Back during my research scientist days, using HeLa cells for my experiments was as commonplace as a carpenter reaching for his hammer at a construction site. What makes these cells so handy is their robustness: they are easy to maintain in the lab where they divide indefinitely in petri dishes. Henrietta Lacks and the Story … Continue reading The Mother of Modern Medicine: Henrietta Lacks’ Portrait Unveiled at National Portrait Gallery
New findings about muscle stem cells reveals the potential for growing replacement organs
Chrissa Kioussi’s group at Oregon State University has made exciting advances in further unraveling the scientific mysteries of stem cells. In work detailed in Scientific Reports, this group found that muscle-specific stem cells actually have the ability to make multiple different cell types. Initially, this group was interested in understanding how gene expression changes during … Continue reading New findings about muscle stem cells reveals the potential for growing replacement organs
Stem Cell Roundup: Protein shows promise in treating deadliest form of breast cancer: mosquito spit primes our body for disease
Triple negative breast cancer is more aggressive and difficult to treat than other forms of the disease and, as a result, is more likely to spread throughout the body and to recur after treatment. Now a team at the University of Southern California have identified a protein that could help change that. The research, published … Continue reading Stem Cell Roundup: Protein shows promise in treating deadliest form of breast cancer: mosquito spit primes our body for disease
A scalable, clinic-friendly recipe for converting skin cells to muscle cells
Way back in 1987, about two decades before Shinya Yamanaka would go on to identify four proteins that can reprogram skin cells into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), Harold Weintraub’s lab identified the first “master control” protein, MyoD, which can directly convert a skin cell into a muscle cell. Though MyoD opened up new approaches … Continue reading A scalable, clinic-friendly recipe for converting skin cells to muscle cells
Using biological “codes” to generate neurons in a dish
Investigators at the Scripps Research Institute are making brain waves in the field of neuroscience. Until now, neuroscience research has largely relied on a variety of animal models to understand the complexities of various brain or neuronal diseases. While beneficial for many reasons, animal models do not always allow scientists to understand the precise mechanism … Continue reading Using biological “codes” to generate neurons in a dish
Breaking down barriers to advance stem cell therapies – the view from the Vatican conference
All hands were on deck at the “Unite to Cure” conference, organized by the Cura Foundation and the Vatican Pontifical Council, and held at the Vatican on April 26-28. Religious leaders, scientists, physicians, philanthropists, industry leaders, government, academic leaders and members of the entertainment industry gathered to discuss how to improve human health and to … Continue reading Breaking down barriers to advance stem cell therapies – the view from the Vatican conference
TELL ME WHAT I NEED TO KNOW: A Patient Advocate’s guide to being a Patient Advocate
A few weeks ago I was at the CIRM Alpha Stem Cell Clinic Network Symposium at UCLA and was fortunate enough to hear Gianna McMillan speak about patient advocacy. It was a powerful, moving, funny, and truly engaging talk. I quickly realized I wanted to blog about her talk and so for the first few … Continue reading TELL ME WHAT I NEED TO KNOW: A Patient Advocate’s guide to being a Patient Advocate
CIRM applauds FDA crackdown on stem cell clinics that “peddle unapproved treatments.”
CIRM is commending the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its action against two stem cell clinics offering unapproved therapies. On Wednesday, the FDA filed two complaints in federal court seeking a permanent injunction against California Stem Cell Treatment Center Inc. and US Stem Cell Clinic LLC. of Sunrise, Florida. The FDA says the … Continue reading CIRM applauds FDA crackdown on stem cell clinics that “peddle unapproved treatments.”
‘Ask The Expert’ on Facebook Live about the power of stem cells to reverse damage caused by a stroke.
It’s not often you get a chance to ask a world class stem cell expert a question about their work, and how it might help you or someone you love. But on Thursday, May 31 you can do just that. CIRM is hosting a special ‘Ask the Expert’ event on Facebook Live. The topic is … Continue reading ‘Ask The Expert’ on Facebook Live about the power of stem cells to reverse damage caused by a stroke.
UC Davis Stem Cell Director Jan Nolta Shares Her Thoughts on the Importance of Mentoring Young Scientists
Jan Nolta is a scientific rockstar. She is a Professor at UC Davis and the Director of the Stem Cell Program at the UC Davis School of Medicine. Her lab’s research is dedicated to developing stem cell-based treatments for Huntington’s disease (HD). Jan is a tireless advocate for both stem cell and HD research and … Continue reading UC Davis Stem Cell Director Jan Nolta Shares Her Thoughts on the Importance of Mentoring Young Scientists
The Stem Cellar 