How does cancer spread? How does it traverse from one organ to the next—often undetected—until it has colonized the far reaches of the human body? And more importantly, how can researchers stop this from happening? These questions plague even the most renowned experts, but new research from scientists at Brown University has uncovered clues to … Continue reading Mapping Metastasis: Scientists Discover how Cancer Cells Colonize Distant Organs
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Stem Cell Stories that Caught our Eye: “Let it Grow” Goes Viral, Stroke Pilot Study, The Bowels of Human Stem Cells, Tumor ‘Safety Lock.’
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. “Let it Grow” Goes Viral (and National!): Last week on The Stem Cellar we shared one of our favorite student videos from our annual Creativity … Continue reading Stem Cell Stories that Caught our Eye: “Let it Grow” Goes Viral, Stroke Pilot Study, The Bowels of Human Stem Cells, Tumor ‘Safety Lock.’
Stem Cell Stories that Caught our Eye: Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s and Reducing the Risk of Causing Tumors
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. Cell therapy for Parkinson’s advancing to the clinic. A decade-long moratorium on the transplant of fetal nerve tissue into Parkinson’s patient will end in two … Continue reading Stem Cell Stories that Caught our Eye: Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s and Reducing the Risk of Causing Tumors
The Fatal Flip: How Nerve Cells go from Healthy to Cancerous
Every gene in the human genome has a job to do. One such gene, called Merlin, prevents cells from dividing out of control and forming into tumors. A so-called ‘tumor suppressor,’ Merlin has proven to be essential to maintaining healthy cell division. Scientists knew that without Merlin, nerve cells grew uncontrollably, often leading to tumors … Continue reading The Fatal Flip: How Nerve Cells go from Healthy to Cancerous
Unique Cellular Signal Directs Cells to Gobble Up Toxic Waste; Could Serve as New Weapon to Fight Disease
White blood cells have a lot of work to do. They are our body’s main defense against foreign invaders—and are quite adept at it. Tasked with cleanup duty, they target and destroy cells that have been infected with bacteria, viruses or other harmful, disease-causing pathogens. But as good as they are at their job—they aren’t … Continue reading Unique Cellular Signal Directs Cells to Gobble Up Toxic Waste; Could Serve as New Weapon to Fight Disease
CIRM-Funded Scientists Identify Cause; Potential Therapy for Deadly Form of Eye Cancer
If the cancer is caught early, you may just lose your eye. If it is caught too late, however, you may lose your life. uch is the fate of those diagnosed with uveal melanoma, a rare but deadly form of eye cancer that attacks the eye’s pigment cells in the iris. Each year about 2,000 … Continue reading CIRM-Funded Scientists Identify Cause; Potential Therapy for Deadly Form of Eye Cancer
Getting at the Root of Cancer: Cancer Stem Cells Tracked down in Human Patients
The backers of the cancer stem cell hypothesis just got a boost from scientists at the University of Oxford, UK, and the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, who last week used an advanced genetic tracking technique that identified, in patients, the presence of cancer stem cells—a small subset of cancer cells that many experts view as … Continue reading Getting at the Root of Cancer: Cancer Stem Cells Tracked down in Human Patients
Stem cell stories that caught our eye: young blood, cord blood, and blood cancers
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. Pinning down young blood’s rejuvenating power. A trio of studies in the past week provided more evidence that giving older mice the blood of younger … Continue reading Stem cell stories that caught our eye: young blood, cord blood, and blood cancers
The Stem Cellar 