Month: September 2012

Part 1 on iPS cell 2012 publication trends: an unusual year

I regularly do an update on the publication trends in the iPS cell field and these have been posts that readers have found especially useful. Here was a popular update from 2010 and another one from 2011 that included a who’s who of the iPS cell field more broadly as well beyond just publishing. Then …

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Intriguing interview with Robin Young, Organizer of Houston Stem Cell Summit

Next month will be the 1st Houston Stem Cell Summit organized by Robin Young, who also organizes the New York Stem Cell Summit. I’ve been a bit tough on this meeting for a perceived lack of diversity in their program of speakers. I interviewed Robin Young (RY) about the meeting and found his answers quite interesting …

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As stem cell industry explodes, can a static FDA keep up?

There are legitimate arguments about the degree to which the FDA should regulate stem cell clinics and the point-of-care, for-profit stem cell industry. I’ve held debates about that on my blog with argument on both sides including a very valuable debate between Dr. Chris Centeno and Doug Sipp. However, increasingly it is looking like the …

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Very cool adult stem cell and organ regeneration series in NY Times

The NY Times has just run a 3-part, high-profile series on the developing biomedical area of adult stem cell-based tissue regeneration and organ transplant. See picture above (from NY Times) of rat hearts and lungs being “washed” of cells to be used as scaffolds for growing new organs. You can read the three articles here: …

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Jeremy Berg interview part II: the future of NIH funding

Berg-Heat-Shot

Yesterday I had part I of my interview with NIGMS former Director, Dr. Jeremy Berg. Today we have part II of the interview, which I found very interesting and helpful in providing a glimpse into NIH. I appreciate Dr. Berg doing the interview and his frankness. Given the budgetary issues facing NIH in terms of …

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Another stem cell website goof: ICMS loses its patient website

For a while there this weekend, it had seemed that the upcoming adult stem cell meeting in Houston keynoted by Guv Rick Perry had lost something important. Its website! Oops. Now that all seems fixed. Whew. However, a second stem cell-related entity seems to have made the same mistake, but this time it appears likely …

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Interview with NIGMS Director, Jeremy Berg, part 1: grant advice, meritocracy

Berg-Heat-Shot

Obtaining research grant funding is a critical part of science, but the process seems to be getting more challenging each year. Funding rates are decreasing. Applicant frustration is increasing and many grant applicants tell me they feel confused about the differences between funded and unfunded proposals. The largest funder of biomedical research in the U.S. …

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My collection of funny signs: UFO lemonade & falling coconuts

I live in Davis, CA. Sometimes it seems like Davis is a bubble full of the most colorful assortment of characters. One day walking my dog Elvis I noticed the sign to the right. I translated it as “Shh”. I’ve seen many signs in my days, but never one like this…it seems a little too …

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