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Cord Blood Stem Cells Increased Tenfold
September 29, 2024 2:34 pm | by Cynthia Fox | CommentsTen times more stem cells may soon be generated from umbilical cords than ever before, according to a new Science study. The potential advance was made via a little-known pyrimidoindole molecule called UM171.
Nobel Prize-winning ‘iPSC’ Stem Cell Method Vastly Improved
September 25, 2024 8:30 am | by Cynthia Fox | CommentsBy adding just three compounds to the Nobel Prize-winning induced pluripotent stem cell recipe, a research group is reporting a huge 90 to 100 percent stem cell haul in under a week.
Two Anti-Ebola Vaccines in Historic Race
September 11, 2024 3:38 pm | by Cynthia Fox | CommentsOne of the most rapidly fast-tracked vaccines in history— an anti-Ebola “ChAd3” vaccine— just started clinical trial in humans, and may be done as soon as November. But a second fast-tracked anti-Ebola vaccine— called an “rVSV” vaccine— is hot on its heels.
ZMapp: Best Anti-Ebola Treatment Yet
September 4, 2024 3:05 pm | by Cynthia Fox | CommentsZMapp, an experimental drug that may have already have saved a few patients in Africa, is the most effective anti-Ebola therapy yet, according to a recent Nature paper on rhesus macaques monkeys.
Prominent Japan Stem Cell Center to Undergo Changes
September 2, 2024 3:55 pm | by Cynthia Fox | CommentsRiken Center for Developmental Biology (CDB), the prominent Japan institute where Haruko Obokata was found to commit misconduct on stem cell papers, will be halved, according to a Riken representative.
Making Bones from Beer Waste
August 28, 2024 8:30 am | by Skip Derra | CommentsAt first blush it is a bit disingenuous, using beer waste as a base material for new bone. But that is exactly what a multidisciplinary team of researchers in Spain has come up with in a process for making the substrate material on which bone can be regenerated.
Amid ALS Mania, Possible Drug Target Spotted
August 26, 2024 11:41 am | by Cynthia Fox | CommentsAs, all around them, everyone from Derek Jeter to the Kennedy family was dousing themselves in ice water for the ALS “Ice Bucket Challenge,” Harvard researchers announced last week they may have found an ALS therapy— or two.
Exercise Can Impact Breast Cancer Risk
August 25, 2024 3:38 pm | by Cynthia Fox | CommentsA large new study found that when post-menopausal women stop physical activity, their odds of developing breast cancer rise. But, the study also found that breast cancer risk drops surprisingly rapidly after exercise starts.
‘The Pill’ Shrinks Ovaries, Cuts Egg Numbers
August 21, 2024 2:44 pm | by Cynthia Fox | CommentsThe birth control pill significantly affects ovarian reserve— or the number of immature eggs in a woman’s ovaries— which can be a predictor of future fertility, according to a team in Denmark.
Autism, SPD Hit Different Brain Areas
August 14, 2024 11:10 am | by Cynthia Fox | CommentsChildren with sensory processing disorder (SPD) have decreased white matter brain connections in sensory regions very different from those with autism, say researchers. Their study is the first to compare, and find critical differences in, brain connectivity in autism versus SPD versus controls.
Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis: Hope, At Last
August 11, 2024 2:26 pm | by Cynthia Fox | CommentsThere have been stunning “firsts” in research on idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a mysterious disease that stiffens and stills the lungs, killing half its victims in three years. In May, results of Phase 3 clinical trials on the first two effective drugs for IPF were published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM). And in June, the first paper explaining IPF was published in Science Translational Medicine.
Advance in Capturing Elusive Circulating Tumor Cells
July 29, 2024 3:33 pm | by Cynthia Fox | CommentsWhen cancers spread into the bloodstream, they often take on different characteristics, requiring different therapies. But it is hard to find these rare blood-borne cells. So, relapsed patients often do not get personalized care. Now, researchers have come up with a solution that zeros in on elusive circulating tumor cells (CTCs).
Cloning Offers Intriguing Stem Cell-Making Tips
July 28, 2024 10:36 am | by Cynthia Fox | CommentsTwo recent studies— one human, one mouse— have found cloning creates better pluripotent stem cells than the Nobel Prize-winning induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) method. A third study also came out supporting the conclusions.
Long-Awaited, Global Trial of Fetal Cells for Parkinson’s
July 21, 2024 2:45 pm | by Cynthia Fox | CommentsIn two months, the first of many new Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients will receive a fetal cell transplant. The transplant will mark the end of a voluntary moratorium by many Western nations after complications arose a decade ago. This, combined with news that embryonic stem (ES) cell PD therapies may also near prime-time, made Parkinson’s a big topic at the recent International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR) meeting.
ISSCR: Promising Stem Cell Clinical Trials
July 17, 2024 1:22 pm | by Bioscience Technology Staff | CommentsMany promising clinical trials were highlighted at the annual meeting of the International Society of Stem Cell Research (ISSCR). One set of trials highlighted were monogenic gene therapy trials and cancer immunotherapy trials. Also discussed were trials for Parkinson’s disease, Multiple Sclerosis, and potential future trials involving cochlear stem cells.
