Blog - The Niche

NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya could oppose fetal tissue & some stem cell research

March 26, 2025 / Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 5 Comments

Jay Bhattacharya just got confirmed to lead the NIH yesterday. In that role, there are reasons to think he may discourage or even stop some important research and funding. As a stem cell biologist, I’ve been looking out for indications of possible restrictions on our field’s work during the new administration. Bhattacharya’s statements signal potential […]

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Weekly reads: Chinese CRISPR biotechs, cultured meat war, MSCs for Alzheimer’s

March 23, 2025 / Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 6 Comments

HuidaGene Therapeutics, Chinese CRISPR biotech

Chinese CRISPR research continues to grow and this includes interesting CRISPR biotech firms. Some here in the U.S. worry that American gene editing firms could be lagging behind. Especially over the past year, investors and even some scientists have voiced frustration. U.S. gene editing firms like Editas have been struggling for years. Its stock is

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Japanese stem cell clinic oversight: the case of MSC clinic Seijikai Fukuoka

March 19, 2025 / Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 5 Comments

The Japanese stem cell and regenerative medicine oversight system is different than here in the U.S. and in Europe. Japan has had a more permissive approach to overseeing regenerative medicine. While most of the attention has focused on fairly legitimate regenerative biotechs and other sponsors in Japan, there are unproven stem cell clinics there. These

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Weekly reads: RFK Jr. stem cell summit, FDA OKs eye cell therapy, cartilage repair

March 16, 2025 / Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 2 Comments

RFK Jr., regenerative medicine roundtable.

I had a feeling late last year that I’d frequently be writing about RFK Jr. and his impact on the FDA. However, I didn’t realize some of that would be writing for STAT News. As I mentioned a few days ago, I now have a new regular column over there. I thought the column would

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About Lab Dish, my new column at STAT News

March 11, 2025 / Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 1 Comment

I have a new biomedical science column called Lab Dish over at STAT News. Every month or so I will write an opinion piece, often focused on new developments in the field. What’s the focus of Lab Dish? As a cell biology professor, I’ve made a conscious decision to write beyond the usual academic stuff

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Weekly reads: woolly mice & pseudo-mammoths, eye repair good news, Mesoblast $1.5M price tag

March 9, 2025 / Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 1 Comment

Ever heard of woolly mice? I hadn’t either until recently. The story begins with de-extinction research. De-extinction can be both cool and arguably a colossal waste of research dollars. The specific effort to de-extinct woolly mammoths fits that dual classification. Woolly mice on the road back to mammoths? Let’s dig into this with some news:

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Reasons to smile at sharks? Growing new teeth from stem cells

March 5, 2025 / Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 2 Comments

Gareth Fraser, new teeth from stem cells

Sharks are experts at growing new teeth from stem cells. What if we humans could grow new teeth from stem cells too? It seems like a stretch. Compared to sharks, on tooth regrowth we are biological amateurs. While humans and some other animals like dogs have only two sets of teeth in our whole lives,

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Weekly reads: CBER changes, Parkinson’s, 2-dad mice, NIH woes continue

March 2, 2025 / Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 1 Comment

I recently looked at the organizational chart at the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research or CBER. Why? I have been anticipating some possible big changes there with the new administration. After all, with HHS Secretary RFK Jr. having previously claimed that the FDA was suppressing various unproven things including at least two kinds

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A close look at in vitro gametogenesis or IVG: making sperm & eggs from stem cells to have kids

February 26, 2025 / Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 3 Comments

There is growing interest in a possible new reproductive method based on something called in vitro gametogenesis or IVG. Today’s post explains IVG including its potential pros and cons. I also discuss why its possible combination with gene editing is so potentially fraught, which is a big potential con. Let’s start with an explanation of this

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Weekly reads: blowtorch to American science, stem cells for teeth & stroke

February 23, 2025 / Professor Paul Knoepfler, Ph.D. / 11 Comments

In all the time I’ve been a scientist I never worried about American science until the last month. Even during the first Trump administration, while there were challenges, I felt like things would generally be okay. Research continued. One of my daughters and I went to the Science March in 2017 in Sacramento. We bumped

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