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.

Cellular Insights Into Facial Morphogenesis

Mother Nature is an artist, but her craft of creating animal faces requires more than a paintbrush and palette. Such highly complex shapes originate from their respective transient neural crest cells.

12 Apr 2024

RNA Modification Offers Hope for Treating Neurological Diseases

The research team led by Yongchao C. Ma, Ph.D., at the Stanley Manne Children’s Research Institute at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, uncovered a fundamental biological mechanism that holds promise for the development of novel treatments for neurological disorders like spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) and autism, as well as various types of cancer.

5 Apr 2024

New Platform Reveals Individual Sensitivity to Disease-Causing Mutations

In humans, the exact same mutation in a specific gene can produce widely different outcomes. It's a bit like adding the same amount of salt to different recipes-;the effect on the finished dish can be quite different, depending on the mix of other ingredients.

4 Apr 2024

Autofluorescence Reveals Clues to Stem Cell Dormancy

With the help of a tool created at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, researchers can better study the various states of stem cells in the nervous system by utilizing the light naturally emitted by biological specimens.

28 Mar 2024

Study Sheds Light on Human Neocortex Evolution

Neurobiologists are certain that the neocortex is the defining factor that distinguishes humans.

28 Mar 2024

Researchers Identify RNA-Regulator Brat as Key Player in Restraining Tissue Regeneration

Some animals possess the remarkable ability to regenerate lost structures, exemplified by a lizard regrowing its tail.

20 Mar 2024

Reducing Iron May Reverse Stem Cell Aging

It is fascinating to learn how researchers at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the National Cancer Institute-designated Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center (MECCC) have discovered a way to prevent or even reverse the function of hematopoietic (blood-forming) stem cells (HSCs) as they age.

11 Mar 2024

Researchers Identify Proteins to Reprogram Fibroblasts into Limb Progenitor Cells

In a collaborative study, researchers from Kyushu University and Harvard Medical School have identified proteins that can turn or "reprogram" fibroblasts -; the most commonly found cells in skin and connective tissue -; into cells with similar properties to limb progenitor cells.

5 Mar 2024

SOX17 Gene Identified as Critical for Immune Evasion in Early-Stage Colon Cancer

One of the immune system's primary roles is to detect and kill cells that have acquired cancerous mutations.

29 Feb 2024

UMass Amherst Study Shows Promise in Retraining Immune Cells for Targeting Aplastic Anemia

Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst recently released a first-of-its-kind study that focuses on the rare autoimmune disorder aplastic anemia to understand how a subset of cells might be trained to correct the overzealous immune response that can lead to fatal autoimmune disorders.

28 Feb 2024

Study Provides Insights Into Molecular Mechanisms Underlying Healthy Aging in Drosophila

A new research paper was published in Aging (listed by MEDLINE/PubMed as "Aging (Albany NY)" and "Aging-US" by Web of Science) Volume 16, Issue 3, entitled, "The anti-aging effect of vitamin D and vitamin D receptor in Drosophila midgut."

28 Feb 2024

Scientists Develop First Full Model of Early Human Central Nervous System with Stem Cells

The first stem cell culture method that produces a full model of the early stages of the human central nervous system has been developed by a team of engineers and biologists at the University of Michigan, the Weizmann Institute of Science, and the University of Pennsylvania.

27 Feb 2024

Breaking Down the Complex Mechanisms of Neurodegeneration

By using a novel neuronal cell culture model, researchers at the University of Zurich have illuminated the complex mechanisms behind neurodegeneration.

23 Feb 2024

The Role of Ancient Retroviruses in Vertebrate Brain Evolution

According to a study published in the journal Cell, ancient viruses may have contributed to the development of myelin and, consequently, the large, complex brains.

16 Feb 2024

Korean Scientists Develop Cultured Beef Rice as Sustainable Protein Alternative

From lab-grown chicken to cricket-derived protein, these innovative alternatives offer hope for a planet struggling with the environmental and ethical impacts of industrial agriculture.

16 Feb 2024

Nutritional components guide intestinal stem cells and influence the aging process

The intestine's cellular balance is intricately maintained, and one factor that affects it is nutrition: eating a healthy diet increases the number of cells overall in the gut while fasting reduces it.

13 Feb 2024

Safer and More Effective Cell Therapy for Spinal Cord Injuries

For patients with spinal cord injuries, a small gadget developed by researchers at MIT and the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology may help to increase the efficacy and safety of cell therapy treatments.

8 Feb 2024

Accelerating the Approval Process for Cultivated Meat

Technological advancements are making cellular agriculture the production of meat from cells grown in bioreactors as opposed to gathered from farm animals a more attractive option for the food sector.

29 Jan 2024

Promoter Mutations and Their Association with Autism Risk

The RIKEN Center for Brain Science (CBS) employed genome mutation analysis to investigate the genetics of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in people and their families. They found that the way a certain type of genetic mutation contributes to the illness differs from that of ordinary mutations.