I’ve sponsored a stem cell essay contest with two winners: age 18 or younger (category 1) and age 19 or older (category 2). The deadline has passed and we have our winners. I received a number of interesting essays and today I’m happy to announce the winner in the younger category: Claire August. I’ll announce the category […]
Stem cell essay contest winner category 1: Claire August Read More »
Why doesn’t the brain fix itself using stem cells the way other organs do? Earlier this week I was lecturing to students here at UC Davis on stem cells. One of the points I raised was that most if not all of our organs have a compliment of stem cells that are there to maintain
Stem cells on the brain: why can’t the brain just fix itself? Read More »
Many folks believe that if you can kill or otherwise inactivate cancer stem cells, you’ve gone a long way to curing many types of cancer. However the cells have remained elusive. Now, Mick Bhatia’s lab has found that the antipsychotic drug, Thioridazine, has activity against cancer stem cells. The work, published in Cell (read paper
A rumor is now going around that some dubious stem cell docs and clinics are likely to get visits from the FBI soon! The FDA, which has just recently issued a couple warning letters (here and here), potentially together with the FBI, may be poised to take more decisive action in the near future in the next
Stem cell grapevine: FBI readying to take more action against dubious clinics & docs Read More »
Lately the urban myth that there are embryonic stem cells in Pepsi has been spreading like wildfire. I’ve been doing some mythbusting part to squelch these flames (and not by pouring Pepsi on them), but it isn’t easy. Why does it even matter if some folks are going around saying there are embryonic stem cells
Why the Pepsi stem cell myth matters: the dangerous spread of fiction-based reality Read More »
The heat is rising in a push to deregulate dubious adult stem cell therapies and it is Republicans turning up the thermostat on this emerging pet issue of theirs. We’ve seen the Texas Medical Board passing weak rules for regulating adult stem cell therapies under pressure from Rick Perry and adult stem cell biotech, Celltex.
Stem cell deregulation push is deadly serious threat to the field and patients Read More »
The 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, April 12th, is rapidly approaching and I think there are some lessons there for the stem cell field. The Titanic was hyped as a marvel of modern technology, widely advertised as huge, unsinkable and fast. An unexpected combination….almost too good to be true. This portrayal of
The Titanic & Dubious Adult Stem Cell Clinics Read More »
If someone is not in a war, but someone else declares war on them or actually attacks them, I would say the reality is that war has started and there are two opposing sides. However, has that happened when it comes to stem cells? Are we in a stem cell war? There have been times
The war propaganda myth of adult versus embryonic stem cells hurts everyone Read More »
In June 2011 I did a post about genomics and its growing importance both for science and society. The stem cell field has a very rapidly accelerating genomic component as well. I went so far as to call it a revolution and I still believe that is not an exaggeration. CIRM has rightly recognized the
CIRM goes genomic: the California stem cell agency focuses on DNA Read More »
What with the Mississippi “personhood” amendment up for a vote today and also the Vatican Adult Stem Cell Conference beginning tomorrow, I thought today was a good time for a post about adult versus embryonic stem cells. Does stem cell research have to be either/or? Adult or stem? Can’t someone be for both adult and
Key points about adult versus embryonic stem cells Read More »