What’s going on with the STAP cell situation now that it is into its third month? It’s getting worse instead of better or clearer, at least in part due to RIKEN’s incomplete investigation. What’s going on with STAP? New RIKEN Press Conference RIKEN reportedly held an odd sort of limited press conference today that TJO […]
STAP April Update: Super Stressful on All Fronts Read More »
Very small embryonic-like stem cells aka VSELs are reported to be tiny adult stem cells that are pluripotent or non-existent depending on whom you talk to most recently or which paper you just read. These very controversial cells (which I once compared to the Sasquatch) have a wildly fluctuating history with their existence on multiple occasions
Wild History of VSELs Predicts Future of STAP Cells? Read More »
What next for STAP? Is retraction of the two papers on the near horizon? It has been two months now since Nature published the two papers on STAP cells and STAP stem cells. There has been a storm of controversy surrounding these papers and the claims they made to easily produce the most powerful of
STAP Cell Nature Papers: Cases For & Against Retraction Read More »
The California Stem Cell Agency, CIRM, has a new board member. Actress, writer, and Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) advocate Lauren Miller recently joined the ICOC Board of CIRM via an appointment by Governor Jerry Brown. Miller and her husband, Seth Rogen, have both been active as AD advocates and formed an amazing organization to boost AD
Interview with Actress, Writer, Advocate and New CIRM Board Member Lauren Miller Read More »
Dr. Charles Vacanti is scheduled as a special guest speaker on April 1 at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. He’ll be speaking on STAP cells. See image below of the announcement. The title of his talk is “Tissue Engineering and STAP Cells”. It is part of the Brigham and Women’s “Leaders in Regenerative Medicine Seminar Series”. Online
Vacanti to Speak on STAP Cells at Harvard on April 1 Read More »
The controversial STAP stem cell papers published in Nature had authors both from RIKEN in Japan and Brigham and Women’s Hospital/Harvard. What is the RIKEN interim take on the STAP cell situation? We’ve had pretty much silence from Harvard itself on this matter publicly. Dr. Charles Vacanti, senior author on one of the STAP papers,
RIKEN Initial PR Reaction to STAP Cell Fiasco Read More »
Why is CRISPR Cas9 gene editing such a big deal? Imagine being able to make mutations in any gene you wanted say in stem cells in a relatively simple, quick and affordable fashion? Sounds exciting, huh? Every so often a new kind of technology comes along in the biomedical sciences that is a true game
CRISPR Cas9 Gene Editing Tech Will Revolutionize Biology Read More »
Will a few of the “elite” of the research world be on the wrong side of history when it comes to STAP cells? It seems some don’t want people talking about just how bad the STAP situation might be. Bad news may travel fast as the expression goes, but the people who talk about it may
STAP coverage ruffles some ‘elite’ stem cell feathers Read More »
I asked Dr. Teruhiko Wakayama, who goes by Teru to those who know him, if he would be willing to do a Q&A on the STAP stem cell situation. Teru was senior author on the STAP stem cell Nature letter on chimerism, but was not a senior (note this is a correction from an earlier version of this
Interview with Dr. Teru Wakayama on STAP stem cells Read More »
I don’t know about you, but this whole STAP stem cell thing has got me kind of bummed out. Last night I was thinking to perhaps stop blogging about it as the situation turns darker, but it seems like it wouldn’t do any good to ignore it. The ostrich with head in the sand approach
STAP stem cell new allegations: situation turns darker Read More »