In CIRM’s new 5-year Strategic Plan, we highlight researchers who have transformed basic discoveries into potential therapies.

Joseph Wu

Dr. Joseph Wu, director of the Stanford Cardiovascular Institute, has received 11 CIRM awards. Over the past decade, his lab has advanced the use of induced pluripotent stem cells for disease modeling, drug discovery, and regenerative medicine.

His research has also led to a cancer vaccine technology now being developed by Khloris Biosciences, a company spun out of his lab.

With CIRM support, Dr. Wu developed a process to produce clinical‑grade cardiomyocytes from human embryonic stem cells. He also leads the first U.S. clinical trial using stem cells to treat ischemic heart disease. Other CIRM‑funded work from his lab has produced iPSC‑derived cardiomyocytes for potential use in cardiac patches.

Lili Yang

At UCLA, Dr. Lili Yang and her team have developed invariant Natural Killer T (iNKT) cells, specialized immune cells that can more effectively attack tumors.

More recently, the team used cord blood and peripheral blood stem cells to generate up to 300,000 doses of hematopoietic stem cell‑engineered iNKT cells. The approach could dramatically reduce the cost of producing immune cell therapies.

Dr. Yang’s lab has also developed both autologous and off‑the‑shelf cancer therapies designed to target blood cancers.

Her work led to the creation of Appia Bio. In partnership with Kite Pharma, the company plans to advance and commercialize this technology.

CIRM has strongly supported the work of Drs. Yang and Wu because it lays the foundation for next‑generation therapies. Through our Strategic Plan, we will continue funding innovative research like theirs to accelerate discovery and deliver regenerative medicine treatments to diverse communities in California and beyond.

Learn more about CIRM’s five‑year Strategic Plan and stay tuned for updates in The Stem Cellar.