What exactly goes on inside the human body? If you asked this question to the children’s book character Ms. Frizzle, she would throw you into her Magic School Bus and take you on a wild ride “Inside the Human Body” to get you up close and personal with the different organs and structures within our … Continue reading Watch Spinal Cord Cells Take a Hike!
Basic Research
What’s Fat Got to do With Alzheimer’s?
Diets these days are a dime a dozen, and dietary trends come and go. First eggs were “out” because they contain cholesterol, but now they are back “in” because we now know that some types of cholesterol can be actually good for the body. Then there was the era of “fat-free” or “reduced-fat” foods. This … Continue reading What’s Fat Got to do With Alzheimer’s?
Bye Bye BORIS: Gene Silencing Gives Cancer Stem Cells the Boot
A popular theory behind why cancer tumors recur post treatment is the existence of cancer stem cells (CSCs). These cells have stem cell-like qualities and are stubbornly resistant to common cancer cell killing techniques such as radiation and chemotherapy. CSCs are resilient and can reproduce themselves after all other cancer cells die off, creating new … Continue reading Bye Bye BORIS: Gene Silencing Gives Cancer Stem Cells the Boot
Throwback Thursday: Progress to a Cure for ALS
Welcome to our new “Throwback Thursday” (TBT) series. CIRM’s Stem Cellar blog has a rich archive of stem cell content that is too valuable to let dust bunnies take over. So we decided to brush off some of our older, juicy stories and see what advancements in stem cell research science have been made since! … Continue reading Throwback Thursday: Progress to a Cure for ALS
New Regenerative Liver Cells Identified
It’s common knowledge that your liver is a champion when it comes to regeneration. It’s actually one of the few internal organs in the human body that can robustly regenerate itself after injury. Other organs such as the heart and lungs do not have the same regenerative response and instead generate scar tissue to protect … Continue reading New Regenerative Liver Cells Identified
Specialized Embryonic Stem Cells Yield Insights into X Chromosome Inactivation
Please don’t be intimidated by the title of this post! By the end of this blog, you’ll be well versed in X chromosome inactivation, and you’ll understand why you should care about this topic. Males and females are different in countless ways, but the underlying cause of these differences originates with chromosomes. Women have two … Continue reading Specialized Embryonic Stem Cells Yield Insights into X Chromosome Inactivation
Creativity sparks a bright future for science
When some people want to see the future they use a crystal ball. Others use tarot cards or runes. But when anyone at CIRM wants to see the future all we have to do is look into the faces of the students in our Creativity program. Over the past three years the Creativity program has … Continue reading Creativity sparks a bright future for science
Earliest stem cells made in lab; provide “extraordinary” potential
Embryonic stem cells are classified as pluripotent cells because they are able (“potent”) to mature into almost every (“pluri”) cell type. Thanks to Nobel Prize winner Shinya Yamanaka, researchers have been able to reprogram fully matured cells, like skin or blood, into embryonic stem cell-like induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS). The technique has revolutionized stem … Continue reading Earliest stem cells made in lab; provide “extraordinary” potential
Bridging the gap: training scientists to speak everyday English
Getting a start in your chosen career is never easy. Without experience it’s hard to get a job. And without a job you can’t get experience. That’s why the CIRM Bridges program was created, to help give undergraduate and Master’s level students a chance to get the experience they need to start a career in … Continue reading Bridging the gap: training scientists to speak everyday English
Even the early worm gets old: study unlocks a key to aging
A new study poses the question, ‘When does aging really begin?’ One glance in the mirror every morning is enough for me to know that regardless of where it begins I know where it’s going. And it’s not pretty. But enough about me. Getting back to the question about aging, two researchers at Northwestern University … Continue reading Even the early worm gets old: study unlocks a key to aging
The Stem Cellar 