Tomorrow, February 28th, is Rare Disease Day. It’s a day to remind ourselves of the millions of people, and their families, struggling with these diseases. These conditions are also called orphan diseases because, in many cases, drug companies were not interested in adopting them to develop treatments. Here at the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), we … Continue reading Join the movement to fight rare diseases
National Institutes of Health
Reasons to be thankful this Thanksgiving: creative nerds
We at the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine have a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. We get to work with some extraordinary colleagues, we get to know some remarkable patient advocates who are pioneers in volunteering for stem cell and gene therapies, and we have a front row seat in a movement that … Continue reading Reasons to be thankful this Thanksgiving: creative nerds
From our house to the White House. Kinda
Jackie Ward, PhD. Photo courtesy National Institute of Neurological Diseases and Stroke It's always fun to meet someone early in their career and see how they grow and evolve and take on new challenges. I first met Jackie Ward when she received a training grant from CIRM while she studied for her PhD at the … Continue reading From our house to the White House. Kinda
Creating a ‘bespoke’ approach to rare diseases
THIS BLOG IS ALSO AVAILABLE AS AN AUDIO CAST Up until recently the word “bespoke” meant just one thing to me, a hand-made suit, customized and fitted to you. There’s a street in London, Saville Row, that specializes in these suits. They’re gorgeous. They’re also very expensive and so I thought I’d never have a … Continue reading Creating a ‘bespoke’ approach to rare diseases
CIRM Board gives thumbs up to training and treatment programs
THIS BLOG IS ALSO AVAILABLE AS AN AUDIO CAST CIRM Bridges student discusses her poster presentation At CIRM, the bread and butter of what we do is funding research and hopefully advancing therapies to patients. But the jam, that's our education programs. Helping train the next generation of stem cell and gene therapy scientists is … Continue reading CIRM Board gives thumbs up to training and treatment programs
Wit, wisdom, and a glimpse into the future
THIS BLOG IS ALSO AVAILABLE AS AN AUDIO CAST As of this moment, there are over two million podcasts and over 48 million episodes to listen to on your favorite listening device. If you’re a true crime enthusiast like me, you’ve surely heard of Casefile or one of the other 94 podcasts on the topic. … Continue reading Wit, wisdom, and a glimpse into the future
Building a better brain (model) in the lab
Leica Picture of a brain organoid: courtesy National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, NIH One of the biggest problems with trying to understand what is happening in a disease that affects the brain is that it’s really difficult to see what is going on inside someone’s head. People tend to object to you trying … Continue reading Building a better brain (model) in the lab
A conversation with Bob Klein about the past, present, and future of CIRM
Bob Klein Anyone who knows anything about CIRM knows about Bob Klein. He's the main author and driving force behind both Proposition 71 and Proposition 14, the voter-approved ballot initiatives that first created and then refunded CIRM. It's safe to say that without Bob, there'd be no CIRM. Recently, we had the great good fortune … Continue reading A conversation with Bob Klein about the past, present, and future of CIRM
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
Welcoming back old friends and some new ones
When Proposition 14 was approved by voters in November we were given a chance to carry on the work we have been doing for more than 16 years. What we hadn't anticipated was that we would also get a chance to do that with some of the team that helped us make CIRM what it … Continue reading Welcoming back old friends and some new ones
The Stem Cellar 