Category Archives: Stem Cell Research

PHOTO | Steve Laschever Biological Industries has a distribution-storage depot in Cromwell for its line of cell-culture media in which human and animal stem cells are grown. Cromwell-based Biological Industries USA is partnering with a Monrovia, Calif.-based nonprofit stem cell institute to provide training for aspiring young scientists. Biological Industries' partner, the Pathways to Stem Cell Science institute, will host early career scientists ranging from high school to college-level students and beyond and provide hands-on experience in culturing human pluripotent stem cells. Biological Industries will provide stem cell product and technology support through program scholarships for the Pathways to Stem Cell Science training programs. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Biological Industries, which specializes in stem cell research, cellular reprogramming and regenerative medicine, is a division of Biological Industries Israel LTD. Pathways to Stem Cell Science programs provide classroom and laboratory-based courses in molecular cell biology, stem cell biology, and regenerative medicine to equip students with the skills to help them gain a competitive edge in the industry. Read the original: Cromwell's Biological Industries inks stem-cell training pact with Calif. Institute - Hartford Business … Continue reading →

May 12, 2017 Researchers have pinpointed a key enzyme that is vital for the production of fresh blood cells in the body. The enzyme is essential for the survival of specialised stem cells that give rise to new blood cells, the study found. Experts say the findings could help to improve the success of stem cell therapies that are being developed to treat some blood cancers and disorders of the immune system. Enzyme Scientists focused on an enzyme called fumarase, which is known to play a key role in the generation of energy inside cells. Children with gene mutations that affect fumarase have blood defects, which prompted researchers to investigate its function. The mouse study found that deletion of fumarase from blood cells causes major defects in new blood cell production. These defects could be traced back to defects in the specialised stem cells that give rise to new blood cells. Blocking the enzyme causes a molecule called fumarate to build up inside the cells, which has wide-ranging toxic effects. Stem cells The study sheds new light on the conditions that blood stem cells need to survive, which could help to boost the success of stem cell therapies, the researchers … Continue reading →

Q: Ive been reading a lot about stem cells recently. Willstem cell research change the treatment of heart disease? A: Theres some exciting early data where scientists have been able to use stem cells for regeneration of cardiac tissue, in particular certain parts of the heart or maybe even an entire heart in mice or rats. Cleveland Clinic is a non-profit academic medical center. Advertising on our site helps support our mission. We do not endorse non-Cleveland Clinic products or services. Policy However, its not been done yet in humans reliably and that would be the next step. If the research bears out, we may see this as an option for heart patients in perhaps five to 10 years. The area where stem cells might first be used is in patients who have had damage to their heart because of a heart attack. These patients have scarring on the heart and that area of the heart is not beating anymore. If we can regenerate cardiac tissue to replace this scarred tissue, the hope is to get the heart fully working again. Growing whole new hearts will likely be later down the line and will depend on the success of the … Continue reading →

May 11, 2017 Credit: CNIO A team from the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre (CNIO) has optimized a system capable of generating a cellular model of Ewing sarcoma. The technique, based on CRISPR and described in the pages of Stem Cell Reports, makes it possible to generate cellular models to analyse the mechanisms underlying the origin and progression of this and other diseases, as well as the search for new treatments. CRISPR, the famous genomic editing technique, not only serves to cure diseases, it can also recreate diseases in cellular models to study the molecular events that give rise to them. These models are crucial to find new diagnostic and therapeutic pathways. In a paper published in the journal Stem Cell Reports, the authors present a significant technological development capable of recreating Ewing sarcoma in adult and embryonic human stem cells. "The idea is to have a system that enables us to generate a model that is as accurate as possible to what is happening in a tumour," said Sandra Rodrguez Perales from the Molecular Cytogenetics and Genomic Engineering Unit and leader of the research project. With a model that reproduces the origins of the disease, it will be possible … Continue reading →

Iran is expanding investment in stem cell research and its application in various therapies, particularly for hard-to-treat diseases, through the Office of the Vice- Presidency for Science and Technology. As a result of the increase in the number of companies active in the domain of stem cells in the past three years, more than 400 products are processed in the country, indicating a multifold growth compared with the eight-year tenure of previous administration when there were fewer than 50 knowledge-based firms in total. There are over 40 knowledgebased firms in the field of stem cell and regenerative medicine alone in Iran today, said Amir Ali Hamidiyeh, secretary of the Headquarters for Development of Stem Cell Science and Technology (HDSCST). He made the statement at a press briefing for the second National Festival and International Congress on Stem Cell Sciences and Technologies and Regenerative Medicine to be held July 13- 15 in Tehran, Mehr News Agency reports. According to the conference secretariat, 1,444 people have signed up to attend the event from across the world, including from Iraq, India, Pakistan, Jordan, Russia, Australia, Germany, China, Britain and South Korea. They all are among their countrys respected figures in centers with high … Continue reading →

