Human Stem Cell Use: Embryonic Stem Cell
Role of the microenvironment in human iPS and NSC fate and tumorigenesis
Multipotent Neural Stem Cells (NSC) can be derived from adult central nervous system (CNS) tissue, embryonic stem cells (ESC), or iPSC and provide a partially committed cell population that has not exhibited evidence of tumorigenesis after long term CNS transplantation. Transplantation of NSC from these different sources has been shown by multiple investigators in different […]
Self-renewal and senescence in iPS cells derived from patients with a stem cell disease
The discovery of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell technology promises to revolutionize our understanding of human disease and to allow the development of new cellular therapies for regenerative medicine applications. The ability to reprogram a patient’s fibroblasts to iPS cells creates the opportunity to expand human cells with a specific genetic defect and to study […]
Molecular Characterization and Functional Exploration of Nuclear Receptors in hiPSCs
Our lab is known for its discovery of the family of nuclear hormone receptors (NHRs) that use vitamins/hormones to control genes and thereby regulate embryonic development, cell growth, physiology and metabolism. Of 48 known NHRs, we discovered that a unique subset of 38 receptors are expressed in adipose-derived human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs). The […]
Embryonic-Derived Neural Stem Cells for Treatment of Motor Sequelae following Sub-cortical Stroke
A stroke kills brain cells by interrupting blood flow. The most common “ischemic stroke” is due to blockage in blood flow from a clot or narrowing in an artery. Brain cells deprived of oxygen can die within minutes. The loss of physical and mental functions after stroke is often permanent and includes loss of movement, […]
Stem Cell-Derived Astrocyte Precursor Transplants in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a lethal disease lacking effective treatments, is characterized by the loss of upper and lower motor neurons. 5-10% of ALS is familial, but the majority of ALS cases are sporadic with unknown causes. The lifetime risk is approximately 1 in 2000. This corresponds to ~30,000 affected individuals in the United States […]
Cell Therapy for Diabetes
Diabetes exacts a tremendous toll on patients, their families, and society in general. Autoimmune Type 1 diabetes, often called juvenile-onset diabetes, is caused by a person’s own immune system mistakenly destroying their insulin-producing cells in the pancreas, known as beta cells. When those beta cells are lost, the ability to produce insulin in response to […]
Stem cell based treatment strategy for Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD)
Retinal degeneration represents a group of blinding diseases that are increasingly impacting the health and well being of Californians. It is estimated that by 2020, over 450,000 Californians will suffer from vision loss or blindness due to the age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the most common cause of retinal degeneration diseases in the elderly. AMD is […]
RNA Binding Protein-mediated Post-transcriptional Networks Regulating HPSC Pluripotency
Human embryonic stem cells (hESC) have the remarkable capacity to replicate indefinitely and differentiate into virtually any cell type in the human body. Maintaining this pluripotent cell state requires the precise control of hundreds, if not thousands of proteins in the cells, a process known as gene regulation. Recently it has been shown that adult […]
WNT signaling and the control of cell fate decisions in human pluripotent stem cells.
With their ability to develop into virtually all mature cell types, human pluripotent stem cells (hPSC) represent a unique and powerful research tool to study the fundamental mechanisms regulating human development. In addition, hPSC provide the “raw material” for the development of cell-based therapies of presently incurable diseases, such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, and neurodegenerative […]
Directing migration of human stem cells with electric fields
Great progress has been made in the last decades to derive many types of human stem cells for potential therapeutic uses. However, practical clinical use is severely limited by several challenges. One of which is the poor homing and integration of transplanted cells with the targeted host tissues – only very few transplanted stem cells […]