Public release date: 30-Jan-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Krista Conger kristac@stanford.edu 650-725-5371 Stanford University Medical Center STANFORD, Calif. ? Mouse skin cells can be converted directly into cells that become the three main parts of the nervous system, according to researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine. The finding is an extension of a previous study by the same group showing that mouse and human skin cells can be directly converted into functional neurons. The multiple successes of the direct conversion method could refute the idea that pluripotency (a term that describes the ability of stem cells to become nearly any cell in the body) is necessary for a cell to transform from one cell type to another. Together, the results raise the possibility that embryonic stem cell research and another technique called "induced pluripotency" could be supplanted by a more direct way of generating specific types of cells for therapy or research. This new study, which will be published online Jan. 30 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, is a substantial advance over the previous paper in that it transforms the skin cells into neural precursor cells, as opposed to neurons. While … Continue reading →

12-12-2009 13:45 What are stem cells? - An short educational film by the Irish Stem Cell Foundation Stem cells are master cells of the body — want to learn more? Visit http://www.irishstemcellfoundation.org ISCF is an independent not-for-profit organisation whose primary objective is to educate about stem cells, their basic biology and the research and therapies using them. The Foundation will initially focus on education outreach programs, hoping to address the growing problem of bogus stem cell scams being offered to Irish patients over the internet. The Foundation will also assist the development of Irish policy and legislature in this area of medicine and science, ensuring Ireland is informed. The Foundation consists of a broad range of people including Irish doctors, scientists, patient advocates, educators, bioethicists and other associated parties seeking to expand and develop the Irish public's understanding of stem cells. Read the rest here: What are stem cells? How can they be used for medical benefit? - Video … Continue reading →

Celebrated adult stem cell researcher Shinya Yamanaka will deliver a lecture, ‘New era of medicine with iPS cells', here on Monday as part of a three-city lecture series. Prof. Yamanaka's scientific breakthrough was the creation of embryonic-like stem cells from adult skin cells. The lecture by this Japanese physician is the third edition of The Cell Press-TNQ India Distinguished Lectureship Series. He will also deliver it in Chennai on February 1 and New Delhi on February 3. The lecture series is co-sponsored by Cell Press and TNQ Books and Journals. Quantum leap The stated goal of Prof. Yamanaka's laboratory has been to generate pluripotent stem cells from human somatic cells. The ability to re-programme adult cells back into an earlier, undifferentiated state has helped to reshape the ethical debate over stem cell research by providing an approach to obtain pluripotent stem cells that need not be harvested from an embryo. Prof. Yamanaka, who was awarded the Albert Lasker Prize in 2009 and the Wolf Prize in 2011, is the director of the Centre for iPS Cell Research and Application and professor at the Institute for Frontier Medical Sciences at Kyoto University. He is also a senior investigator at the UCSF-affiliated … Continue reading →

JUPITER, Fla., Jan. 23, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- BioRestorative Therapies, Inc. (OTCQB: BRTX.PK - News) ("BRT") today announced that it will be presenting at the Seventh International Conference on Cell Therapy for Cardiovascular Disease. The event, being held at the New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center, is a two-and-a-half-day conference dedicated to the evolving field of cell-based therapies for the repair and regeneration of cardiac and vascular disease. Dr. Amit Patel, Director of Clinical Regenerative Medicine and Tissue Engineering at the University of Utah and a member of the BRT Scientific Advisory Board, will be presenting his findings relating to brown fat stem cells and metabolic disorders (one of BRT's stem cell initiatives). His talk, entitled "Metabolic Syndrome: A Role For Cell Therapy," will be on Wednesday, January 25th at 1:50 PM. Mark Weinreb, Chairman and CEO of BRT, has also been selected to serve on an industry panel and will discuss BRT's ThermoStem™ Program and the use of brown fat stem cells as potential therapeutics.  The session will be held on Thursday, January 26th from 3:15-4:15 PM. BRT is involved in a research initiative focusing on the use of Brown Fat stem cells to potentially treat metabolic disorders and obesity that … Continue reading →