Tag Archive for 'embryonic stem cell research'

Adult Skin Cells Converted Directly to Beating Heart Cells

Scripps Research Institute scientists have converted adult skin cells directly into beating heart cells efficiently without having to first go through the laborious process of generating embryonic-like stem cells. The powerful general technology platform could lead to new treatments for a range of diseases and injuries involving cell loss or damage, such as heart disease, [...]

New Plan of Attack Against Breast Cancer Stem Cells

It was Max Wicha of the University of Michigan who first identified breast cancer stem cells back in 2003. Now, Wicha and colleagues have identified a possible way to attack these cells, which are responsible for a tumor’s growth and spread.

Bladder Regeneration Using Stem Cells from Patients Own Bone Marrow

Researchers in the United States have developed a medical model for regenerating bladders using stem cells harvested from a patient’s own bone marrow. The research, published in Stem Cells, is especially relevant for paediatric patients suffering from abnormally developed bladders, but also represents another step towards new organ replacement therapies.

Scientists Peer into the Future of Stem Cell Biology

Remarkable progress in understanding how stem cell biology works has been reported by a team of leading scientists, directed by experts at UC Santa Barbara. Stem cell biology is making waves around the world with great hope for the eventual repair of parts of the body. While many scientists see these breakthroughs as viable, there [...]

Human Fetal Immune System Arises from Entirely Different Source than Adult Immune System

UCSF researchers have shown for the first time that the human fetal immune system arises from an entirely different source than the adult immune system, and is more likely to tolerate than fight foreign substances in its environment.  The finding could lead to a better understanding of how newborns respond to both infections and vaccines, [...]

World’s First Stem Cell Trial for Strokes

The UK’s ReNeuron has been given a regulatory green light to launch the world’s first human trial of a stem cell therapy for strokes.  Beginning in the second quarter of this year, researchers for the biotech will begin to see exactly how stroke victims respond to the neural stem cell therapy, which researchers say could [...]

Biotech start-Up Tackles Cancer Stem Cells

A fledgling biotech company is pursuing some of the research into cancer stem cells undertaken by Robert Weinberg at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research. Verastem raised $16 million a few weeks ago with an eye on developing new treatments tailored for fighting the unique stem cells, which are [...]

Embryonic Stem Cell Culturing – from Art to Science

Growing human embryonic stem cells in the lab is no small feat. Culturing the finicky, shape-shifting cells is labor intensive and, in some ways, more art than exact science. Now, however, a team of researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison reports the development of a fully defined culture system that promises a more uniform [...]

Stem Cells Repair Damaged Spinal Cord Tissue

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have shown how stem cells, together with other cells, repair damaged tissue in the mouse spinal cord. The results are of potential significance to the development of therapies for spinal cord injury. There is hope that damage to the spinal cord and brain will one day be treatable using stem cells [...]

Adult Stem Cells That Do Not Age

Biomedical researchers at the University at Buffalo have engineered adult stem cells that scientists can grow continuously in culture, a discovery that could speed development of cost-effective treatments for diseases including heart disease, diabetes, immune disorders and neurodegenerative diseases.