The present and future of regenerative medicine

One of the great pleasures of my job is getting to meet the high school students who take part in our SPARK or Summer Internship to Accelerate Regenerative Medicine Knowledge program. It's a summer internship for high school students where they get to spend a couple of months working in a world class stem cell … Continue reading The present and future of regenerative medicine

CIRM’s SPARK internship program provides California high school students with hands-on training in stem cell research

SPARK student intern Simran O. The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) is dedicated to building a diverse and highly-skilled workforce to support the growing regenerative medicine economy right here in California.  One of the ways we do this is through our SPARK educational internship program.  The SPARK awards—also known as the Summer Program to … Continue reading CIRM’s SPARK internship program provides California high school students with hands-on training in stem cell research

Celebrating academic success and overcoming obstacles

Congratulations to Yasmine Arafa (she/hers), a CIRM Bridges Student Intern at UC Davis Institute for Regenerative Cures! She recently graduated from California State University-Sacramento, officially concluding her Master’s degree and Fulbright Association journey. She conducted research with the aim of developing new therapeutic approaches for rare diseases. Yasmine says, "I have finally passed my thesis defense and am … Continue reading Celebrating academic success and overcoming obstacles

How CIRM’s Bridges internship program inspired this student to pursue a career in regenerative medicine 

Samira Alwahabi For more than a decade, the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) has funded educational and research training programs to give students the opportunity to explore stem cell science right here in California.   One such project—the Bridges to Stem Cell Research Program—helps train future generations of scientists by preparing undergraduate and master’s students … Continue reading How CIRM’s Bridges internship program inspired this student to pursue a career in regenerative medicine 

Stem cells explained in different languages

Science is hard. Explaining complex science to non-scientists is SUPER hard. But explaining science to non-native English speakers presents a whole new set of challenges.   I would know. I’m a first-generation immigrant whose highly-educated parents arrived in their new home—the United States—a tad too late to become fluent in its native tongue. I’ve also … Continue reading Stem cells explained in different languages

IBSC directors bring in nearly $12 million to fund the future of bimolecular research at UC Santa Cruz

THIS BLOG IS ALSO AVAILABLE AS AN AUDIO CAST Left to right: Lindsay Hinck and Camilla Forsberg UC Santa Cruz professors Camilla Forsberg and Lindsay Hinck are not only pushing boundaries in their field as the female-led program directors of the Institute for the Biology of Stem Cells (IBSC), they’ve also been looking for ways … Continue reading IBSC directors bring in nearly $12 million to fund the future of bimolecular research at UC Santa Cruz

It’s hard to be modest when people keep telling you how good you are

THIS BLOG IS ALSO AVAILABLE AS AN AUDIO CAST I have a confession. Deep down I’m shallow. So when something I am part of is acknowledged as one of the best, I delight in it (my fellow bloggers Katie and Esteban also delight in it, I am just more shameless about letting everyone know.) And … Continue reading It’s hard to be modest when people keep telling you how good you are

The bootcamp helping in the fight against rare diseases

THIS BLOG IS ALSO AVAILABLE AS AN AUDIO CAST Dr. Emil Kakkis at the Rare Entrepreneur Bootcamp Imagine you or someone you love is diagnosed with a rare disease and then told, “There is no cure, there are no treatments and because it’s so rare no one is even doing any research into developing a … Continue reading The bootcamp helping in the fight against rare diseases

Promoting stem cell therapies, racial justice, and fish breeding

THIS BLOG IS ALSO AVAILABLE AS AN AUDIO CAST Jan Nolta, PhD, in her lab at UC Davis; Photo courtesy UC Davis Working at CIRM, you get to meet many remarkable people, and Jan Nolta, PhD, certainly falls into that category. Jan is the Director of the Stem Cell Program at UC Davis School of Medicine. She … Continue reading Promoting stem cell therapies, racial justice, and fish breeding

It’s nice to be appreciated

THIS BLOG IS ALSO AVAILABLE AS AN AUDIO CAST Photo: courtesy City of Hope No one likes to be taken for granted, to feel that people only like you because you have scads of cash and they want some of it. That’s why it’s so lovely when you feel you are appreciated because of all … Continue reading It’s nice to be appreciated