Man getting fitted with hearing aids Hearing loss is something that affect tens of millions of Americans. Usually people notice those changes as they get older but the damage can be done years before that through the use of some prescription drugs or exposure to loud noise (I knew I shouldn’t have sat in the … Continue reading How regrowing tiny hairs could restore hearing loss
Basic Research
A rare chance to help those in need
Recently the CIRM Board voted to support the creation of a Rare Disease Advisory Council (RDAC) in California. An RDAC is an advisory body providing a platform for the rare community to have a stronger voice in state government. They address the needs of rare patients and families by giving stakeholders an opportunity to make … Continue reading A rare chance to help those in need
Building a new mouse, one stem cell at a time
Science is full of acronyms. There are days where it feels like you need a decoder ring just to understand a simple sentence. A recent study found that between 1950 and 2019 researchers used more than 1.1 million unique acronyms in scientific papers. There’s even an acronym for three letter acronyms. It’s TLAs. Which of … Continue reading Building a new mouse, one stem cell at a time
A new way to evade immune rejection in transplanting cells
Immune fluorescence of HIP cardiomyocytes in a dish; Photo courtesy of UCSF Transplanting cells or an entire organ from one person to another can be lifesaving but it comes with a cost. To avoid the recipient’s body rejecting the cells or organ the patient has to be given powerful immunosuppressive medications. Those medications weaken the … Continue reading A new way to evade immune rejection in transplanting cells
We’ve got cash, here’s how you can get some
When the voters of California approved Proposition 14 last November (thanks folks) they gave us $5.5 billion to continue the work we started way back in 2014. It’s a great honor, and a great responsibility. It’s also a great opportunity to look at what we do and how we do it and try to come … Continue reading We’ve got cash, here’s how you can get some
Heads or tails? Stem cells help guide the decision
Two cell embryo There are many unknown elements for what triggers the cells in an embryo to start dividing and multiplying and becoming every single cell in the body. Now researchers at the Gladstone Institutes in San Francisco have uncovered one of those elements, how embryos determine which cells become the head and which the … Continue reading Heads or tails? Stem cells help guide the decision
Physicians and patient advocates on the front lines of the fight for a more equitable health system
Over the last year there has been increasing awareness of the inequalities in the American healthcare system. At every level there is evidence of bias, discrimination and unequal access to the best care. Sometimes unequal access to any care. That is, hopefully, changing but only if the new awareness is matched with action. At the … Continue reading Physicians and patient advocates on the front lines of the fight for a more equitable health system
Paving the Way
When someone scores a goal in soccer all the attention is lavished on them. Fans chant their name, their teammates pile on top in celebration, their agent starts calling sponsors asking for more money. But there’s often someone else deserving of praise too, that’s the player who provided the assist to make the goal possible … Continue reading Paving the Way
How stem cells play “follow the leader”
Todd McDevitt, PhD Photo courtesy: Gladstone Institutes It’s hard enough trying to follow the movements of individuals in a crowd of people, but imagine how much harder it is to follow the movements of stem cells crowded into a tiny petri dish. Well, researchers at the Gladstone Institutes in San Francisco have done just that. … Continue reading How stem cells play “follow the leader”
Hitting our goals: Making good progress
Way, way back in 2015 – seems like a lifetime ago doesn’t it – the team at CIRM sat down and planned out our Big 6 goals for the next five years. The end result was a Strategic Plan that was bold, ambitious and set us on course to do great things or kill ourselves … Continue reading Hitting our goals: Making good progress
The Stem Cellar 