Cloning And Stem Cell News, Research and Resources - November 2007 Archives

Stem-Cell Transplant Increases Oxygen In Damaged Heart (11/30/2007)

Scientists have determined that stem cells transplanted into a damaged heart can increase the presence of oxygen at the site of injury, suggesting that such transplants might someday be used as therapy after heart attacks and for other diseases characterized by a lack of oxygen. ...> Full Article

Six Institutions to Focus on Stem Cells (11/30/2007)

Research institutions across Southern California have joined forces to advance stem cell research by establishing the Southern California Stem Cell Scientific Collaboration (SC3). ...> Full Article

Enzyme Mutation Disrupts Organ Growth (11/29/2007)

The cellular mechanism that turns DNA into all of the thousands of proteins that make up a human body is itself both intricate and interesting. A key player in the process--called transcription--is the enzyme RNA polymerase III. A new study reports that a mutation of this enzyme prevents cell division, but surprisingly, only affects the development of specific organs. It may also have a therapeutic application against cancer. ...> Full Article

Stem cell transplant can grow new immune system in certain mice (11/27/2007)

Researchers have taken a small but significant step, in mouse studies, toward the goal of transplanting adult stem cells to create a new immune system for people with autoimmune or genetic blood diseases. ...> Full Article

Researchers say new stem cell method has promise (11/26/2007)

Researchers from Wisconsin and Japan announced today they had reprogrammed adult human cells to act like embryonic stem cells, a discovery that researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine are calling a big step toward new therapies for disease. ...> Full Article

Gene therapy safety trial for childhood blindness under way (11/26/2007)

Three decades have passed since gene therapy pioneer William W. Hauswirth and his colleagues at the University of Florida began work on a virus that could safely deliver corrective genes into living animals. ...> Full Article

Breakthrough in Organ Rejection Diagnosis Examines Gene Behavior (11/25/2007)

New Research describes a revolutionary technique for more clearly identifying the possibility of organ rejection in kidney transplants. The technique, which uses a microarray or "Gene Chip," a process of examining DNA sequences, defines how major causes of organ disease leading to rejection share similar disturbances in gene behavior. The study is the first to show how gene sets, as opposed to single genes, can be used for diagnosis of rejection in individual patients, and offers new insight into the mechanisms of these gene changes. ...> Full Article

Scientists get up noses with squid gel (11/25/2007)

A squid-derived wound-healing gel is attracting attention from international medical companies, due to its unique blend of properties. ...> Full Article

'Micro' livers could aid drug screening (11/24/2007)

Researchers have devised a novel way to create tiny colonies of living human liver cells that model the full-sized organ. The work could allow better screening of new drugs that are potentially harmful to the liver and reduce the costs associated with their development. ...> Full Article

Engineered Skin Spurs Natural Healing (11/22/2007)

A team of Chinese doctors reported in a recent issue of Artificial Organs that skin they developed from neonatal foreskin heals wounds quickly and with minimal scarring. ...> Full Article

Scientists guide human skin cells to embryonic state (11/21/2007)

A team of researchers reports the genetic reprogramming of human skin cells to create cells indistinguishable from embryonic stem cells. ...> Full Article

Partnership formed to develop bone marrow stem cell technology (11/20/2007)

The University of Louisville Monday announced a partnership between the UofL Research Foundation and NeoStem Inc., a New York City-based adult stem cell company, to develop Very Small Embryonic-Like stem cell (VSEL) technology. ...> Full Article

Imaging Neural Progenitor Cells In The Living Human Brain (11/18/2007)

For the first time, investigators have identified a way to detect neural progenitor cells (NPCs), which can develop into neurons and other nervous system cells, in the living human brain using a type of imaging called magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS). The finding may lead to improved diagnosis and treatment for depression, Parkinson's disease, brain tumors, and a host of other disorders. ...> Full Article

'Fingerprints' help find genes involved in differentiation (11/16/2007)

A database that includes the molecular profiles of the major components of the blood system – including the stem cells and the cells differentiated from them – enabled researchers at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston to identify at least two genes involved in the differentiation process for two different kinds of blood cells. ...> Full Article

Scientists Create Primate Embryonic Stem Cells (11/15/2007)

Breakthrough viewed as a significant step forward in the development of human stem cell therapies ...> Full Article

Team of Scientists Develops Non-Invasive Method to Track Nerve-Cell Development in Live Human Brain (11/10/2007)

A team of scientists have identified and validated the first biomarker that permits neural stem and progenitor cells (NPCs) to be tracked, non-invasively, in the brains of living human subjects. This important advance could lead to significantly better diagnosis and monitoring of brain tumors and a range of serious neurological and psychiatric disorders. ...> Full Article

Seaweed Transformed Into Stem Cell Technology (11/9/2007)

Engineers develop degradable scaffold that releases stem cells in the body ...> Full Article

Hemoglobin's secrets uncovered could lead to better blood (11/8/2007)

Researchers have unveiled crucial information about the protein transporter of oxygen, which opens up the possibility to optimize its function by introducing modifications. ...> Full Article

Research Team Makes Progress Toward 'Printing' Organs (11/7/2007)

Biology-based process maintains cell properties and lets nature do the rest ...> Full Article

Everything you wanted to know about stem cells but were afraid to ask (VIDEO) (11/7/2007)

Excellent video about stem cell research produced for Google. Features guest speaker Daniel Kraft from the Stanford School of Medicine. Length: 52 Minutes. ...> Full Article

Researchers investigating potential for adult stem cells to repair damaged hearts (11/6/2007)

Doctors enrolling patients in a novel clinical trial investigating whether a patient's own stem cells can treat a form of severe coronary artery disease. ...> Full Article

Groundbreaking Researcher Joins Yale Stem Cell Center (11/3/2007)

Natalia Ivanova, a young scientist who has already made landmark contributions to stem cell research, will join the Yale School of Medicine Stem Cell Center as assistant professor of genetics and the first Robert McCluskey Yale Scholar. ...> Full Article

Researchers Find Elusive Stem Cells in Intervertebral Disc (11/2/2007)

Orthopedic researchers have for the first time found stem cells in the intervertebral discs of the human spine, suggesting that such cells might someday be used to help repair degenerating discs and remedy lower back and neck pain. ...> Full Article

Stem cells can improve memory after brain injury (11/1/2007)

New research is among the first to demonstrate that neural stem cells may help to restore memory after brain damage. ...> Full Article