Disease-in-a-dish model to improve treatments
August 4, 2016 | Categories: Research |Scientists’ ability to guide cell growth drives one vision of healthcare’s future Say you’re sick. You head to your doctor and discuss personal details about your body. The doc thoughtfully checks your symptoms, maybe administers a test or two, and then delivers a diagnosis. When it’s time to recommend treatment, though, “personal” probably will yield […] Read More
With CRISPR, Modeling Disease in Mini Organs
May 6, 2016 | Categories: Research |Traditionally, gene therapy efforts have attempted to treat genetic diseases by modifying DNA inside a patient’s body, but it has been a challenge to deliver the genetic material to all the target tissue, let alone to do so safely. But in recent years, advances in gene editing and stem cell research have enabled scientists to […] Read More
Stem cell research gets undergrads out of classroom
March 23, 2016 | Categories: Research |Students help conduct intensive, real-world research at UW Medicine lab UW undergraduate Randy Lu grasps a pair of tweezers in each hand. His fingers make imperceptible movements as he dissects the tiny abdomen of a fruit fly. The tweezers and Lu’s hands look garishly large next to the insect, which is a mere speck in […] Read More
Study tells of cancer patient’s unprecedented level of care
January 25, 2016 | Categories: Research |32 researchers at 14 institutions joined to identify personalized treatment options for woman with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer A new report documents one cancer patient’s experience with an unprecedented level of individualized care, provided through the University of Washington Center for Cancer Innovation. In the study, 32 experts from 14 institutions teamed to identify potential interventions for a patient […] Read More
Changes in metabolites can regulate earliest stages of development
November 16, 2015 | Categories: Research |Changes in cellular metabolites have been shown to regulate embryonic stem cell development at the earliest stages of life. Metabolites are simple compounds generated during life-sustaining chemical activities in cells. The recent findings, discovered by members of the Ruohola-Baker Lab, should improve scientists’ ability to use embryonic stem cells to grow new tissues and organs to replace […] Read More
Mini-kidney organoids re-create disease in lab dishes
October 23, 2015 | Categories: Research |Stem-cell biology and gene editing advances offer hope for kidney regeneration, drug discovery Mini-kidney organoids that re-create human kidney disease have now been grown in laboratory petri dishes. The achievement, believed to be the first of its kind, resulted from combining stem cell biology with leading-edge gene-editing techniques. The journal Nature Communications reports the findings […] Read More
Struggling to save black rhinos, scientists are crowdfunding to preserve their DNA
July 13, 2015 | Categories: Research |Ntombi is a six-year-old black rhino from South Africa, one of around 5,000 black rhinos left in the wild. She’s also the starting point for what a team of scientists hope to be a “bio-bank” of genetic information that could be used to save the species. ISCRM’s Interim Director, Chuck Murry, is a member of the team. Ntombi would […] Read More
Molecular switch matures heart cells derived from stem cells
May 12, 2015 | Categories: Research |Discovery may prove a major advance in the development of stem cell treatments for heart disease A molecular switch that seems to be essential for embryonic heart cells to grow into more mature, adult-like heart cells has been discovered. The discovery should help scientist better understand how human hearts mature. Of particular interest to stem […] Read More
Dying cells can protect their stem cells from destruction
May 11, 2015 | Categories: Research |An SOS signal from dying daughter cells allows their mother stem cells to protect themselves from radiation and chemotherapy damage Cells dying as the result of radiation exposure or chemotherapy can send a warning to nearby stem cells. The chemical signal allows the stem cells to escape the same fate, University of Washington researchers report […] Read More
Injection of marrow stem cells into the heart is proven ineffective
April 21, 2015 | Categories: Research |Marrow stem cells were injected into failing hearts of 6 patients awaiting transplantation A small study by University of Washington researchers has found no sign that bone-marrow stem-cell injections stimulated repair in the damaged hearts of patients awaiting transplantation. The results were published in the Journal of the American Academy of Cardiology. Dr. April Stempien-Otero, UW associate professor of […] Read More