Over the past year or so, teams around the world have reported using stem cells to make increasingly complex portions of the brain. Earlier this month we wrote about a team at Stanford who had grown “organoids” that simulated the brain’s cortex with both nerves and support cells that communicated back and forth with each … Continue reading Neat trick grows two parts of the brain and gets them to communicate
Month: June 2015
Do patient advocacy groups and pharmaceutical companies need marriage counseling?
A new study suggests that the relationship between patient advocacy groups and pharmaceutical companies, particularly those carrying out clinical trials, is hitting a bit of a rough patch. And that could have big consequences for both parties. In the past, patients and patient advocacy groups were very much an afterthought when it came to planning … Continue reading Do patient advocacy groups and pharmaceutical companies need marriage counseling?
Stem cell stories that caught our eye: Parkinson’s trial revived, aspirin kills cancer stem cells and a stem cell role in mother-child obesity
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. Parkinson’s clinical trials back on track. After nearly 20 years of being stuck on the clinical trial “bookshelf”, an international team from Cambridge, UK revived … Continue reading Stem cell stories that caught our eye: Parkinson’s trial revived, aspirin kills cancer stem cells and a stem cell role in mother-child obesity
How one strong ARM can create a community
I spent the last two days at the annual Washington meeting of the Alliance for Regenerative Medicine (ARM), the advocacy organization that CIRM became a founding member of in 2009. Having been CIRM’s representative at that first organizing meeting it has been a pleasure to see the organization mature into an effective advocacy group for … Continue reading How one strong ARM can create a community
Hey, don’t throw out that kidney – I can use it
Researchers at the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine have come up with what may be the ultimate in recycling programs. They want to take old, discarded kidneys and, using stem cells, turn them into healthy, functioning kidneys for transplant patients. Well, that’s the ultimate goal. They’ve still got a way to go, but they’re … Continue reading Hey, don’t throw out that kidney – I can use it
Building a Bridge to Therapies: Stem Cell-Derived Neurons Restore Feeling to Injured Limbs
It’s been a great week for spinal cord injury-related stem cell research – and it’s only Tuesday. In case you missed it, Asterias Biotherapeutics announced yesterday that they had treated their first clinical trial participant with an embryonic stem cell-based therapy for complete spinal cord injury. “Complete” refers to injuries that cause a total loss … Continue reading Building a Bridge to Therapies: Stem Cell-Derived Neurons Restore Feeling to Injured Limbs
Stem cell therapy for spinal cord injury back on track
When Geron decided, in 2010, to halt the first ever clinical trial of stem cells for spinal cord injury it was a disappointment to many people, particularly for those with spinal cord injuries (SCI) who were hoping it might help them. But now that therapy is back, and the company behind it this time, Asterias … Continue reading Stem cell therapy for spinal cord injury back on track
Stem cell stories that caught our eye: regenerating limbs on scaffolds, self regeneration via a drug, mood stem cells, CRISPR
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. Regenerating a limb, or at least part of it. Many teams have generated organs or parts of organs in animals by starting with a dead … Continue reading Stem cell stories that caught our eye: regenerating limbs on scaffolds, self regeneration via a drug, mood stem cells, CRISPR
Desperate patients and false hope: a troubling trend for stem cell-based therapies
A gambler’s odds are usually stacked against them but the possibility, however slim, of hitting the jackpot keeps bringing them back to the table. Now imagine, unbeknownst to them, the system is rigged so there’s a zero percent chance of any winnings. They’d essentially be giving their money away based on a false hope. Sadly, … Continue reading Desperate patients and false hope: a troubling trend for stem cell-based therapies
One man’s story points to hope against a deadly skin cancer
One of the great privileges and pleasures of working at the stem cell agency is the chance to meet and work with some remarkable people, such as my colleagues here at CIRM and the researchers we support. But for me the most humbling, and by far the most rewarding experience, is having a chance to … Continue reading One man’s story points to hope against a deadly skin cancer
The Stem Cellar 