Category Archives: Stem Cell Research

Studio Sacramento: The Promise of Stem Cell Research - KVIE Dr. Paul Knoepfler from UC Davis School of Medicine and author of "Stem Cells - An Insider's Guide" discusses the research and future of stem cells. http://w... By: KVIEvideo … Continue reading →

Emergence of A new Era in Cell By: Stem Cell Research and Treatment Excellence Center Police General Hospital … Continue reading →

Stem Cell Needle for the Brain tech vid Survey Link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/JFTM2M6. By: zooka pooka … Continue reading →

April 14, 2014 Image Caption: University of Michigan researchers have found that mechanical forces in the environment of human embryonic stem cells influences how they differentiate, or morph into the body's different cell types. To arrive at the findings, they cultured the stem cells on ultrafine carpets made of microscopic posts of a key ingredient in Silly Putty. Credit: Ye Tao, Rose Anderson, Yubing Sun, and Jianping Fu redOrbit Staff & Wire Reports Your Universe Online An ingredient found in Silly Putty could help scientists more efficiently turn human embryonic stem cells into fully functional specialized cells, according to research published online Sunday in the journal Nature Materials. In the study, researchers from the University of Michigan report how they were able to coax stem cells to turn into working spinal cord cells by growing them on a soft, extremely fine carpet in which the threads were created from polydimethylsiloxane, one component of the popular childrens toy. According to the authors, the paper is the first to directly link physical signals to human embryonic stem cell differentiation, which is the process by which source cells morph into one of the bodys 200-plus other types of cells that go on to … Continue reading →

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 13-Apr-2014 Contact: Nicole Casal Moore ncmoore@umich.edu 734-647-7087 University of Michigan ANN ARBORThe sponginess of the environment where human embryonic stem cells are growing affects the type of specialized cells they eventually become, a University of Michigan study shows. The researchers coaxed human embryonic stem cells to turn into working spinal cord cells more efficiently by growing the cells on a soft, utrafine carpet made of a key ingredient in Silly Putty. Their study is published online at Nature Materials on April 13. This research is the first to directly link physical, as opposed to chemical, signals to human embryonic stem cell differentiation. Differentiation is the process of the source cells morphing into the body's more than 200 cell types that become muscle, bone, nerves and organs, for example. Jianping Fu, U-M assistant professor of mechanical engineering, says the findings raise the possibility of a more efficient way to guide stem cells to differentiate and potentially provide therapies for diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's disease), Huntington's or Alzheimer's. In the specially engineered growth systemthe 'carpets' Fu and his colleagues designedmicroscopic posts of the Silly Putty component polydimethylsiloxane serve as the threads. By varying the post … Continue reading →

8 hours ago A publicly-funded research institute in Japan, already embattled after accusing one of its own stem cell scientists of faking data, has spent tens of thousands of dollars on designer Italian furniture, reportedly to use up its budget. The respected Riken Institute, headed by Nobel chemistry laureate Ryoji Noyori, spent almost 10 million yen ($100,000) on two shopping sprees in March 2011 at Cassina Ixc., a maker and importer of top-range furniture, publicly-released information shows. In its latest edition, Shukan Bunshun magazine cites a former Riken researcher as saying the lavish spending was part of a drive to use up its approximately 100 billion yen budget before the April 1 end of the fiscal year. "When I was at the institute, it was having a tough time spending its budget within a fiscal year, so it would frequently do interior renovations," the researcher, who was not identified, was quoted as saying. A Riken spokesman said the furniture was appropriate for a building that receives "guests from overseas". "The building where the furniture is located was completed in February of that year, and the furniture was ordered to be on schedule for the completion of the new building," he … Continue reading →

TOKYO Front-page headlines, tweets, TV news shows, and tabloids in Japan this week were agog about a Japanese researcher accused of fabricating parts of scientific papers hailed as breakthroughs in stem cell research. You've probably heard about it. I heard because I happened to be in Japan this week. The Japanese news media's wolfpack instinct of attacking a stray female caught out in the open was remarkable. Everything I despise in the mob mentality of the Japanese press and its audience was on full display. Still, the story captivated me. The scientist persecuted in this still-unfolding story is Haruko Obokata of the Riken Center for Developmental Biology in Kobe. She led a team who reported that a simple acid bath might turn cells in the body into stem cells -- except, not so much. Haruko Obokata answered questions at a nearly two-hour-long press conference Wednesday in Japan. Obviously, it's hard for anyone to resist a story about the downfall of a precocious researcher hailed as a national hero only several weeks before. But as it unfolded, the story exposed a number of important issues fundamental to science and the politics of science. Most importantly, it posed questions about the apparent … Continue reading →

Haruko Obokata, center on stage, a researcher of Japanese government-funded laboratory Riken Center for Development Biology, bows in apology at the beginning of a press conference at a hotel in Osaka, western Japan Wednesday, April 9, 2014. The scientist accused of falsifying data in a widely heralded stem-cell research paper said that despite mistakes in her work the results are valid. AP TOKYO -- The Japanese scientist accused of falsifying data in a widely heralded stem-cell research paper said Wednesday the results are valid despite mistakes in their presentation. Haruko Obokata, 30, struggled to maintain her composure during a televised news conference packed with hundreds of reporters, but insisted she did not tamper with the data to fabricate results. She said she did not agree with retracting the research that appeared in the scientific journal Nature. The phenomenon of ordinary cells transforming into stem cells under the influence of external stimulus was "confirmed many times for a fact," Obokata said at the press conference in the western city of Osaka. She said she could replicate her results again if allowed back into the lab to do so. She has contested allegations of research malpractice made by a panel of scientists … Continue reading →

See Inside For more than 40 years government officials have grappled with how to regulate and fund the controversial research Despite its promise, stem cell research in the U.S. has been stymied, time and again, by bioethical landmines. The explosive debate revolves around the fact that, until recently, the only way to get pluripotent stem cells was to extract them from human embryos left over from in-vitro fertilizationa process that destroyed the five-day-old embryo. The ongoing debate about when life begins has led many to oppose stem cell research on the grounds that it is immoral to destroy something that could eventually grow into a person. On the other hand, promoters argue that the potential to help millions of people with stem cell therapies outweighs the sanctity of cells that are not viable outside the womb and that often go unused. Arguments on both sides are based on personal beliefs that may never be reconciled, so the debate hinges on whether the federal government should fund research that many citizens find morally objectionable. The following box chronicles stem cell research regulation in the U.S. 1970s The Supreme Court legalizes abortion in 1973. The ensuing debate on the ethics of experimenting … Continue reading →

StemCells, Inc Regen 2014 Martin McGlynn speaking at the 2014 Regen Med Investor Day. By: stemcellsinc … Continue reading →