Yi Yu, a research assistant in the Melton lab, holds flasks containing human embryonic stem cells. Researchers have developed a recipe to turn them into beta cells, which secrete insulin in the pancreas. In what they call the Foundry, they hope to produce 200 flasks of beta cells this year. (All images by Chlo Hecketsweiler) Pluripotent stem cells have the potential to generate any human cell type and researchers have shown that they may be used to repair damaged tissues and organs in the body. But what looks good in the lab doesnt always translate to the clinic. In laboratories around the world, thousands of scientists are trying to close the gap between promise and real-world therapies. For a month and a half, starting in January, I was embedded in the daily life of one such group of scientists Douglas A. Meltons laboratory at the Harvard Stem Cell Institute. I watched their experiments, learned about the complex science of stem cells, and talked with the researchers about their work and hopes. I was allowed to take pictures, and for this photo essay I tried to pick out moments and details that I found revealing, although scientists may see them as … Continue reading →

New York Times California Today: Waiting on the Promise of Stem Cells New York Times In 2004, voters approved Proposition 71, a bond measure amounting to $6 billion with interest, which created a stem cell agency to help fund research. It was in part a response to limits on federal funding for stem cell research imposed by the ... Read more: California Today: Waiting on the Promise of Stem Cells - New York Times … Continue reading →

Californias stem cell agency is on the hunt for a new president and CEO after the surprise announcement this week that C. Randal Mills will be departing the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine. He will leave at the end of June. Mills, who has headed the agency for three years, will become the next president and CEO of the National Marrow Donor Program. CIRM is replacing him on an interim basis with Maria Millan, M.D., the agencys vice president of therapeutics. The state agency will soon begin a search for a permanent replacement, said Jonathan Thomas, CIRMs chairman. Millan is a candidate to fill that position, with Mills strong endorsement. Mills is noted for reorganizing CIRM to provide greater systemic support for translating basic research into clinical science, and to provide quicker and more helpful responses to researchers seeking funding. His initiative, called CIRM 2.0, was a response to criticism that the agency, funded with $3 billion in California bond money in 2004, has been too slow in getting treatments to patients. Agency-supported treatments are now being tested in medical centers throughout the state, including San Diego County. Most prominently, CIRM has established an alpha stem cell clinic at UC … Continue reading →

May 04, 2017 07:30 ET | Source: Cellaria Bio CAMBRIDGE, Mass. and CROMWELL, Conn., May 04, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cellaria, LLC, a scientific innovator that develops revolutionary new patient-specific models for challenging diseases, and Biological Industries USA (BI-USA), a subsidiary of Biological Industries (Israel), today announced a new sales and marketing agreement to promote custom stem cell services. The partnership combines BI-USAs strength in stem cell culture media and manufacturing with Cellarias comprehensive Stem Cell Services program, which includes industry leading RNA reprogramming and custom differentiation services. Together, the companies will offer one of the industrys most innovative and comprehensive stem cell service offerings available to biotechnology companies and academic institutions. As part of the agreement, Cellaria will distribute BI-USAs stem cell media offering, including its NutriStem hPSC Medium, a cGMP xeno-free media specifically designed for human pluripotent stem cell culture. Cellaria will also incorporate the product into its stem cell services. BI-USA will market Cellaria's customized stem cell services, establishing an integrated, single source solution for iPS cell line derivation, culture maintenance, banking, characterization and differentiation services. BI is one of the most respected names in life sciences today, said David Deems, chief executive officer at Cellaria. The … Continue reading →

Xconomy CIRM California's stem cell research funding agency to lose ... San Francisco Business Times Randy Mills, who came in to right California's semi-public stem cell research funding agency, is leaving to head the National Marrow Donor Program. Mills three ... CA Stem Cell Agency Chief Randy Mills to Leave After Three Years ...Xconomy Be the Match names CEO to succeed retiring Chell - Minneapolis ...Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal all 4 news articles » View original post here: CIRM California's stem cell research funding agency to lose ... - San Francisco Business Times … Continue reading →