Scientists are recognizing the power of transmogrifying cells to do their bidding. Heck, we recently found that heart cells can be reprogrammed into “pacemaker cells” through gene therapy. But it can still be a quandary to figure out an efficient way of inserting the necessary transformative materials into the cell. Cambridge startup SQZ Biotech has a slick, vector-free […]
I have a confession to make . . . I’m only an intern at MedCity News. I just graduated high school and even though I’m young, I’ve already gotten a jump on my future as a journalist. Like many high school graduates, I want to change the world someday. There’s a secret to changing the […]
Munck Wilson Mandala Partner Greg Howison shared his perspective on some of the legal ramifications around AI, IP, connected devices and the data they generate, in response to emailed questions.
A wearable device that could transform how physicians diagnose the underlying causes of GI disorders is one of three innovative early stage life science companies Peter Thiel’s Breakout Labs is backing. The program from the Thiel Foundation provides up to $350,000 for companies to reach certain milestones critical to their development, according to a company […]
He’s only 15, but Intel International Science and Engineering Fair winner Nathan Han may be on his way to making some important advances in cancer research. His winning invention is a machine-learning software tool he’s been using to examine in detail the characteristics of several mutations of the BRCA1 gene, which produces tumor suppressor proteins. […]
In the latest stem cell innovation, a group of researchers from Stanford University successfully converted skin cells to stem cells to sperm cells, raising new questions about a potential path to treat infertility. The study was published in Cell Report. The research used skin samples from five men with a genetic mutation called azoospermia — a […]
When you hear about blood shortages, that doesn’t just mean there’s a shortage of donated red blood cells. It could also mean platelets, a blood component that Sven Karlsson described as Band-Aids of the bloodstream, because they’re necessary for blood clot formation to help stop bleeding. Karlsson is a co-founder and chief financial officer of […]
At the Abarca Forward conference earlier this year, George Van Antwerp, managing director at Deloitte, discussed how social determinants of health and a personalized member experience can improve medication adherence and health outcomes.
While donation-based crowdfunding has taken some industries, like consumer technology, by storm, it’s been dismissed by some as a source of early-stage life science funding because of the sky-high price tag that biotech and medical device R&D carries. Raising a few thousand dollars won’t really do much to get a company off the ground. But […]
By William T. Koustas – The litigation between Regenerative Sciences, LLC (“Regenerative”) and FDA may have come to an end on Tuesday, February 4th, when the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled against Regenerative, concluding that FDA has the authority to regulate certain autologous stem cells procedures. The D.C. […]
Remember mini-brains? The human body and pharma benefit from stem cells and miniaturization again with the advent of this life sciences innovation: ‘mini kidneys.’ Though scientists have grown kidney cells from stem cells before, scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies are the first to get human stem cells to form 3-D “cellular structures” […]
While Medtronic (MDT) is at work to launch its new artificial pancreas system, researchers at the University of Copenhagen have come up with a new 3-D method with potential to create mini human pancreas. It would be used to fight diabetes, allowing drugs to be tested quickly without using animals. The process uses a 3-D […]
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We can now grow complex human brain tissue in a test tube. Scientists in Vienna, Austria, used a method that allows pluripotent stem cells to develop into mini-brains (i.e., cerebral organoids) that even have several distinct brain regions, according to an article in this issue of Nature. While this year has seen 3-D printed miniature […]
Thanks in part to a SBIR Fast Track grant worth up to $2.8 million, stem cell company Athersys (Nasdaq: ATHX) is gearing up to advance its third MultiStem program into Phase 2 clinical trials. Cleveland-based Athersys develops an off-the-shelf biologic product made from adult stem cells that it’s applying to disease indications in inflammation, neurology […]
If you think you’ve heard about all the cool regenerative medicine uses for stem cells, think again. A group of researchers from Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health in China have used stem cells from urine to grow human teeth. According to a BBC News report: Cells which are normally passed from the body, such […]
StemBioSys, a San Antonio company that manufactures and develops stem cell technologies in the regenerative medicine field, has landed $2,377,802. It still seeks $5,622,198, according to the regulatory filing. The company is in a quiet period of funding right now, Chairman of the Board Dr. Steve Davis said. That period should end Aug. 5, so be […]
Apparently, there are still some Twitter holdouts in the science world. Ben Paylor writes on the Signals Blog: A recent piece in Regenerative Medicine by Lee Buckler argues that social media is still generally perceived as a tool of frivolity within the scientific community. The stance that Twitter is a time-consuming distraction, best suited for […]