Video Topic: Stem Cell Basics
Stem Cell Clinical Trials: 4 Things to Know
If you’re thinking about taking part in a stem cell clinical trial, it can be difficult finding one that’s right for you. Watch our animated video to learn about the 4 things you should know before you sign up for a trial.
Hans Keirstead Talks About Hurdles in Developing a New Therapy
Earl J. Beadle Productions, Inc. Stem cells have the potential to treat a wide range of diseases, but developing those cures is a process that has many hurdles. Dr. Hans Keirstead has a CIRM grant to develop a treatment for spinal cord injury. He is co-director of the Sue and Bill Gross Stem Cell Research […]
Jerome Zack Talks About Creating iPS Cells
Earl J. Beadle Productions, Inc. In 2006 scientists learned how to create a pluripotent stem cell out of a human skin cell. These cells, called induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells have many of the characteristics of embryonic stem cells including the ability to create mature cell types. Dr. Jerome Zack has CIRM grants to create […]
Irv Weissman Talks About the Difference Between Adult and Embryonic Stem Cells
Jack Hubbard The simple term “stem cell” actually refers to many different types of cells. The tissue-specific stem cells, or adult stem cells, replenish tissues throughout our lives. Embryonic stem cells exist only briefly in early development before tissues begin to form. Irv Weissman discovered the first tissue stem cells and has helped develop new […]
Mark Mercola Talks About Differentiating Cells into Adult Tissues
Blue H2O Productions A major challenge in developing stem cell-based cures for disease is maturing those cells into adult cell types that can be used for transplantation or to study human disease. Dr. Mark Mercola has a CIRM grant to derive heart muscle cells from embryonic stem cells. These cells could one day be used […]
Martin Pera Talks About the Need to Create New Embryonic Stem Cell Lines
Earl J. Beadle Productions, Inc. On August 9, 2001, President Bush announced that only embryonic stem cell lines created before that date could be used in federally funded research. These pre-existing lines have proven insufficient for most research. Many have genetic defects, don’t grow well in the lab, represent just a narrow slice of human […]
Amander Clark Talks About Creating Embryonic Stem Cell Lines
Earl J. Beadle Productions All embryonic stem cell lines in use in labs around the world come from embryos that were donated by people who had gone through in vitro fertilization. Amander Clark has a CIRM grant to develop new lines that are suitable for transplantation therapies. She also uses the lines to study infertility. […]
Robert Blelloch Talks about Creating Embryonic Stem Cell Lines Through SCNT
Jack Hubbard One method of creating new embryonic stem cell lines involves placing the nucleus from an adult cell into an egg and allow that egg to divide. This process, called nuclear transfer, has worked in many animals but hasn’t yet been successful in humans. Dr. Robert Blelloch has worked on nuclear transfer in mice […]
Peter Donovan Talks about Maintaining Stem Cell Lines in the Lab
Earl J. Beadle Productions, Inc. Stem cell researchers are still learning the best ways of maintaining stem cells in the lab. Dr. Peter Donovan has a CIRM grant to study ways of growing and expanding stem cells for therapies or drug screening (here is a list of all of Donovan’s CIRM awards). He is co-director […]
Fred H. Gage Talks About Using Embryonic Stem Cells to Model Disease
Blue H2O Productions Embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells offer the first glimpse of how cells such as neurons develop from their embryonic state, giving researchers a way of studying both how the cells develop normally and what goes wrong in many different diseases. This novel way of studying diseases could lead to […]