Search Results for: stap

CAR-T cells review: cancer & a critical look at possible uses in aging & COVID-19

CAR-T-cell-infographic

Introduction to CAR-T cells CAR-T cells are an exciting cutting-edge technology that has been garnering great interest including in the stem cell field. Potential therapeutic uses of CAR-T, which stands for Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-Cells (CAR-T), are being studied in clinical trials as immunotherapies to potentially fight cancer as well as many other diseases by […]

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MUSE cells are in 4 Japanese stem cell trials despite doubts

Professor-Mari-Dezawa-talking-about-MUSE-cells-on-national-TV-in-Japan.-Screenshot.

The stem cell universe is populated by sometimes mysterious acronyms (see an image of a whole alphabet stem cell acronym soup), many of which refer to specific kinds of stem cells including one nebulous type called MUSE cells. MUSE cells clinical trials I’m not convinced that MUSE cells exist, but oddly there appear to be

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Don’t mess with (mother) Nature: why risk taking on a powerhouse journal?

Dont-mess-with-mother-nature

When I was a kid there was this commercial on TV for Chiffon margarine (fake butter) with the slogan, “It’s not nice to fool mother nature!” As a kid I thought it was dumb but kind of funny. A modified version of that mother nature advertising slogan has become a cultural tagline. Don’t mess with

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Nature yanks article that was actually advertisement on controversial stem cells

Muse-cell-ad-on-Nature

Something very strange just happened at the journal Nature related to what’s called Muse cells. Kudos to them for dealing with it quickly though. They published an unreviewed research “article” on controversial (perhaps non-existent) stem cells called “Muse cells” that was actually a paid advertisement. After I communicated with the Nature team eventually they ended up

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History tells us to be more skeptical of He Jiankui’s CRISPR baby story

Fake-cloning

Could He Jiankui have faked part or all of his CRISPR babies story? If so, how? Why? Or to put it another way, almost everyone seems to be assuming the story is real, but should we be more skeptical? Should we flip things around and assume the story isn’t entirely kosher until proven otherwise? I once

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Perspectives on high-profile stem cell retraction in the making from Kyoto University

IPS-cell-paper-retraction-requested

A researcher working at Kyoto University has reportedly engaged in misconduct leading to an institutional request for retraction of a paper from the journal Stem Cell Reports. The paper in question appears to have rather large-scale problems: “Kohei Yamamizu, a specially appointed assistant professor at the university’s Center for iPS Cell Research and Application, falsified all

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Keep calm & CRISPR on: perspectives on report of human Cas9 immunity

Keep-calm-CRISPR-on

The news that CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing in its current form may not work in a substantial fraction of people due to many of us having immunity to Cas9 came as a shock to many, but if you think about it, maybe it’s not so surprising. I don’t see it as the end of the world. A (preprint) from

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Scientist’s dilemma: find a public voice on big issues or stay silent?

Scientists-Dilemma

There is a scientist’s dilemma: should you speak out on important, sometimes controversial issues in science, where you not only can potentially have positive impact, but also risk being attacked for it? Or do you remain silent? I’ve now been blogging for more than 7 years. I’ve battled the often exploitive for-profit stem cell clinics

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