I remember seeing a cowboy-type TV show when I was a little kid where a guy pulled into town not slinging guns but selling snake oil. He stood right up on his wagon and started pitching the wonders of what he was selling. He had some buyers pretty quick. Eventually, someone like a sheriff or […]
Snake oil history from century old elixirs to fake stem cells Read More »
This was an unusual week in that three papers in a sense collided together related to embryo production and growth, raising new research possibilities but also serious ethical questions. New research: what is an embryo & what is not? The first two Nature papers reported generating the most realistic models of human embryos from scratch
Weekly reads: embryo pubs stir things up, organoids crying, & more Read More »
What are the current FDA Approved Cell and Gene Therapies? In the past many of us have wished there was a list of FDA-approved stem cell therapies. Patients and fellow scientists often asked me, but I couldn’t find a list. As a result, I made a comprehensive list of FDA Approved Cell and Gene Therapies,
List of FDA Approved Cell and Gene Therapies Read More »
During the week as I’m doing other stuff I keep my eyes open for interesting things to read, including over the weekend about stem cell research, COVID, CRISPR, and more for The Niche weekly recommended reads. This week a lot was going as we updated The Niche site to our new theme and format. I
Recommended reads: jobs, FDA letter, & The Niche new look Read More »
In any given field of biomedical science like stem cell research and regenerative medicine, it’s very useful if you can accurately predict the future. It seems, though, that predictions are far more difficult within the more exciting and rapidly-changing fields. The field of stem cells and regenerative medicine fits that bill. Past stem cell research
21 Stem Cell Research & Regenerative Medicine 2021 Predictions Read More »
Each year I metaphorically try to look into a crystal ball for stem cell predictions for the coming year and I did so for 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic threw a monkey wrench into my predictions. It actually kind of blew some up. It also raised some interesting questions and dilemmas. For instance, do many
Grading my 20 stem cell predictions for 2020 Read More »
Our mission here on The Niche is primarily educational. We aim to make a transformative difference in educating readers across the globe about stem cells, regenerative medicine, and innovative biomedical science more generally including CRISPR gene editing. A major part of that mission involves fact-checking various medical claims about stem cells and other biologics like
Our Educational Mission on The Niche Stem Cell Site Read More »
Today’s The Niche recommended weekly reads post includes both primary papers and also a few media pieces. I’m especially interested in the first piece on making more complex embryo-like structures from ES cells. This is a long way from just making embryoid bodies or EBs. At the end of the post I discuss an article
Weekly The Niche reads: lab-grown embryos & thymus, more Read More »
Drugs that restore the shape of the errant protein behind cystic fibrosis (CF) have, over the past eight years, helped the majority of patients, who have certain mutations. Gene-corrected stem cells might offer a “mutation agnostic” option to CF. CF results from a glitch in a glycoprotein with the unwieldy name “cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance
Can Gene-Edited Stem Cells Treat Cystic Fibrosis? 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 »