Tag Archives: embryonic

ePSC: A new type of pluripotent stem cell

Researchers at the University of California San Francisco have discovered a new type of stem cell. This does not happen every day, guaranteed. In fact, this discovery is potentially very important. Called an endogenous pluripotent stem cell (ePSC), it has much the same characteristics as embryonic stem cells, the ability to become almost any other [...]
Posted in News: Stem Cells | Also tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments closed

First clinical trial: Embryonic stem cells for spinal repair

Normally clinical trials, especially Phase 1 clinical trials (the ‘do no harm’ test) are not considered particularly auspicious. Lots of drugs and procedures never make it through this first step. Nor is a Phase 1 trial normally the stuff of media coverage. A Phase 1 trial of embryonic stem cells is another matter. Just when [...]
Posted in News: Stem Cells | Also tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Stem Cells: Using RNA to reprogram adult cells

To get around the problems of developing stem cells from embryonic material (problems mostly associated with ethical and religious considerations), biologists are researching a number of ways to produce stem cells from adult cells. Keep in mind that adult cells, for example skin or muscle cells, have already ‘set’ their form and function. Returning them [...]
Posted in News: Stem Cells | Also tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Induced stem cells: Not such good news…

It’s one of the hazards of reading science journalism, most of the news is positive – this advance, that breakthrough, etc. It’s easy to get the impression that a particular science – in this case research that creates pluripotent stem cells from adult (non-embryonic) cells – is rushing headlong to great things. It might be, [...]
Posted in News: Stem Cells | Also tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Research finding: Possibly a new way to create stem cells

Let’s describe this research backwards – from (potential) result to experiment. One of the most important areas of stem cell research involves how to make stem cells, bypassing the need for extracting and maintaining (controversial) embryonic stem cell lines. So far there have been two approaches. One way is to introduce adult cell nuclei into [...]
Posted in News: Stem Cells | Also tagged , , , | Leave a comment