Maria Grazia Roncarolo believes her company could redefine treatments for conditions like multiple sclerosis (MS), Crohn's disease, and other autoimmune diseases. Closer to Cures Dr. Roncarolo, co-founder, president, and head of R&D at San Diego-based Tr1X Bio, said in a recent presentation that her company is modifying the patient’s own immune system to calm cells … Continue reading Tr1X Bio aims to Redefine Cell Therapy for Autoimmune Diseases
Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are a type of immune cell that play an extremely important role in maintaining stability in the body and preventing the body's immune system from attacking its own cells and organs. This unique property makes Tregs extremely valuable to researchers as a potential treatment for immune related issues. One of these … Continue reading Improving a special kind of cell to help combat immune related problems
Today the governing Board of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) awarded $14.4 million for two new clinical trials for blood cancer and pediatric brain tumors. These awards bring the total number of CIRM-funded clinical trials to 70. $6.0 million was awarded to Immune-Onc Therapeutics to conduct a clinical trial for patients with acute … Continue reading CIRM Board Approves Clinical Trials for Blood Cancer and Pediatric Brain Tumors
Doctor preparing an influenza vaccine for a patient. To try and boost sales during the pandemic many businesses are offering two-for-one deals; buy one product get another free. Well, that might also be the case with a flu shot; get one jab and get protection from two viruses. A new study offers an intriguing – … Continue reading One shot, two benefits!
Leukocyte Adhesion Deficiency-I (LAD-I) is a rare pediatric disease caused by a mutation in a specific gene that causes low levels of a protein called CD18. Due to low levels of CD18, the adhesion of immune cells is affected, which negatively impacts the body’s ability to combat infections. Rocket Pharmaceuticals has announced positive results from … Continue reading CIRM funded trial for LAD-I announces positive results
Coronavirus Battling the virus that causes COVID-19 is something that is top of everyone’s mind right now. That’s why CIRM is funding 17 different projects targeting the virus. But one of the most valuable tools in helping develop vaccines against a wide variety of diseases in the past is now coming under threat. We’ll talk … Continue reading Battling COVID and turning back the clock on stem cell funding
Dr. Karen Christman (left) and Dr. Lili Yang (right) This past Friday the governing Board of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) approved two new discovery research project as part of the $5 million in emergency funding for COVID-19 related projects. This brings the number of COVID-19 projects CIRM is supporting to 17, including three clinical trials. … Continue reading CIRM Board Approves Two New Discovery Research Projects for COVID-19
Dr. Paul Szabolcs: Photo courtesy of UPMC A simple blood stem cell transplant is showing strong promise for treating several metabolic, blood, and immune disorders, including thalassemia and some leukodystrophies. A rare condition These conditions are rare, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the U.S., so funding for new therapies is often limited. Researchers at … Continue reading Cord blood transplants help children fighting deadly diseases
Coronavirus particles, illustration. In late March the CIRM Board approved $5 million in emergency funding for COVID-19 research. The idea was to support great ideas from California’s researchers, some of which had already been tested for different conditions, and see if they could help in finding treatments or a vaccine for the coronavirus. Less than … Continue reading A ready-made approach to tackling COVID-19
Severe Leukocyte Adhesion Deficiency-1 (LAD-1) is a rare condition that causes the immune system to malfunction and reduces its ability to fight off viruses and bacteria. Over time the repeated infections can take a heavy toll on the body and dramatically shorten a person’s life. But now a therapy, developed by Rocket Pharmaceuticals, is showing … Continue reading Promising results from CIRM-funded projects