THIS BLOG IS ALSO AVAILABLE AS AN AUDIO CAST It’s hard to think of something as being rare when it affects up to 30 million Americans and 300 million people worldwide. But the truth is there are more than 6,000 conditions – those affecting 200,000 people or fewer – that are considered rare. Today, … Continue reading Joining the movement to fight rare diseases
Sickle cell disease
CIRM-funded stem cell clinical trial patients: Where are they now?
Ronnie with his parents Pawash Priyank and Upasana Thakur. Since its launch in 2004, the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) has been a leader in growing the stem cell and regenerative medicine field while keeping the needs of patients at the core of its mission. To date, CIRM has: Advanced stem cell research and therapy development for … Continue reading CIRM-funded stem cell clinical trial patients: Where are they now?
Mother and daughter team up to fight bias and discrimination in treatment for people with sickle cell disease
LISTEN TO AN AUDIO VERSION OF THIS BLOG Adrienne Shapiro and Marissa Cors are a remarkable pair by any definition. The mother and daughter duo share a common bond, and a common goal. And they are determined not to let anyone stop them achieving that goal. Marissa was born with sickle cell disease (SCD) a … Continue reading Mother and daughter team up to fight bias and discrimination in treatment for people with sickle cell disease
Board Funds Fifteen Bridges to Stem Cell Research and Therapy Programs Across California and New Sickle Cell Disease Trial
Yesterday the governing Board of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) awarded $8.39 million to the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) to fund a clinical trial for sickle cell disease (SCD). An additional $51.08 million was awarded to fifteen community colleges and universities across California to fund undergraduate and master’s level programs that … Continue reading Board Funds Fifteen Bridges to Stem Cell Research and Therapy Programs Across California and New Sickle Cell Disease Trial
An Open Letter to CIRM for World Sickle Cell Day
Nancy M. Rene Dear CIRM, World Sickle Cell Day is this Saturday June 19th. The goal of this day is to increase knowledge of the disease and understanding of the challenges faced. It is a day that I greet with very mixed feelings. I’m of course extremely grateful to CIRM for the time and money … Continue reading An Open Letter to CIRM for World Sickle Cell Day
CIRM-catalyzed spinout files for IPO to develop therapies for genetic diseases
Graphite Bio, a CIRM-catalyzed spinout from Stanford University that launched just 14 months ago has now filed the official SEC paperwork for an initial public offering (IPO). The company was formed by CIRM-funded researchers Matt Porteus, M.D., Ph.D. and Maria Grazia Roncarolo, M.D. Six years ago, Dr. Porteus and Dr. Roncarolo, in conjunction with Stanford … Continue reading CIRM-catalyzed spinout files for IPO to develop therapies for genetic diseases
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
Three UC’s Join Forces to Launch CRISPR Clinical Trial Targeting Sickle Cell Disease
Sickle shaped red blood cells The University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), in collaboration with UC Berkeley (UCB) and UC Los Angeles (UCLA), have been given permission by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to launch a first-in-human clinical trial using CRISPR technology as a gene-editing technique to cure Sickle Cell Disease. This research … Continue reading Three UC’s Join Forces to Launch CRISPR Clinical Trial Targeting Sickle Cell Disease
A word from our Chair, several in fact
In 2005, the New Oxford American Dictionary named “podcast" its word of the year. At the time a podcast was something many had heard of but not that many actually tuned in to. My how times have changed. Now there are some two million podcasts to chose from, at least according to the New York … Continue reading A word from our Chair, several in fact
Charting a course for the future
A new home for stem cell research? Have you ever been at a party where someone says “hey, I’ve got a good idea” and then before you know it everyone in the room is adding to it with ideas and suggestions of their own and suddenly you find yourself with 27 pages of notes, all … Continue reading Charting a course for the future
The Stem Cellar 