Some medical therapies have been around for so long that we naturally assume we understand how they work. That’s not always the case. Take aspirin for example. It’s been used for more than 4,000 years to treat pain and inflammation but it was only in the 1970’s that we really learned how it works. The … Continue reading Surprise findings about bone marrow transplants could lead to more effective stem cell therapies
Stem cells
Stem Cell Tools: Helping Scientists Understand Complex Diseases
Yesterday, we discussed a useful stem cell tool called the CIRM iPSC Repository, which will contain over 3000 human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) lines - from patients and healthy individuals - that contain a wealth of information about human diseases. Now that scientists have access to these lines, they need the proper tools to … Continue reading Stem Cell Tools: Helping Scientists Understand Complex Diseases
Stem Cell Stories that Caught Our Eye: New law to protect consumers; using skin to monitor blood sugar; and a win for the good guys
New law targets stem cell clinics that offer therapies not approved by the FDA For some time now CIRM and others around California have been warning consumers about the risks involved in going to clinics that offer stem cell therapies that have not been tested in a clinical trial or approved by the U.S. Food … Continue reading Stem Cell Stories that Caught Our Eye: New law to protect consumers; using skin to monitor blood sugar; and a win for the good guys
CIRM Bridges Student Researcher Discovers Mentoring is a Two-Way Street
Jasmine Carter is a CIRM Bridges Scholar a Sacramento State University. She currently is interning in the lab of Dr. Kyle Fink at UC Davis and her research focuses on developing induced neurons from skin cells to model neurological disorders and develop novel therapeutics. Jasmine was a mentor to one of our UC Davis CIRM … Continue reading CIRM Bridges Student Researcher Discovers Mentoring is a Two-Way Street
UCLA scientists begin a journey to restore the sense of touch in paralyzed patients
Yesterday, CIRM-funded scientists at UCLA published an interesting study that sheds light on the development of sensory neurons, a type of nerve cell that is damaged in patients with spinal cord injury. Their early-stage findings could potentially, down the road, lead to the development of stem cell-based treatments that rebuild the sensory nervous system in … Continue reading UCLA scientists begin a journey to restore the sense of touch in paralyzed patients
Protein that turns normal cells into cancer stem cells offers target to fight colon cancer
Colon cancer is a global killer. Each year more than one million people worldwide are diagnosed with it; more than half a million die from it. If diagnosed early enough the standard treatment involves surgery, chemotherapy, radiation or targeted drug therapy to destroy the tumors. In many cases this may work. But in some cases, … Continue reading Protein that turns normal cells into cancer stem cells offers target to fight colon cancer
Treatments, cures and clinical trials: an in-person update on CIRM’s progress
Patients and Patient Advocates are at the heart of everything we do at CIRM. That’s why we are holding three free public events in the next few months focused on updating you on the stem cell research we are funding, and our plans for the future. Right now we have 33 projects that we have … Continue reading Treatments, cures and clinical trials: an in-person update on CIRM’s progress
Targeting hair follicle stem cells could be the key to fighting hair loss
Chia Pets make growing hair look easy. You might not be familiar with these chia plant terracotta figurines if you were born after the 80s, but I remember watching commercials growing up and desperately wanting a “Chia Pet, the pottery that grows!” My parents eventually caved and got me a Chia teddy bear, and I … Continue reading Targeting hair follicle stem cells could be the key to fighting hair loss
Unfolding Collaboration: New EuroStemCell video about promoting public engagement around stem cells
What does origami have to do with stem cells? Scientists at EuroStemCell, which is a partnership of more than 400 stem cell labs across Europe, are using origami and other creative activities to engage and educate the public about stem cells. EuroStemCell’s goal is to “make sense of stem cells” by providing “expert-reviewed information and … Continue reading Unfolding Collaboration: New EuroStemCell video about promoting public engagement around stem cells
Stem Cell Roundup: Battle of the Biotech Bands, “Cells I See” Art Contest and Teaching Baseball Fans the Power of Stem Cells
This Friday’s stem cell roundup is dedicated to the playful side of stem cell science. Scientists are often stereotyped as lab recluses who honorably forgo social lives in the quest to make game-changing discoveries and advance cutting-edge research. But as a former bench scientist, I can attest that scientists are normal people too. They might … Continue reading Stem Cell Roundup: Battle of the Biotech Bands, “Cells I See” Art Contest and Teaching Baseball Fans the Power of Stem Cells
The Stem Cellar 