Recap of the 2018 Alliance for Regenerative Medicine Cell and Gene Therapy State of the Industry

What happened in the Cell and Gene Therapy sector in 2017, and what should we be looking out for in 2018? Over 500 executives, investors, scientists and patient advocates gathered together yesterday to find out at the Alliance for Regenerative Medicine (ARM) State of the Industry Briefing in San Francisco, California. ARM Chairman, Robert Preti, … Continue reading Recap of the 2018 Alliance for Regenerative Medicine Cell and Gene Therapy State of the Industry

How CIRM funding creates additional financial support for stem cell research in California

CIRM’s 2017 Annual Report will be going live online very soon. In anticipation of that we are highlighting some of the key elements from the report here on the Stem Cellar. CIRM funds stem cell research.  We all know that.  What you may not know is that CIRM funds also help bring in additional funding … Continue reading How CIRM funding creates additional financial support for stem cell research in California

CIRM Board invests in three new stem cell clinical trials targeting arthritis, cancer and deadly infections

Every day at CIRM we get calls from people looking for a stem cell therapy to help them fight a life-threatening or life-altering disease or condition. One of the most common calls is about osteoarthritis, a painful condition where the cartilage that helps cushion our joints is worn away, leaving bone to rub on bone. … Continue reading CIRM Board invests in three new stem cell clinical trials targeting arthritis, cancer and deadly infections

ViaCyte treats first patients in PEC-Direct stem cell trial for type 1 diabetes

Today, ViaCyte shared an update on its latest clinical trial for type 1 diabetes (T1D). The company is based in San Diego and is developing two stem cell-based products that attempt to replace the pancreatic beta islet cells that are attacked by the immune system of patients with T1D. Their first product, called VC-01 or … Continue reading ViaCyte treats first patients in PEC-Direct stem cell trial for type 1 diabetes

Stem Cell Stories that Caught our Eye: CRISPRing Human Embryos, brain stem cells slow aging & BrainStorm ALS trial joins CIRM Alpha Clinics

Here are the stem cell stories that caught our eye this week. Enjoy! Scientists claim first CRISPR editing of human embryos in the US. Here’s the big story this week. Scientists from Portland, Oregon claim they genetically modified human embryos using the CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing technology. While their results have yet to be published in … Continue reading Stem Cell Stories that Caught our Eye: CRISPRing Human Embryos, brain stem cells slow aging & BrainStorm ALS trial joins CIRM Alpha Clinics

‘Pay-to-Participate’ stem cell clinical studies, the ugly stepchild of ClinicalTrials.gov

When patients are looking for clinical trials testing new drugs or treatments for their disease, one of the main websites they visit is ClinicalTrials.gov. It’s a registry provided by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) of approximately 250,000 clinical trials spanning over 200 countries around the world. If you visit the website, you’ll find CIRM’s … Continue reading ‘Pay-to-Participate’ stem cell clinical studies, the ugly stepchild of ClinicalTrials.gov

Humacyte Receives Prestigious Technology Pioneer Award for Kidney Failure Treatment

This month, a CIRM-funded company called Humacyte was named one of the World Economic Forum’s 30 Technology Pioneers for 2017. This prestigious award “recognizes early-stage companies from around the world that are involved in the design, development and deployment of new technologies and innovations, and are poised to have a significant impact on business and … Continue reading Humacyte Receives Prestigious Technology Pioneer Award for Kidney Failure Treatment

A call to put the ‘public’ back in publication, and make stem cell research findings available to everyone

Thomas Gray probably wasn’t thinking about stem cell research when, in 1750 in his poem “Elegy in a Country Churchyard”, he wrote: “Full many a flower is born to blush unseen”. But a new study says that’s precisely what seems to happen to the findings of many stem cell clinical trials. They take place, but … Continue reading A call to put the ‘public’ back in publication, and make stem cell research findings available to everyone

Capricor reports positive results on CIRM-funded stem cell trial for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

Capricor Therapeutics, a Los Angeles-based company, published an update about its CIRM-funded clinical trial for patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), a devastating degenerative muscle disease that significantly reduces life expectancy. The company reported positive results from their Phase I/II HOPE trial that’s testing the safety of their cardiosphere stem cell-based therapy called CAP-1002. The trial had … Continue reading Capricor reports positive results on CIRM-funded stem cell trial for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

Good news from Asterias’ CIRM-funded spinal cord injury trial

This week in the stem cell field, all eyes are on Asterias Biotherapeutics, a California-based company that’s testing a stem cell based-therapy in a CIRM-funded clinical trial for spinal cord injury patients. The company launched its Phase 1/2a clinical trial back in 2014 with the goal of determining the safety of the therapy and the … Continue reading Good news from Asterias’ CIRM-funded spinal cord injury trial