Recommended reads: John Cleese, surprising human embryo study, stem bank scandal, reprogramming & aging

If you remember Monty Python, then you probably recall John Cleese.

We’ll start with Cleese’s stem cell baloney. Not spam.

John Cleese stem cells anti-aging, John Cleese
John Cleese is getting unproven stem cells as stabs at anti-aging. I’m very skeptical.

Secret to eternal youth? John Cleese extols virtues of stem cell treatment, The Guardian. I’ve written before about John Cleese’s stem cell anti-aging efforts. As I told the author of The Guardian piece, I love Cleese, but all his gushing about stem cells for anti-aging puts himself and everyday people at risk.

Celebrities who got stem cells

John Cleese is just one of scores of celebrities who have gotten unproven stem cells or other regenerative materials over the last dozen or so years. Here are just a few:

And many more including dozens of sports stars.

human embryo ethics
Human embryo ethics statement from 2024 Cell paper.

Other recommended regenerative reads

3D reconstruction of a gastrulating human embryo, Cell.This study was on an aborted 17-19-day human embryo. While all the ethics statement material seems fine on first look, I do wonder how the donor even knew she was pregnant that early. How was the embryo isolated? An embryo at that kind of stage is very small. The data look interesting.

Exclusive: In $1B+ bet on AI, biopharma heavyweights back new startup to upend drug R&D, Endpoints. The team includes former Stanford President Marc Tessier-Lavigne.

Singapore stem cell bank scandal gives parents in Hong Kong, Philippines, India the jitters, SCMP. From the piece, “Cordlife Group Ltd., a major operator of cord blood banks across Asia, irreparably damaged thousands of children’s samples through improper handling.”

Restoration of neuronal progenitors by partial reprogramming in the aged neurogenic niche, Nat. Aging.

Comprehensive whole-genome sequence analyses provide insights into the genomic architecture of cerebral palsy, Nat. Gen. I’ve been getting more interested in CP the last few years and my lab is doing some studies, including on the genetics of CP.

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