Glioblastoma, a form of brain cancer, is one of the most dreaded cancer diagnoses. Standard radiation and chemotherapy treatments for glioblastoma almost always prove ineffective because of the cancer’s ability to grow back. With their unlimited potential to self-renew, cancer stem cells within the brain tumor are thought to be responsible for its aggressive reoccurrence. … Continue reading Novel approach to slowing deadly brain cancer stem cells may lead to new treatments
Creating a platform to help transplanted stem cells survive after a heart attack
Repairing, even reversing, the damage caused by a heart attack is the Holy Grail of stem cell researchers. For years the Grail seemed out of reach because the cells that researchers transplanted into heart attack patients didn’t stick around long enough to do much good. Now researchers at Stanford may have found a way around … Continue reading Creating a platform to help transplanted stem cells survive after a heart attack
New Insights into Adult Neurogenesis
To be a successful scientist, you have to expect the unexpected. No biological process or disease mechanism is ever that simple when you peel off its outer layers. Overtime, results that prove a long-believed theory can be overturned by new results that suggest an alternate theory. UCSF scientist Arturo Alvarez-Buylla is well versed with the … Continue reading New Insights into Adult Neurogenesis
Stem Cell Roundup: New understanding of Huntington’s; how stem cells can double your DNA; and using “the Gary Oldman of cell types” to reverse aging
This week's roundup highlights how we are constantly finding out new and exciting ways that stem cells could help change the way we treat disease. Our Cool Stem Cell Image of the Week comes from our first story, about unlocking some of the secrets of Huntington's disease. It comes from the Laboratory of Stem Cell … Continue reading Stem Cell Roundup: New understanding of Huntington’s; how stem cells can double your DNA; and using “the Gary Oldman of cell types” to reverse aging
Just a Mom: The Journey of a Sickle Cell Disease Patient Advocate [video]
Adrienne Shapiro will tell you that she’s just a mom. And it’s true. She is just a mom. Just a mom who is the fourth generation of mothers in her family to have children born with sickle cell disease. Just a mom who was an early advocate of innovative stem cell and gene therapy research … Continue reading Just a Mom: The Journey of a Sickle Cell Disease Patient Advocate
Listen up! Stem cell scientists craft new ears using children’s own cells
Imagine growing up without an ear, or with one that was stunted and deformed. It would likely have an impact on almost every part of your life, not just your hearing. But now scientists in China say they have found a way to help give children born with this condition a new ear, one that … Continue reading Listen up! Stem cell scientists craft new ears using children’s own cells
The Journey of a Homegrown Stem Cell Research All-Star
Nothing makes a professional sports team prouder than its homegrown talent. Training and mentoring a promising, hard-working athlete who eventually helps carry the team to a championship can lift the spirits of an entire city. Here at CIRM, we hold a similar sense of pride in Brian Fury, one of our own homegrown all-stars. Nearly … Continue reading The Journey of a Homegrown Stem Cell Research All-Star
Alpha clinics and a new framework for accelerating stem cell treatments
Last week, at the World Stem Cell Summit in Miami, CIRM took part in a panel discussion about the role and importance of Alpha Clinics in not just delivering stem cell therapies, but in helping create a new, more collaborative approach to medicine. The Alpha Clinic concept is to create a network of top medical … Continue reading Alpha clinics and a new framework for accelerating stem cell treatments
Stem Cell Roundup: Rainbow Sherbet Fruit Fly Brains, a CRISPR/iPSC Mash-up and more
This week’s Round Up is all about the brain with some CRISPR and iPSCs sprinkled in: Our Cool Stem Cell Image of the Week comes from Columbia University’s Zuckerman Institute: This rainbow sherbet-colored scientific art is a microscopy image of a fruit fly nervous system in which brain cells were randomly labeled with different colors. … Continue reading Stem Cell Roundup: Rainbow Sherbet Fruit Fly Brains, a CRISPR/iPSC Mash-up and more
Modeling the Human Brain in 3D
Can you guess what the tiny white balls are in this photo? I’ll give you a hint, they represent the organ that you’re using right now to answer my question. These are 3D brain organoids generated from human pluripotent stem cells growing in a culture dish. You can think of them as miniature models of … Continue reading Modeling the Human Brain in 3D
The Stem Cellar 