Progenitor Cells News and Research

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New progenitor cells differentiate into mature cell types, prevent risk of unwanted tumors

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSC) can become any type of cell in the adult body, offering great potential in disease modeling, drug discovery and creating replacement cells for conditions ranging from cardiovascular to Alzheimer's disease.

11 Nov 2015

Understanding how schizophrenia affects workings of the brain

Stem cells from adult schizophrenia patients form new proteins more slowly than those from healthy people, according to new research.

10 Nov 2015

Stem-cell scientists discover new view of how human blood is made

Stem-cell scientists led by Dr. John Dick have discovered a completely new view of how human blood is made, upending conventional dogma from the 1960s.

6 Nov 2015

Prkci gene maintains balance in stem cell production

When it comes to stem cells, too much of a good thing isn't wonderful: producing too many new stem cells may lead to cancer; producing too few inhibits the repair and maintenance of the body.

31 Oct 2015

New magnetic field delivery method could help treat traumatic brain injury

Treating traumatic brain injury (TBI) using stem cell therapy is an important area of current research. However, injecting stem cells into the central nervous system has serious drawbacks, including intracranial hemorrhage and cells failing to reach TBI-affected areas of the brain.

30 Oct 2015

Asterias’ Phase 1/2a study evaluates dose escalation of AST-OPC1 for cervical spinal cord injury

Asterias Biotherapeutics, Inc. (NYSE MKT: AST), a biotechnology company focused on the emerging field of regenerative medicine, today announced that its Data Monitoring Committee has reviewed the initial safety data from all three patients in the first cohort and has recommended dose escalation to the second cohort.

20 Oct 2015

Stanford scientists identify a progenitor cell type that could repair damaged arteries

By tracking a single cell in a growing heart, scientists from Stanford University have discovered a cell type that could repair damaged arteries.

20 Oct 2015

Beta-catenin shows treatment target potential for TKI-resistant CML

Nuclear β-catenin could be a treatment target for patients whose chronic myeloid leukaemia is resistant to tyrosine kinase inhibitors independent of additional BCR–BL1 mutations, US researchers suggest.

1 Oct 2015

Keck School of Medicine of USC researcher wins first Hearst Fellowship

Albert D. Kim, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow at the Eli and Edythe Broad Center for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research at the University of Southern California, is the first Keck School of Medicine of USC researcher to win a Hearst Fellowship for his work investigating how to turn stem cells into nephrons, the functional units of the kidney.

26 Sep 2015

Study demonstrates potential of FCPCs as new source for cartilage regeneration

The self-repair of injured cartilage is difficult for several reasons, foremost of which is the lack of blood supply to the tissue. Therapeutic efforts aimed at cartilage repair are often not optimal. Surgical repair techniques often lead to the formation of fibrocartilage, which is weaker and less durable. Although cell transplantation aimed at cartilage repair has been carried out using mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), varying outcomes have resulted, despite the propensity of MSCs to proliferate and differentiate.

23 Sep 2015

Exosomes provide a promising way to induce human stem cell differentiation

Regenerative medicine using stem cells is an increasingly promising approach to treat many types of injury. Transplanted stem cells can differentiate into just about any other kind of cell, including neurons to potentially reconnect a severed spinal cord and repair paralysis.

16 Sep 2015

Researchers find intrinsic differences in mice’s neural stem cells using image-tracking technology

One of the longstanding debates in science, that has, perhaps unsurprisingly, permeated into the field of stem cell research, is the question of nature versus nurture influencing development.

4 Sep 2015

Variation in genetic mechanism increases fat storage and drives obesity

A specific gene region has long been suspected of contributing to obesity in humans but the precise mechanisms behind this were previously unclear. Now, researchers at the Technical University of Munich (TUM), Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Harvard Medical School and other partners have been able to show that a single genetic alteration in this region reduces thermogenesis (fat burning), instead increasing lipid storage.

24 Aug 2015

Researchers evaluate use of human fetal progenitor tenocyte to repair tendon injuries

Tendon injuries, especially those acquired while engaging in sports, are not easily healed due to the fibrous nature of tendon tissues which transmit forces from muscle to bone and protect surrounding tissues against tension and compression. Tendon injuries to wrists, knees, elbows and rotator cuffs, often from over use when playing golf or tennis, are increasingly common for both professional and amateur athletes ("weekend warriors") alike.

21 Aug 2015

Researchers uncover genetic circuit involved in obesity

Like many other conditions, obesity is caused by an interplay between genetic and environmental factors. While efforts to combat the obesity epidemic will need to include changes in diet and exercise, insights into the genes involved may also help with prevention and treatment.

20 Aug 2015

Rush researchers explore new stem cell therapy to treat spinal cord injuries

Researchers at Rush University Medical Center are exploring a new therapy using stem cells to treat spinal cord injuries within the first 14 to 30 days of injury. Rush is only the second center in the country currently studying this new approach.

14 Aug 2015

First clinical trial to test use of retinal progenitor cells for treating retinitis pigmentosa begins

Participants are being enrolled in the first clinical trial that tests the use of retinal progenitor cells to treat retinitis pigmentosa, reported project director Dr. Henry Klassen of UCI's Gavin Herbert Eye Institute and Sue & Bill Gross Stem Cell Research Center. The product of stem cell research at UCI, these retinal progenitors are similar to stem cells in terms of potential regenerative properties, but they're specific to the retina.

13 Aug 2015

Embryonic stem cells may help researchers to study physiological effects of environmental pollutants on human health

A recent study published in the Journal of Environmental Sciences shows that embryonic stem cells could serve as a model to evaluate the physiological effects of environmental pollutants efficiently and cost-effectively.

11 Aug 2015

Researchers develop new technology to track DNA-protein binding in live cells

Researchers have developed a new technology that precisely marks where groups of regulatory proteins called transcription factors bind DNA in the nuclei of live cells.

7 Aug 2015

NFIX protein drives NSC differentiation toward oligodendrocytes

An international team of researchers has shown that NFIX, a protein that regulates neuronal stem cell activity (NSC), also has a role in driving NSC differentiation toward oligodendrocytes, a type of glial cell. These cells produce the myelin that surrounds and protects neurons.

7 Aug 2015