Google “top 10 of 2013” and you’ll find lists of every topic imaginable: the top songs, movies, smartphones, college football plays of year – you name it. So to get a piece of the action, below we’ve posted our 10 most-viewed blog posts of 2013.One thing is clear from our list: you readers are hungry … Continue reading CIRM’s top ten stem cell blog posts of 2013

Lauren Miller: Photo credit: Ivan Nikolov / WENNOrdinarily we wouldn't write a blog on Christmas Eve, there's no one around to read it. But we couldn't let this wonderful news go by without mentioning it. We are delighted to welcome Lauren Miller - actress, screenwriter, producer and Alzheimer's activist - to our governing Board, the … Continue reading Actress, screenwriter and Alzheimer’s activist joins our Board

To be involved in science you need to be committed and persistent. Good science takes time. Sometimes it takes a lot of time. So when you hear that a project that you have been supporting has been approved to move into a Phase 2 clinical trial that you are funding, that’s pretty exciting.That’s just what … Continue reading Stem cell agency funded heart therapy approved for Phase 2 clinical trial

Here are some stem cell stories that caught our eye this past week. Some are groundbreaking science, others are of personal interest to us, and still others are just fun.Mouse tails stained to illuminate the hair follicle stem cells. The image was captured using confocal imaging by NYC scientist Yaron Fuchs at the Howard Hughes … Continue reading Stem cell stories that caught our eye: striking images, cerebral palsy, and hair loss

CIRM's Google Hangout on stem cell therapy for heart disease Imagine carrying around a computer thumb drive that has a complete read out of your genome so that should you need medical attention the doctors will have instant access to a blueprint of you so they can tailor their treatment for your specific needs.It may … Continue reading This is how your heart looks on TV; Hanging out with experts talking about stem cells and heart disease

Brain cells derived from human embyronic stem cells It’s always fun when you make one of those end-of-the-year-best-things list. In this case we, and by we I mean stem cell research, made the Wired magazine list of Best Scientific Discoveries of 2013 – even if we had to share top billing with a new meat-eating … Continue reading Stem cells make Wired’s list of 2013 scientific highlights

Of the many sources of stem cells, most of us gain a bit of one of them as we age—fat. Unfortunately, a team at Moscow State University has quantified a long-term supposition in the field, that older stem cells, including fat stem cells, are not as good at doing their job as younger ones.Researchers and … Continue reading Older fat-derived stem cells shown to be less potent than younger stem cells

Hair follicleStem cells are a true double-edged sword when it comes to cancer. We need our tissue-specific stem cells to repair and replace tissue, but some of them develop into cancer causing cells. Now a CIRM-fundeed team at the University of California, Los Angeles has discovered a molecular switch that seems to keep stem cells, … Continue reading Gene that blocks skin stem cells from initiating cancer may provide key to prevention

Heart muscle precursors derived from embryonic stem cellsA few years ago Fred Lesikar suffered a major heart attack. He survived but his heart was badly damaged, so much so that even simple things like walking around the block left him exhausted.Then Fred took part in an experimental therapy, getting a transplant of some of his … Continue reading Why Hanging out with these people could be good for your heart

Kidney bud created from human stem cells (in blue and green). Cells in red are mouse kidney cells. Courtesy of the Salk Institute for Biological StudiesGrowing complex organs such as kidneys from stem cells is not easy, and neither is putting an advance in perspective without hypeAfter seeing several headlines in my newsfeed about a … Continue reading A perspective on growing kidneys from stem cells