Coronavirus In response to the crisis caused by the COVID-19 virus in California and around the world the governing Board of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) today held an emergency meeting to approve $5 million in rapid research funds targeting the virus. “These are clearly extraordinary times and they require an extraordinary response … Continue reading CIRM Board invests $5 million in emergency funding for coronavirus
CIRM News
Ask the Stem Cell Team About Autism
On March 19th we held a special Facebook Live "Ask the Stem Cell Team About Autism" event. We were fortunate enough to have two great experts - Dr. Alysson Muotri from UC San Diego, and CIRM's own Dr. Kelly Shepard. As always there is a lot of ground to cover in under one hour and … Continue reading Ask the Stem Cell Team About Autism
Can stem cells help people who have had a stroke? Ask the experts.
Stroke is the third leading cause of death and disability in the US. Every 45 seconds someone in the US has a stroke. Every year around 275,000 people die from a stroke many more survive but are often impaired by the brain attack. The impact is not just physical, but psychological and emotional. It takes … Continue reading Can stem cells help people who have had a stroke? Ask the experts.
Why “Ask the Stem Cell Team” Remains Important
These are definitely strange, unusual and challenging times. Every day seems to bring new restrictions on what we can and should do. All, of course, in the name of protecting us and helping us avoid a potentially deadly virus. We all hope this will soon pass but we also know the bigger impact of the … Continue reading Why “Ask the Stem Cell Team” Remains Important
You can bank on CIRM
Way back in 2013, the CIRM Board invested $32 million in a project to create an iPSC Bank. The goal was simple; to collect tissue samples from people who have different diseases, turn those samples into high quality stem cell lines - the kind known as induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) - and create a … Continue reading You can bank on CIRM
Ask the Stem Cell Team About Autism
Do an online search for “autism stem cells” and you quickly come up with numerous websites offering stem cell therapies for autism. They offer encouraging phrases like “new and effective approach” and “a real, lasting treatment.” They even include dense scientific videos featuring people like Dr. Arnold Caplan, a professor at Case Western Reserve University … Continue reading Ask the Stem Cell Team About Autism
Big time validation for early support
It’s not every day that a company and a concept that you helped support from the very beginning gets snapped up for $4.9 billion. But that’s what is happening with Forty Seven Inc. and their anti-cancer therapies. Gilead, another California company by the way, has announced it is buying Forty Seven Inc. for almost $5 … Continue reading Big time validation for early support
How quitting smoking helps your lungs regenerate; a discovery could lead to new ways to repair damaged lungs; and encouraging news in a stroke recovery trial
Photo courtesy Lindsay Fox Smoking is one of the leading causes of preventable death not just in the US, but worldwide. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tobacco causes an estimated seven million deaths around the world, every single year. And for every person who dies, another 30 live with a … Continue reading How quitting smoking helps your lungs regenerate; a discovery could lead to new ways to repair damaged lungs; and encouraging news in a stroke recovery trial
Enabling the Best Choice for Patients: The Need for Effective Patient Navigation
Making sure patients get the treatment they need and not a "snake oil" substitute We are at a turning point in regenerative medicine as the first wave of treatments have obtained FDA approval. But at the same time as we see the advance of scientifically rigorous research and regulated products we are also witnessing the … Continue reading Enabling the Best Choice for Patients: The Need for Effective Patient Navigation
‘A Tornado at the Front Door, a Tsunami at the Back Door’
CIRM funds a lot of research and all of it has life-saving potential. But every once in a while you come across a story about someone benefiting from CIRM-supported research that highlights why the work we do is so important. This story is about a brilliant researcher at UC San Diego developing a treatment for … Continue reading ‘A Tornado at the Front Door, a Tsunami at the Back Door’
The Stem Cellar 