Talk about timely. When we decided, several months ago, to hold a Standards Working Group (SWG) meeting to talk about the impact of CRISPR, a tool that is transforming the field of human gene editing, we had no idea that our meeting would fall smack in the midst of a flurry of news stories about … Continue reading Timing is everything: could CRISPR gene editing push CIRM to change its rules on funding stem cell research?
DNA
The key to unlocking stem cell’s potential and blocking a deadly threat
Our bodies are amazingly complex systems. By some estimates there are more than 37 trillion cells in our bodies. That’s trillion with a “t”. Each of those cells engages in some form of communication and signaling with other cells which makes our bodies one heck of a busy place to be. Yet all this activity … Continue reading The key to unlocking stem cell’s potential and blocking a deadly threat
UCLA Scientists Find 3000 New Genes in “Junk DNA” of Immune Stem Cells
Genes and Junk Do you remember learning about Junk DNA when you took Biology in high school? The term was used to described 98% of the human genome that doesn’t make up its approximately 22,000 genes. We used to think that Junk DNA didn’t serve a purpose, but that was before we discovered special elements … Continue reading UCLA Scientists Find 3000 New Genes in “Junk DNA” of Immune Stem Cells
‘STARS’ Help Scientists Control Genetic On/Off Switch
All life on Earth relies, ultimately, on the delicate coordination of switches. During development, these switches turn genes on—or keep them off—at precise intervals, controlling the complex processes that guide the growth of the embryo, cell by cell, as it matures from a collection of stem cells into a living, breathing organism. If you control … Continue reading ‘STARS’ Help Scientists Control Genetic On/Off Switch
Finding the Sweet Spot: shifting metabolism keeps stem cells in suspended animation
The future is bright for a stem cell: it has the potential to become almost anything. This potential is one of its two defining characteristics. The second is that it can create copies of itself over and over again. This second characteristic, known as the ability to self-renew, is of particular importance to researchers. After … Continue reading Finding the Sweet Spot: shifting metabolism keeps stem cells in suspended animation