Category Archives: Stem Cell Research

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 16-Feb-2014 Contact: Bradley Olwin bradley.olwin@colorado.edu 303-492-6816 University of Colorado at Boulder New findings on why skeletal muscle stem cells stop dividing and renewing muscle mass during aging points up a unique therapeutic opportunity for managing muscle-wasting conditions in humans, says a new University of Colorado Boulder study. According to CU-Boulder Professor Bradley Olwin, the loss of skeletal muscle mass and function as we age can lead to sarcopenia, a debilitating muscle-wasting condition that generally hits the elderly hardest. The new study indicates that altering two particular cell-signaling pathways independently in aged mice enhances muscle stem cell renewal and improves muscle regeneration. One cell-signaling pathway the team identified, known as p38 MAPK, appears to be a major player in making or breaking the skeletal muscle stem cell, or satellite cell, renewal process in adult mice, said Olwin of the molecular, cellular and developmental biology department. Hyperactivation of the p38 MAPK cell-signaling pathway inhibits the renewal of muscle stem cells in aged mice, perhaps because of cellular stress and inflammatory responses acquired during the aging process. The researchers knew that obliterating the p38 MAPK pathway in the stem cells of adult mice would block the renewal of satellite cells, … Continue reading →

Boulder, CO (PRWEB) February 16, 2014 New findings on why skeletal muscle stem cells stop dividing and renewing muscle mass during aging points up a unique therapeutic opportunity for managing muscle-wasting conditions in humans, says a new University of Colorado Boulder study. According to CU-Boulder Professor Bradley Olwin, the loss of skeletal muscle mass and function as we age can lead to sarcopenia, a debilitating muscle-wasting condition that generally hits the elderly hardest. The new study indicates that altering two particular cell-signaling pathways independently in aged mice enhances muscle stem cell renewal and improves muscle regeneration. One cell-signaling pathway the team identified, known as p38 MAPK, appears to be a major player in making or breaking the skeletal muscle stem cell, or satellite cell, renewal process in adult mice, said Olwin of the molecular, cellular and developmental biology department. Hyperactivation of the p38 MAPK cell-signaling pathway inhibits the renewal of muscle stem cells in aged mice, perhaps because of cellular stress and inflammatory responses acquired during the aging process. The researchers knew that obliterating the p38 MAPK pathway in the stem cells of adult mice would block the renewal of satellite cells, said Olwin. But when the team only partially … Continue reading →

New stem-cell method offers another alternative to embryonic research By Nancy Frazier O'Brien Catholic News Service BALTIMORE (CNS) -- A new method of creating versatile stem cells from a relatively simple manipulation of existing cells could further reduce the need for any stem-cell research involving human embryos, according to leading ethicists. Although the process has only been tested in mice, two studies published Jan. 29 in the journal Nature detailed research showing success with a process called stimulus-triggered acquisition of pluripotency, or STAP. Scientists from Japan's RIKEN research institute and Harvard's Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston were able to reprogram blood cells from newborn mice by placing them in a low-level acidic bath for 30 minutes. Seven to 9 percent of the cells subjected to such stress returned to a state of pluripotency and were able to grow into other types of cells in the body. "If this technology proves feasible with human cells, which seems likely, it will offer yet another alternative for obtaining highly flexible stem cells without relying on the destructive use of human embryos," said Father Tadeusz Pacholczyk, director of education at the National Catholic Bioethics Center in Philadelphia. "This is clearly a positive direction … Continue reading →

Episode: Stem Cell Research Anchor Cat Andrea Cho interviews Anand Gadre, Director, Stem Cell Instrumentation Foundry. *Produced By Students First Center in partnership with Media Cats ... By: UC Merced Students First Center … Continue reading →

Disgraced Korean scientist receives stem cell research patent A former leading Korean geneticist has received a U.S patent on a controversial stem cell line that sparked a scandal nearly a decade ago. Hwang Woo-suk was ... By: ARIRANG NEWS … Continue reading →

Biomedical Ethics of Stem Cell Research February 12, 2014 Tulane University. By: Rachel Thompson … Continue reading →

Islam's Position on human embryonic stem cell research by Sh. Yasir Birjas 877-Why-Islam presents Islam's position on these unprecedented cases like human embryonic stem cell research? What are the rules to be followed when looking ... By: 877-Why-Islam … Continue reading →

Baltimore A new method of creating versatile stem cells from a relatively simple manipulation of existing cells could further reduce the need for any stem-cell research involving human embryos, according to leading ethicists. Although the process has only been tested in mice, two studies published Jan. 29 in the journal Nature detailed research showing success with a process called stimulus-triggered acquisition of pluripotency, or STAP. Scientists from Japan's RIKEN research institute and Harvard's Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston were able to reprogram blood cells from newborn mice by placing them in a low-level acidic bath for 30 minutes. Seven to 9 percent of the cells subjected to such stress returned to a state of pluripotency and were able to grow into other types of cells in the body. "If this technology proves feasible with human cells, which seems likely, it will offer yet another alternative for obtaining highly flexible stem cells without relying on the destructive use of human embryos," said Fr. Tadeusz Pacholczyk, director of education at the National Catholic Bioethics Center in Philadelphia. "This is clearly a positive direction for scientific research." Pacholczyk, a priest of the diocese of Fall River, Mass., who holds a doctorate in … Continue reading →

JEFFERSON CITY Medical workers would be protected if they refused to participate in procedures such as abortions, fertility treatments or stem-cell research under a bill given initial approval by the Missouri House. House Speaker Tim Jones, R-Eureka, said his bill protected the conscience rights of workers who did not want to provide specific, limited procedures that violated their religious beliefs. He said it also protected patients from having someone distracted while treating them. This is good for workers in giving them more rights. This is good for patients, Jones said. Do you want that person taking care of you who is not 110 percent invested in what theyre doing and is sitting there wondering if theyre violating their religious beliefs? The bill would prohibit retaliation from employers if an employee gave reasonable notice that they didnt want to participate in specific procedures. Jones said he had revised the bill from previous years to include exceptions for emergency situations. The procedures listed in the bill include abortion, abortion-inducing drugs, contraception, reproductive assistance, human stem-cell research, human cloning, non-medically necessary sterilization and fetal tissue research. Besides employees, the bill also protects institutions from being required to provide any procedure that violates its … Continue reading →

Research | Events | Policy | People | Facilities | Business | Trend watch | Journalism grant | Coming up Cancer genomics Tumour genome sequencing may identify targeted treatments for only a fraction of patients with advanced breast cancer, according to research published on 7February (F.Andr etal. Lancet Oncol. http://doi.org/rdh; 2014). Of 423 people studied, the authors identified only 13% with mutations that matched an available experimental treatment. The rate of successful therapy-matching falls short of claims from some tumour-sequencing companies, but researchers expect odds to improve as more drugs move into clinical trials. Sharing drug data Ten major pharmaceutical companies have agreed to share data from early-stage trials with each other and with academic researcher, as part of a US$230-million venture with the US National Institutes of Health. The Accelerating Medicines Partnership, announced on 4February, is designed to speed up identification of biomarkers and promising drug targets for four diseases: Alzheimers, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus and diabetes. Once the data are shared, the companies will be free to pursue proprietary research towards their own therapies. See go.nature.com/rn12cl for more. Frederic Stevens/Getty Illegal ivory crushed France destroyed 3 tonnes of poached ivory on 6February. It is the first European country to … Continue reading →