Information

Introduction
Stem cells possess three unique properties: they are capable of dividing and renewing themselves for long periods and despite being unspecialised they can undergo differentiation to form the many diverse, specialized cells, tissues and organs of the body. Due to this remarkable plasticity, much attention is being devoted to the potential use of stem cells in tissue repair and regenerative medicine. Therapeutic applications span a wide range of disorders including: diabetes, cardiovascular and musculosketal diseases and neurodegenerative disorders. However, a number of obstacles remain to be overcome if stem cells are truly to become a pillar of healthcare. For example, the optimum chemical and biochemical signals that promote stem cell proliferation and ultimately differentiation into desired cell types are not yet fully defined. Thus, scientists are taking great strides to understand the chemical and biochemical signals that control the fate of stem cells during normal healthy development and to exploit this knowledge to manipulate stem cells outside of the body for therapeutic use. Medicinal chemistry plays a significant role in this challenge through the application of small molecules to control stem cell reprogramming and fate. Moreover, the control of stem cell behaviour using materials chemistry to provide microenvironment cues is a further example, particularly in tissue engineering, of how chemistry is a powerful tool for the advancement of stem cell therapeutics. At this conference key scientists and clinicians will discuss recent progress in this exciting field as well as future challenges involved in developing effective cell-based and non-cell-based therapeutics for tissue repair and regenerative medicine.

Venue
The conference will be held at Burlington House, Piccadilly, London which is situated midway between Piccadilly Circus and Green Park underground stations. London is also well served by regular train and coach services from many parts of the UK and three major airports, London Heathrow, London Gatwick and London Stansted. Please note that there are no car parking facilities at Burlington House.

Accommodation
Please visit the RSC website for suggestions of suitable local hotels.

Organisers
On behalf of the Royal Society of Chemistry Biotechnology Group: Dr Irene Francois (Chair) Freelance Consultant (Drug Discovery & Pre-clinical Development, Surrey), Dr Ivan Wall (Department of Biochemical Engineering, UCL, London) and Dr Francis Lister ( Special Projects Lead, Deep Sciences Ventures, London).

Posters
RSC Travel Grants for full-time postgraduate students, post-doctoral fellows and early career scientists, who are RSC Members and who would like to present a poster can apply via the link on the RSC website under FUNDING.

Registration Fees

Payment may be made via the PayPal button below. Please include the delegate name in the instruction. The fees include attendance at the sessions, lunch and refreshments. The organisers are not registered for VAT and tax invoices cannot be issued.

	Fee
RSC Members	£100
Non-members	£115
Student RSC Members	£60
Student non-members	£70
Retired RSC members	no charge

Sponsors:

The RSC Biotechnology Group gratefully acknowledge financial support of this event from the following organizations:

TBC

Further information:

Please consult the web-page or contact the organizers: Dr Irene Francois (irene.francois@ntlworld.com), Dr Ivan Wall (I.wall@ucl.uk) and Dr Francis Lister (francis.lister@dsv.io)