Standards and Best Practices

Advancing stem cell science from discovery to patient impact requires both rigor in research and clarity in translation. Best Practices for the Development of Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Therapies offers a global roadmap to guide the safe, effective, and regulatory-compliant development of PSC-based therapies from early research through clinical application. The Best Practices complements the ISSCR Standards for Human Stem Cell Use in Research, which establishes essential principles to strengthen rigor, reproducibility, and quality in preclinical science.

Together, these resources support a more efficient, reliable pathway from discovery to real-world therapies.

The ISSCR Standards Initiative is made possible through contributions by:

Logo for Burroughs Welcome Fund with stylized eye symbol in red.
Doris Duke Foundation logo with a stylized letter D on the left and the foundation's name on the right.
Logo of SFARI, Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative, with text and design elements.

The ISSCR's Standards for Human Stem Cell Use in Research are strictly copyrighted by the society. No part of this document may be produced in any form without written permission of The International Society for Stem Cell Research. Contact isscr@isscr.org for more information.

Standards Steering Committee

  • Tenneille Ludwig

    WiCell Research Institute, USA
    (Co-chair)​

  • Peter Andrews

    The University of Sheffield, UK
    (Co-chair)​

  • Ivana Barbaric

    The University of Sheffield, UK

  • Nissim Benvenisty

    Hebrew University, Israel

  • Madeline Lancaster

    MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, UK

  • Christine Mummery

    Leiden University Medical Center, Netherlands

  • Martin Pera

    The Jackson Laboratory, USA

  • Yoji Sato

    National Institute of Health Sciences, Japan

  • Glyn Stacey

    International Stem Cell Banking Initiative, UK

  • Christine A. Wells

    University of Melbourne, Australia

  • Tongbiao Zhao

    Institute of Zoology Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Beijing, China

Best Practices Steering Committee

  • Jacqueline Barry

    Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult, UK
    (Co-chair)​

  • Kapil Bharti

    National Institutes of Health, USA
    (Co-chair)​

  • Ricardo Baptista

    SmartCella, Sweden

  • Melissa Carpenter

    Carpenter Consulting, USA

  • Derek Hei

    Kenai Therapeutics, USA

  • Ana Hidalgo-Simon

    Leiden University Medical Center, Netherlands

  • Deborah Hursh

    Hursh Cell Therapy Consulting, LLC, USA

  • Jung-Hyun Kim

    Ajou University, South Korea

  • Tenneille Ludwig

    WiCell Research Institute, USA

  • Hideyuki Okano

    Keio University School of Medicine, Japan

  • Hideyuki Okano, MD, PhD

    Keio University, Japan​

  • John Rasko

    Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Australia

  • Yoji Sato

    National Institute of Health Sciences, Japan

  • Glyn Stacey

    International Stem Cell Banking Initiative, UK

  • Clive Svendsen, PhD

    Cedars-Sinai, USA​