Parkinson’s disease and glioblastoma are very different diseases of the brain but neither has very good treatment options and both clearly represent an unmet medical need. With that in mind, the governing Board of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), the state’s stem cell agency, yesterday voted to invest almost $9.5 million in developing … Continue reading CIRM Board invests in new approaches to brain cancer and Parkinson’s disease
Month: June 2018
Overcoming one of the biggest challenges in stem cell research
Imagine you have just designed and built a new car. Everyone loves it. It’s sleek, fast, elegant, has plenty of cup holders. People want to buy it. The only problem is you haven’t built an assembly line to make enough of them to meet demand. Frustrating eh. Overcoming problems in manufacturing is not an issue … Continue reading Overcoming one of the biggest challenges in stem cell research
Using laughter to help find a treatment for Alzheimer’s
In 1983, when President Ronald Reagan designated an annual National Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness Month fewer than two million Americans had Alzheimer’s. Today, that number is close to 5.5 million and estimates suggest it will rise to 16 million by 2050. There are no treatments. No cure. But around the globe people are working hard to … Continue reading Using laughter to help find a treatment for Alzheimer’s
Newest member of CIRM Board is a guitar-playing, German Shepherd dog loving, molecular geneticist
The newest member of the CIRM Board is a researcher who wasn't always sure she would have a career as a scientist. Suzanne Sandmeyer, PhD, says at the start of her career she had a lot of doubts. “During my postdoc, I was developing the impression I would struggle to survive in my career as … Continue reading Newest member of CIRM Board is a guitar-playing, German Shepherd dog loving, molecular geneticist
Stem cell roundup: summer scientists, fat-blocking cells & recent human evolution
Stem cell photo of the week: high schooler becoming a stem cell pro this summer This summer’s CIRM SPARK Programs, stem cell research internships for high school students, are in full swing. Along with research assignments in top-notch stem cell labs, we’ve asked the students to chronicle their internship experiences through Instagram. And today’s stem … Continue reading Stem cell roundup: summer scientists, fat-blocking cells & recent human evolution
“Junk” DNA is development gold for the dividing embryo
The DNA in our cells provide the instructions to make proteins, the workhorses of our body. Yet less than 2% of the 3 billion base pairs (the structural units of DNA) in each of our cells are actually involved in protein production. The rest, termed non-coding DNA for not being involved in protein production, has … Continue reading “Junk” DNA is development gold for the dividing embryo
The story behind the book about the Stem Cell Agency
WHY I WROTE “CALIFORNIA CURES” By Don C. Reed It was Wednesday, June 13th, 2018, the launch day for my new book, “CALIFORNIA CURES: How the California Stem Cell Research Program is Fighting Your Incurable Disease!” As I stood in front of the audience of scientists, CIRM staff members, patient advocates, I thought to myself, … Continue reading The story behind the book about the Stem Cell Agency
World Sickle Cell Day: Managing the disease today for tomorrow’s stem cell cures
Today is World Sickle Cell Day, a day to promote awareness about sickle cell disease (SCD), an inherited, chronic blood disorder which can cause severe pain, stroke, organ failure, and other complications, including death. Sadly, it’s estimated that this year 300,000 babies around the world will be born with SCD. To recognize World Sickle Cell … Continue reading World Sickle Cell Day: Managing the disease today for tomorrow’s stem cell cures
SCID kid scores big on TV
One of the stories I never tire of telling is about Evie Vaccaro. She’s the little girl who was born with a fatal immune condition called severe combined immunodeficiency or SCID. Children with this condition have no immune system, no protection against infections, and often die in the first two years of life. But thanks … Continue reading SCID kid scores big on TV
Fish umbrellas and human bone: protecting blood stem cells from the sun’s UV rays
Most people probably do not question the fact that human blood stem cells – those that give rise to all the cells in our blood – live inside the marrow of our bones, called a stem cell “niche”. But it is pretty odd when you stop to think about it. I mean, it makes sense … Continue reading Fish umbrellas and human bone: protecting blood stem cells from the sun’s UV rays
The Stem Cellar 