When baseball players are trying to improve their hitting they’ll use a pitching machine to help them fine tune their stroke. Having a device that delivers a ball at a consistent speed can help a batter be more consistent and effective in their swing, and hopefully get more hits. That’s what we are hoping our … Continue reading Creating a “Pitching Machine” to speed up our delivery of stem cell treatments to patients
California Institute for Regenerative Medicine
Trash talking and creating a stem cell community
Imilce Rodriguez-Fernandez likes to talk trash. No, really, she does. In her case it’s cellular trash, the kind that builds up in our cells and has to be removed to ensure the cells don’t become sick. Imilce was one of several stem cell researchers who took part in a couple of public events over the … Continue reading Trash talking and creating a stem cell community
Celebrating Stem Cell Awareness Day with SUPER CELLS!
To all you stem cell lovers out there, today is your day! The second Wednesday of October is Stem Cell Awareness Day (SCAD), which brings together organizations and individuals that are working to ensure the general public realizes the benefits of stem cell research. For patients in desperate need of treatments for diseases without cures, … Continue reading Celebrating Stem Cell Awareness Day with SUPER CELLS!
Bioengineered veins give hope to kidney disease patients on dialysis
As blood travels around your body, it helps your body get around. Blood is essential for delivering oxygen and nutrients to all the cells in your body and for removing waste products made by these cells. Your body contains approximately 1.5 gallons of blood, which translates to around 7% of your body weight. In order … Continue reading Bioengineered veins give hope to kidney disease patients on dialysis
Ready, Set, Go: CIRM funded clinical trial for heart disease finishes patient enrollment
Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States with over 600,000 deaths occurring per year. Patients with heart disease or heart failure are given treatments that attempt to prevent their condition from getting worse or improve some of their symptoms. However, no treatment exists that can completely restore their heart function … Continue reading Ready, Set, Go: CIRM funded clinical trial for heart disease finishes patient enrollment
Stem cell stories that caught our eye: healing diabetic ulcers, new spinal cord injury insights & an expanding CRISPR toolbox
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. Stem cells heal diabetic foot ulcers in pilot study Foot ulcers are one of the many long-term complications that diabetics face. About 15 percent of … Continue reading Stem cell stories that caught our eye: healing diabetic ulcers, new spinal cord injury insights & an expanding CRISPR toolbox
Full Steam Ahead: First Patient is Dosed in Expanded CIRM Spinal Cord Injury Trial
Today we bring you more good news about a CIRM-funded clinical trial for spinal cord injury that’s received a lot of attention lately in the news. Asterias Biotherapeutics has treated its first patient in an expanded patient population of spinal cord injury patients who suffer from cervical, or neck, injuries. In late August, Asterias reported … Continue reading Full Steam Ahead: First Patient is Dosed in Expanded CIRM Spinal Cord Injury Trial
Funding stem cell research targeting a rare and life-threatening disease in children
If you have never heard of cystinosis you should consider yourself fortunate. It’s a rare condition caused by an inherited genetic mutation. It hits early and it hits hard. Children with cystinosis are usually diagnosed before age 2 and are in end-stage kidney failure by the time they are 9. If that’s not bad enough … Continue reading Funding stem cell research targeting a rare and life-threatening disease in children
Science and Improv: Spotlight on CIRM Bridges Scholar Jill Tsai
As part of our CIRM scholar series, we’re featuring the research and career accomplishments of CIRM funded students. What do science and improv have in common? The answer is not a whole lot. However, I recently met a talented student from our CIRM Bridges master’s program who one day is going to change this. Meet … Continue reading Science and Improv: Spotlight on CIRM Bridges Scholar Jill Tsai
Asterias’ stem cell clinical trial shows encouraging results for spinal cord injury patients
When researchers are carrying out a clinical trial they have two goals: first, show that it is safe (the old “do no harm” maxim) and second, show it works. One without the other doesn’t do anyone any good in the long run. A few weeks ago Asterias Biotherapeutics showed that their CIRM-funded stem cell therapy … Continue reading Asterias’ stem cell clinical trial shows encouraging results for spinal cord injury patients
The Stem Cellar 