Genome editing is a field of science that’s been around for awhile, but has experienced an explosion of activity and interest in recent years. Chances are that even your grandmother has heard about the recent story where for the first time, gene editing saved a one-year-old girl from dying of leukemia. Microsoft word versus genome … Continue reading Gene editing in blood stem cells just got easier
clinical trial
Stem cell stories that caught our eye: cancer fighting virus, lab-grown guts work in dogs, stem cell trial to cure HIV
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. Cancer fighting virus approved for melanoma (Disclaimer: While this isn’t a story about stem cells, it’s pretty cool so I had to include it.) The … Continue reading Stem cell stories that caught our eye: cancer fighting virus, lab-grown guts work in dogs, stem cell trial to cure HIV
Helping patient’s fight back against deadliest form of skin cancer
Caladrius Biosciences has been funded by CIRM to conduct a Phase 3 clinical trial to treat the most severe form of skin cancer: metastatic melanoma. Metastatic melanoma is a disease with no effective treatment, only around 15 percent of people with it survive five years, and every year it claims an estimated 10,000 lives in … Continue reading Helping patient’s fight back against deadliest form of skin cancer
CIRM-funded clinical trial for spinal cord injury reports promising results
Today, the Menlo Park-based biotech company Asterias Biotherapeutics reported positive results from the first three patients treated in its Phase 1/2a clinical study using stem cell therapy to treat patients with spinal cord injury. This trial is funded by a CIRM Strategic Partnerships Award grant of $14.3 million. Asterias has developed a stem cell therapy … Continue reading CIRM-funded clinical trial for spinal cord injury reports promising results
Cell mate: the man who makes stem cells for clinical trials
When we announced that one of the researchers we fund - Dr. Henry Klassen at the University of California, Irvine - has begun his clinical trial to treat the vision-destroying disease retinitis pigmentosa, we celebrated the excitement felt by the researchers and the hope from people with the disease. But we missed out one group. … Continue reading Cell mate: the man who makes stem cells for clinical trials
Da Mayor and the clinical trial that could help save his vision
Former San Francisco Mayor and California State Assembly Speaker Willie Brown is many things, but shy is not one of them. A profile of him in the San Francisco Chronicle once described him as “Brash, smart, confident”. But for years Da Mayor – as he is fondly known in The City – said very little … Continue reading Da Mayor and the clinical trial that could help save his vision
Faster, better, more efficient. Challenging? That too. An update on CIRM 2.0.
Changing direction is never easy. The greater the change the greater the likelihood you’ll have to make adjustments and do some fine-tuning along the way to make sure you get it right. On January 1st of this year we made a big change, launching CIRM 2.0. Our President and CEO Dr. C. Randal Mills called … Continue reading Faster, better, more efficient. Challenging? That too. An update on CIRM 2.0.
New Video: Defeating Sickle Cell Disease with Stem Cells + Gene Therapy
Suffering with an incurable illness is no laughing matter. But last year when we debuted the pilot episode of Stem Cells in Your Face, a lighthearted video series that describes specific diseases and explains the latest progress in stem cell-based therapies, we hoped that a mix of science and humor would help make the information … Continue reading New Video: Defeating Sickle Cell Disease with Stem Cells + Gene Therapy
One-Time, Lasting Treatment for Sickle Cell Disease May be on Horizon, According to New CIRM-Funded Study
For the nearly 1,000 babies born each year in the United States with sickle cell disease, a painful and arduous road awaits them. The only cure is to find a bone marrow donor—an exceedingly rare proposition. Instead, the standard treatment for this inherited blood disorder is regular blood transfusions, with repeated hospitalizations to deal with … Continue reading One-Time, Lasting Treatment for Sickle Cell Disease May be on Horizon, According to New CIRM-Funded Study
UC Davis Surgeons Begin Clinical Trial that Tests New Way to Deliver Stem Cells; Heal Bone Fractures
Each year, approximately 8.9 million people worldwide will suffer a bone fracture. Many of these fractures heal with the help of traditional methods, but for some, the road to recovery is far more difficult. After exhausting traditional treatments—such as surgically implanted pins or plates, bed rest and injections to spur bone growth—these patients can undergo … Continue reading UC Davis Surgeons Begin Clinical Trial that Tests New Way to Deliver Stem Cells; Heal Bone Fractures
The Stem Cellar 