I’ve been busy recently focusing more on grant and paper writing than reading papers on stem cells, but my piece on trying to de-extinct mammoths via cloning-like methods drew strong opinions on both sides. Recent news and resources on stem cells We’re still awaiting a verdict in the big California federal court case where the FDA is […]
Weekly reads: news, legos for stem cells, FDA, cancer, more Read More »
Let’s start off today’s recommended reads with the topic of life extension. No controversy there, right? This comes to mind because of a new preprint from BioViva, Liz Parrish, and George Church. I’m hoping to cover this on our Stem Cell Channel on YouTube. Gene therapy and life extension research The preprint is entitled, “New
Weekly reads: life extension & BioViva, clinics & anti-vax, axolotls, systemic CRISPR Read More »
One of my main research interests is in oncodevelopmental factors. These include factors that are important both for normal stem cell biology and development as well as driving cancer when misregulated. One example includes the MYC family of proto-oncogenes. When I was a postdoc I got especially interested in trying to understand the normal role
Weekly reads: oncodevelopmental factors, iPSC cancer vaccine, more Read More »
It’s always great when there’s good news in the stem cell field and a new trial of stem cells for spina bifida here at UC Davis School of Medicine is very encouraging. So I’ll lead off with this story. Stem cells for spina bifida This pioneering work is led by Drs. Diana Farmer and Aijun
Weekly reads: stem cells for spina bifida & diabetes trials, pubs Read More »
Induced pluripotent stem cells or iPS cells just might be the most exciting development in the stem cell field over the last 15 years. They have unique potential for clinical impact for regenerative medicine too. This may manifest both through their use to produce differentiated cellular therapies and indirectly via disease modeling as well as
What are induced pluripotent stem cells or IPS cells? Read More »
This week we have some interesting new reading including both on the stem cell basic and translational fronts as well as on COVID-19 vaccines. COVID-19 vaccine considerations From Derek Lowe at In The Pipeline on COVID-19 vaccine expectations at Science Translational Medicine, Get Ready for False Side Effects. You can read my views on possible
Recommended stem cell reads: retractions, aging, COVID, CRISPR soldiers Read More »
It’s fitting, given the edginess over the election, that Halloween is falling only a few days before election day so here is a list of recommended stem cell reads for you to dive into some biomedical science. Liver buds from stem cells Generation of human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived liver buds with chemically defined and
Stem cell reads: liver buds, MSCs, SMARC, more Read More »
When you sit down to read science on the weekends lately, assuming you are not primarily a COVID-19 researcher, how much COVID stuff seeps into your reading? As I was going over some of this year’s recommended weekly reads posts here on The Niche, I’ve realized that an increasing amount of COVID-19 research has joined
Recommended reads: PSC, COVID, FDA pledge, sci jobs Read More »
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
CAR-T cells review: cancer & a critical look at possible uses in aging & COVID-19 Read More »
Where do things stand today in 2020 with IPS cell research? It’s been 14 years since they were first reported, but they continue to make news. Back in 2006 I was wrapping up my postdoc with Bob Eisenman at The Hutch in Seattle, largely studying Myc, when Shinya Yamanaka published his first induced pluripotent stem
IPS cell field update: easy culture, Parkinson’s, scarring, immune cells, & mutations Read More »