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. Great review of brains in a dish. The veteran Associated Press science journalist Malcolm Ritter produced the most thorough overview I have seen of the … Continue reading Stem cell stories that caught our eye: mini-brains in a dish, blood stem cells and state funded stem cell research
Disease Areas
Could We Reverse Alzheimer’s Disease with Stem Cells?
What if you could give people whose memories have been stolen the ability to remember again? I’m talking about curing a population of more than 5 million Americans living with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) – not a small task. Unfortunately, this number is predicted to more than triple by 2050, and with it so will healthcare … Continue reading Could We Reverse Alzheimer’s Disease with Stem Cells?
Stem cell stories that caught our eye: cancer fighting virus, lab-grown guts work in dogs, stem cell trial to cure HIV
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. Cancer fighting virus approved for melanoma (Disclaimer: While this isn’t a story about stem cells, it’s pretty cool so I had to include it.) The … Continue reading Stem cell stories that caught our eye: cancer fighting virus, lab-grown guts work in dogs, stem cell trial to cure HIV
UCLA Scientists Find 3000 New Genes in “Junk DNA” of Immune Stem Cells
Genes and Junk Do you remember learning about Junk DNA when you took Biology in high school? The term was used to described 98% of the human genome that doesn’t make up its approximately 22,000 genes. We used to think that Junk DNA didn’t serve a purpose, but that was before we discovered special elements … Continue reading UCLA Scientists Find 3000 New Genes in “Junk DNA” of Immune Stem Cells
Stem cell stories that caught our eye: Fertility after chemo, blood shortages, modeling kidney disease and “good” stress
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. Fertility restoration after chemo—Maybe. A research paper presented at the American Society of Reproductive Medicine annual meeting in Baltimore this week got considerable attention on … Continue reading Stem cell stories that caught our eye: Fertility after chemo, blood shortages, modeling kidney disease and “good” stress
New Video: Spinal Cord Injury and a CIRM-Funded Stem Cell-Based Trial
Just 31 years old, Richard Lajara thought he was going to die. On September 9, 2011 he slipped on some rocks at a popular swimming hole and was swept down a waterfall headfirst into a shallow, rocky pool of water. Though he survived, the fall left him paralyzed from the waist down due to a … Continue reading New Video: Spinal Cord Injury and a CIRM-Funded Stem Cell-Based Trial
CIRM Scholar Helen Fong on Stem Cells and Brain Disease
Meet another one of our talented CIRM Scholars, Helen Fong. She is currently a Research Scientist at the Gladstone Institutes and did her graduate work at the University of California, Irvine. Her passions include stem cells, disease modeling, and playing with differentiation protocols – the processes that tell stem cells to mature into specific tissues. … Continue reading CIRM Scholar Helen Fong on Stem Cells and Brain Disease
Skipping a Step: Turning Brain Cells Directly into Neurons
It was once commonly believed that “what you see is what you get” with the human brain. As in, the brains cells that you are born with are the only ones you’ll have for the rest of your life because they can’t regenerate. The discovery of brain stem cells in the late 90s disproved this … Continue reading Skipping a Step: Turning Brain Cells Directly into Neurons
Stem cell stories that caught our eye: sleepy stem cells, pig organ donors, therapy in the womb and dementia
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. A rested stem cell is a better stem cell. A bone marrow stem cell donor who has a sleep deficit of as little as four … Continue reading Stem cell stories that caught our eye: sleepy stem cells, pig organ donors, therapy in the womb and dementia
Stem cells and prostate cancer are more similar than we thought
Prostate cancer is a scary word for men, no matter how macho or healthy they are. These days however, prostate cancer is no longer a death sentence for them. In fact, many men survive this disease if diagnosed early. However, for those unlucky ones who have more advanced stages of prostate cancer (where the tumor … Continue reading Stem cells and prostate cancer are more similar than we thought