Alan AldaWho knew that movie star, actor and writer Alan Alda and I had so much in common! Well, one thing in common at least – an appreciation of the importance of scientists also being good communicators.Alda is best known for his role as Hawkeye Pierce in the TV series “M*A*S*H” but he’s also a … Continue reading Actor, writer and science-buff Alan Alda’s call to action for scientists

skin cells labeled with fluorescence dyesIt’s one thing to get a stem cell to turn into something that closely resembles another kind of cell, say a heart cell. But it’s another thing altogether to get it to change into a cell that not only resembles another cell, but acts exactly like it too. That’s what … Continue reading Turning skin into mature liver cells. And they work!

Here are some stem cell stories that caught our eye this past week. Some are groundbreaking science, others are of personal interest to us, and still others are just fun. TED video on engineering new bone. Two young Columbia University bioengineers use this TED video to remind us how barbaric our current system of obtaining … Continue reading Stem cell stories that caught our eye: tissue engineering bone, cartilage for arthritis and partisanship in science

It’s always fascinating watching the arc of a news story. I woke up on January 29th to news, as the BBC World Service put it, “of a big breakthrough in stem cell research.” The reporter then went on to explain how scientists had created a whole new type of pluripotent stem cell – the kind … Continue reading It’s a big breakthrough. Wait, maybe, maybe not. Taking a second look at STAP

  iPS heart cells beating in a dish: Courtesy Wired magazine Each new breakthrough in stem cell science is cause for celebration. But pretty quickly after the champagne corks have flown researchers start asking follow-up questions such as “how can we do this faster, more efficiently, more effectively?”For some years now researchers have been able … Continue reading Be still my beating ventricle – Researchers come up with a better way to make heart cells

This tale of two-year-old mice could make you feel young again. Two years in a mouse is equivalent to 80 human years and a CIRM-funded Stanford team has found that in those little old guys two thirds of their muscle stem cells are dysfunctional, which means they don’t heal well after a muscle injury. No … Continue reading Researchers rejuvenate old muscle stem cells so they behave like young ones, repair muscle better

Explaining complex biological processes to the general public is a very important, yet tricky challenge. With all the specialized language and acronyms that scientists use, it’s really difficult for the non-scientist to visualize the microscopic life of cells. That’s where video animation comes to the rescue. As Ben Paylor, a Ph.D. candidate at the University … Continue reading One-minute stem cell videos receive National Science Foundation award

Here are some stem cell stories that caught our eye this past week. Some are groundbreaking science, others are of personal interest to us, and still others are just fun. Pre-leukemia stem cell found. A collaboration including CIRM funded researchers at Stanford and the Canadian Cancer Stem Cell Consortium looked closely at the genetics of … Continue reading Stem cell stories that caught our eye: leukemia, blood platelets, fetal stem cells staying with mom

Broken hearts have inspired poets and writers and composers for as long as there has been literature and music. It's a timeless subject with endless variations. But broken hearts have also inspired scientists and some of the stem cell researchers we are funding are working hard to find ways to repair the physical damage caused … Continue reading Hope for broken hearts this Valentine’s Day – a clinical trial to repair the damage

Helping keep our cells on trackOne of the mysteries of stem cells that scientists continue to probe is how and why a stem cell becomes a more specialized form of cell. Understanding that process is key to being able to control those changes, and to being able to create the kinds of cells needed to … Continue reading How a single protein helps keep our cells on track and figure out what they want to be