World's fastest cells race for the first time

Sandrine Ceurstemont, editor, New Scientist TV

Ready, set, go! Competing on microscopic racetracks, human retinal cells scuttle back and forth during a training session for the first World Cell Race.

Organised by the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB), fifty teams submitted cell cultures to designated labs, where they were put through their paces while a camera captured the action for 24 hours. The title of world's fastest cell, announced at the ASCB annual meeting last week, was awarded to fetal bone marrow stem cells submitted by Yuchun Liu from the National University of Singapore for their breakneck speed of 5.2 microns per minute.

The goal wasn't just to have fun: the contest also provides insight into how moving cells contribute to the spread of cancer or the development of embryos and organs. According to Manuel Th?ry, one of the organisers from the Institute of Life Sciences Research and Technologies (iRTSV) in Grenoble, France, it's the first time such a diverse collection of cells were observed migrating under the same conditions, which should allow for interesting comparisons.

If you enjoyed this post, watch a laser gadget play Pong with cells or see the first video of cell movement in early embryos that shows how mutants are formed.

Source: http://feeds.newscientist.com/c/749/f/10897/s/1aefd38e/l/0L0Snewscientist0N0Cblogs0Cnstv0C20A110C120Cworlds0Efastest0Ecells0Erace0Efor0Ethe0Efirst0Etime0Bhtml0DDCMP0FOTC0Erss0Gnsref0Fonline0Enews/story01.htm

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