Stem Cells News and Research

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Stem cells have the remarkable potential to develop into many different cell types in the body during early life and growth. In addition, in many tissues they serve as a sort of internal repair system, dividing essentially without limit to replenish other cells as long as the person or animal is still alive. When a stem cell divides, each new cell has the potential either to remain a stem cell or become another type of cell with a more specialized function, such as a muscle cell, a red blood cell, or a brain cell.

Researchers identify earliest neuron in the embryonic human cerebral cortex

Researchers at Yale School of Medicine and the University of Oxford have identified the very first neurons in what develops into the cerebral cortex, the part of the brain that makes humans human.

24 Jul 2006

Researchers identify potential ovarian cancer stem cells

Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers have identified potential ovarian cancer stem cells, which may be behind the difficulty of treating these tumors with standard chemotherapy.

21 Jul 2006

Bush adopts the so-called moral high ground and chooses to ignore scientific advice

The American President George W. Bush has used his presidential veto for the first time to block further federal taxpayers money from being used for embryonic stem-cell research.

20 Jul 2006

Study establishes safety of spinal cord stem cell transplantation

Transplanting human embryonic stem cells does not cause harm and can be used as a therapeutic strategy for the treatment of acute spinal cord injury, according to a recent study by UC Irvine researchers.

19 Jul 2006

Researchers isolate rare cancer stem cells that cause leukemia

Researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Children's Hospital Boston and their colleagues have isolated rare cancer stem cells that cause leukemia in a mouse model of the human disease.

18 Jul 2006

Researchers discover two-way communication and stimulation between blood stem cells and T cells

When a transplant patient suffers complications such as graft rejection or graft-versus-host disease, physicians attempt to stop the body's immune response by targeting a patient's T cells.

13 Jul 2006

Human hair follicles found to be a new source of adult stem cells

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have isolated a new source of adult stem cells that appear to have the potential to differentiate into several cell types.

12 Jul 2006

Natural mechanism protecting tissue allografts from rejection

A molecule expressed during pregnancy seems to turn down the immune system, making it more tolerant of welcome visitors such as a fetus or maybe a transplanted heart, researchers say.

10 Jul 2006

World-first stem cell research may help male infertility

Scientists have shown for the first time that sperm grown from embryonic stem cells can be used to produce offspring.

10 Jul 2006

Mice sperm grown in a lab produces baby mice

In ground breaking research scientists have for the first time produced mice using sperm grown in the laboratory from embryonic stem cells.

10 Jul 2006

Research may pave the way for alternative treatments using cell replacements instead of organ transplants for those with liver failure

University of Edinburgh scientists have identified primitive liver cells -possibly dormant from the earliest developmental stage of a human being - which have the potential to mature into different cells types and help repair a failing liver.

9 Jul 2006

Birth of IVF baby to 62 year old mother causes controversy

The birth of a baby boy to a 62 year old mother following IVF treatment from Italian fertility expert Professor Severino Antinorihas has caused controversy in the UK.

9 Jul 2006

Study shows eggs survive in older ovaries

In research that could have broad implications for women's fertility treatments, scientists have found that despite their age, female mice have a renewable egg supply in their ovaries.

5 Jul 2006

Dopamine drug leads to new neurons and recovery of function in Parkinson's

In preliminary results, researchers have shown that a drug which mimics the effects of the nerve-signaling chemical dopamine causes new neurons to develop in the part of the brain where cells are lost in Parkinson's disease (PD).

5 Jul 2006

Dopamine drug may lead to new ways of treating Parkinson's and other neurodegenerative diseases

Researchers have shown that a drug which mimics the effects of the nerve-signaling chemical dopamine causes new neurons to develop in the part of the brain where cells are lost in Parkinson's disease

4 Jul 2006

Female mice found to have a renewable egg supply

In research that could have broad implications for women's fertility treatments, scientists have found that despite their age, female mice have a renewable egg supply in their ovaries.

4 Jul 2006

Researchers develop T-cells from human embryonic stem cells

Human embryonic stem cells can be genetically manipulated and coaxed to develop into mature T-cells, raising hopes for a gene therapy to combat AIDS.

3 Jul 2006

Potential permanent genetic cure for hemophilia A

A discovery by Medical College of Wisconsin and BloodCenter of Wisconsin researchers in Milwaukee may be a key to a permanent genetic cure for hemophilia A patients, including a subset who do not respond to conventional blood transfusions.

3 Jul 2006

Bone marrow adult stem cells repair a damaged heart

Researchers at the McEwen Centre for Regenerative Medicine at Toronto General Hospital have discovered the 'SOS' distress signal that mobilizes specific heart repair cells from the bone marrow to the injured heart after a heart attack.

3 Jul 2006

Stem-cells may help the body cure itself

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have identified an important mechanism that regulates how many new cells are produced by each intestinal stem cell.

26 Jun 2006