PREMSTEM partners from across Europe and Australia have come together for the project’s annual meeting, with ten members of the research and management team able to attend in person at the University of Maastricht Campus in Brussels.

After an introduction by the project coordinator, Professor Pierre Gressens, partners leading different tasks were invited to present on their progress. Highlights included:

• A ranking of small animal data retrieved by the Inserm lab has taken place to begin determining the best time and means (i.e. via the nose or through an injection in the vein) to deliver the stem cells, in preparation to be validated in the large animal model.
• The Université de Genève team discussed their MRI method for the project, presenting recent post-mortem MRI analyses of the hemispheres of the brain.
• University of Maastricht has created a batch of nanoparticles and will use flow cytometry to detect, identify and count specific cells in various experiments.
• Numerous research teams are looking at the effect of the stem cells on different cells in the brain (using different conditions and with differing stem cell preparation) to see how we can maximise their potential.
• The Iconeus team has built a prototype imaging tool to retrieve non-invasive ultrasound data and monitor changes in brain activity.
• Iconeus One. a system allowing pre-clinical functional ultrasound (fUS) imaging of brain activity, is currently with the University of Maastricht team alongside researchers from Iconeus.