Stem Cells

Goosebumps are a weird quirk of our bodies that science doesn’t fully understand. Now, researchers at Harvard have uncovered a biological reason for the reaction: it’s our bodies’ way of stimulating stem cells to drive new hair growth.

Vertex and CRISPR Therapeutics presented new data from one of the first trials testing gene-editing therapy in human subjects. Fifteen months on from first patient treatment, the therapy is showing remarkable efficacy treating two rare blood diseases.

Stem cells are powerful tools that could one day unlock new frontiers in regenerative medicine. Now, a new study has shown that a certain type of stem cell can be delivered into injured tissues with dissolvable microneedles, to heal wounds.

Imagine needing a liver transplant and, instead of waiting for a donor, a new one could just be grown from your own skin cells. In a big step towards this, mini human livers grown from stem cells have been successfully transplanted into rats.

In a clinical trial, a baby in Japan has received the world’s first successful transplant of new liver cells derived from embryonic stem cells. The “bridge treatment” kept the infant healthy until old enough to receive a liver transplant.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a debilitating disease that affects the central nervous system. Now, a new study from the University of Rochester has shown that its effects may be prevented and even reversed in mice, by transplanting certain brain cells.

Researchers have shown a stem-cell-based topical solution can regrow hair in both male and female subjects with common pattern baldness. The small trial found the treatment both safe and effective, with larger trials hoped to validate the results.

Washington University scientists working on techniques to turn stem cells into pancreatic beta cells are now reporting another exciting breakthrough, combining them with the CRISPR gene-editing tool to reverse the disease in mice.

Adding to our pool of knowledge around exercise and aging is a team of medical scientists at Stanford University, which has demonstrated how regular exercise can breathe new life into the stem cells responsible for muscle repair in old mice.

Stanford scientists may have found a way to essentially return older cells to a more youthful state. The adult cells are treated with a mix of proteins from early embryonic development, which removes many of the molecular signs of aging.

One emerging treatment for diabetes involves converting stem cells into beta cells that secrete insulin. Now scientists have developed a more efficient method, and implanting these cells in diabetic mice functionally cured them of the disease.

A combination of two commonly used drugs may boost the release of stem cells from bone marrow and accelerate the healing of broken bones. The researchers suggest clinical trials could progress rapidly as the drugs have already been shown to be safe.