing venture of the Cord Blood Association and AlphaMed Press. STEM CELLS Translational Medicine (SCTM) is now the association’s official scientific journal.

A cord blood section in the international, peer-reviewed journal will publish research articles on:

• umbilical cord blood and tissue-based therapies

• engineering and manufacturing of cord blood immune cells

• cord blood and cord tissue banking

• the use of cord blood and cord tissue in regenerative medicine

SCTM, a monthly online periodical, presents articles that advance the clinical use of stem cell molecular and cellular biology. The journal is a bridge from stem cell research and emerging lab discoveries to clinical trials. This bridge helps move critical investigations closer to accepted best practices and ultimately improves outcomes.

Under the leadership of section co-editors, Joanne Kurtzberg, MD, and Karen Ballen, MD, the journal’s Cord Blood Section launches early this month with its first paper on the safety and feasibly of performing autologous umbilical cord blood infusions in young children with autism spectrum disorder. Dr. Kurtzberg is director of the Carolinas Cord Blood Bank, Durham, N.C., and president of the Cord Blood Association. Dr. Ballen is a professor in the division of hematology/oncology at the University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville.

“The Cord Blood Association is excited and honored to partner with STEM CELLS Translational Medicine to showcase the newest and highest-quality translational and clinical applications of cord blood and cord tissue-based therapies,” Dr. Kurtzberg said. “The mission and goals of both parties are aligned to maximize sharing of advances in these novel cell and tissue-based therapies.”

The journal’s Cord Blood Section can be accessed through its online portal.