As long as I’ve been writing The Niche as a professor here at UC Davis School of Medicine, people have been asking me about stem cell therapy for COPD. There is a lot of misinformation out there in this space. Let’s clear things up as to where the biomedical science stands today in late 2023 …
The other day I gave a talk in part about stem cell hype and mentioned as an example how the idea of already doing stem cell therapy for autism seems so misguided to me now. On the whole, in my view there are major downsides and risks for autistic kids whose parents are already having …
Fact-checking stem cell therapy for autism: still a risky idea Read More »
It was a couple of years back that researcher He Jiankui claimed he made three “CRISPR babies.” No one would think about doing any kind of rogue gene-editing again, right? Not even somatic gene edits. After all, as far as we know he’s in jail. We still don’t know the health risks that these three …
Ukraine clinic plans to sell CRISPR enhancements: hair color, skin, & breast size Read More »
Can you really make living robots from stem cells called xenobots? How would this work? You take frog stem cells, supercomputers to tell you what to do with them, and you get xenobots? Well, kind of yes and no at this point. It’s a fascinating area. What are xenobots? What does the name “xenobot” bring …
Xenobots: can you really make living robots from stem cells? Read More »
The title of a new article in Stem Cells and Development may seem audacious to those unfamiliar with the plight of the northern white rhino and the promise of induced pluripotent stem cells. But “Rewinding Extinction in the Northern White Rhinoceros” may turn out to be accurate for what a genetically diverse stem cell bank …
What do a Panama stem cell clinic and the Duke Autism Center have in common? More than I might have imagined. It’s a remarkable story that needs telling. Duke Autism Center There is a puzzle when it comes to the controversial idea of using cord blood for autism. Why? Because two of the strongest proponents …
Duke Autism Center has Panama clinic to thank for $10s millions? Read More »
Reading to them was one of my favorite things to do with my kids when they were little, but it’s a long way from Goodnight Moon to this week’s list of recommended reads, although “bee brain” may have got their attention. Please take a minute to complete our The Niche reader survey for a chance …
Recommended reads: Bee brain, COVID, from Russia with stem cells, pubs Read More »
Texas Governor Greg Abbott has effectively banned abortions in his state during the COVID-19 pandemic, but his reasoning makes no sense and is inconsistent with his policies more generally on health-care clinics. The Tribune notes that while “Abbott’s original ban was intended to preserve medical resources”, his own statements contradict that, including “On Friday, he …
Texas Gov Abbott pandemic hypocrisy on abortion vs. stem cell clinics Read More »
Today I’m posting about pet peeves in the science lab. This is an update to and expansion of a post from many years ago. Who doesn’t have some lab pet peeves? And, yeah, we are all probably guilty at one time or another of driving other people a bit nuts with our own idiosyncrasies that …
By Jeanne Loring 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 blast off! It’s good to get out of the lab occasionally to get a different perspective. Last Thursday, December 5, I got a very different perspective, in Cape Canaveral, Florida, where I got to watch the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft be launched by …
Stem cells blast into space: Jeanne Loring on the big launch & project specs Read More »