Dr. Susana Gomez heads a public cord blood bank Biobank created at the Anthony Nolan Cell Therapy Centre (Nottingham, UK).

Biobank operates within the first and the world’s largest registry of hematopoietic stem cells. In 1974, in London Shirley Nolan, whose son Anthony suffered from congenital immunodeficiency and needed a hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, founded the world’s first Bone Marrow Donor Registry (of volunteers willing to donate the part of their bone marrow to immunologically compatible patient), which till this day carries the name of Anthony Nolan. Actually the Anthony Nolan Registry of Hematopoietic Stem Cells in the UK has more than 500000 registered potential donors.

The cord blood Biobank, headed by Susana Gomez, stores cellular and non-cellular fractions of cord blood, that are used both clinically as hematopoietic stem cells transplants and for research purposes.Research directions of the Anthony Nolan Research Institute and Biobank include the study of foetomaternal immunoregulation as a natural model of immune tolerance: proteomic approach as well as development of techniques of separation, freezing and cryo-storage of cord blood cells.

Dr. Susana Gomez kindly agreed to share experience of the organization of a public cord blood bank with the scientific staff of the Institute of Cell Therapy, and also gave a brief interview to the journal «Cell and Organ Transplantology,» which is published with the support of the Institute

The Journal “Cell and Organ Transplantology”, 2014, 2, № 1

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