Bioengineers Build 3D Model of Human Heart Ventricle

  After more than a decade, scientists at Harvard University finally made a breakthrough in their efforts to create a heart. According to a study published in Nature Biomedical Engineering, the researchers successfully bioengineered a three-dimensional model of a human left heart ventricle. This important development brings them one step closer to their goal, creating a … Continue reading Bioengineers Build 3D Model of Human Heart Ventricle

Bridges Conference 2018 : A Recap

    There’s no denying the fact that many people believe we’re on the cusp of a radical shift in the world of medicine and biotechnology. Over the past few years alone there’s been growing awareness about stem cells and their potential to provide cures for rare diseases. The results of early-stage research and preliminary clinical … Continue reading Bridges Conference 2018 : A Recap

Stem cell therapy offers a glimpse of hope for a student battling a deadly cancer

“About a week later they gave me a call and mentioned the word ‘cancer’ to me. For a long time, I was depressed and then, I guess you accept it and try to make the most out of the time you have now.’ That is not something you expect to hear from a 24 year … Continue reading Stem cell therapy offers a glimpse of hope for a student battling a deadly cancer

Research Targeting Prostate Cancer Gets Almost $4 Million Support from CIRM

A program hoping to supercharge a patient’s own immune system cells to attack and kill a treatment resistant form of prostate cancer was today awarded $3.99 million by the governing Board of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) In the U.S., prostate cancer is the second most common cause of cancer deaths in men.  … Continue reading Research Targeting Prostate Cancer Gets Almost $4 Million Support from CIRM

Join us for our next installment of “Ask The Experts” on July 31st.

Join us for our second installment of “Ask the Expert” at 12pm, PST on July 31st! This live interactive event will feature a conversation between Drs. Clive Svendsen, Robert Baloh from Cedars-Sinai, Dr. Ralph Kern, the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Medical Officer of Brainstorm Therapeutics, and CIRM Senior Science Officer Dr. Lila Collins. In … Continue reading Join us for our next installment of “Ask The Experts” on July 31st.

Stem cell treatment for spinal cord injury offers improved chance of independent life for patients

A spinal cord injury is devastating, changing a person’s life in a heartbeat. In the past there was little that doctors could do other than offer pain relief and physical therapy to try and regain as much muscle function as possible. That’s why the latest results from the CIRM-supported Asterias Biotherapeutics spinal cord injury trial … Continue reading Stem cell treatment for spinal cord injury offers improved chance of independent life for patients

CRISPR Gene Editing Tool Linked to Unexpected Collateral DNA Damage

  CRISPR–Cas9 has been widely hailed as the gene editing tool of the future. But research, published in the journal Nature Biotechnology,  about the effects of CRISPR/Cas9, have found it can cause unexpected genetic damage which could lead to dangerous changes in some cells. Scientists have also learned there may be some safety implications for … Continue reading CRISPR Gene Editing Tool Linked to Unexpected Collateral DNA Damage

Headline: Stem Cell Roundup: Here are some stem cell stories that caught our eye this past week.

In search of a miracle One of the toughest parts of my job is getting daily calls and emails from people desperate for a stem cell treatment or cure for themselves or a loved one and having to tell them that I don’t know of any. You can hear in their voice, read it in … Continue reading Headline: Stem Cell Roundup: Here are some stem cell stories that caught our eye this past week.

Starving stem cells of oxygen can help build stronger bones

We usually think that starving something of oxygen is going to make it weaker and maybe even kill it. But a new study by J. Kent Leach at UC Davis shows that instead of weakening bone defects, depriving them of oxygen might help boost their ability to create new bone or repair existing bone. Leach … Continue reading Starving stem cells of oxygen can help build stronger bones

For the first time, scientists entirely reprogram human skin cells to iPSCs using CRISPR

Back in 2012, Shinya Yamanaka was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his group’s identification of “Yamanaka Factors,” a group of genes that are capable of turning ordinary skin cells into induced pluripotentent stem cells (iPSCs) which have the ability to become any type of cell within the body. Discovery of iPSCs … Continue reading For the first time, scientists entirely reprogram human skin cells to iPSCs using CRISPR