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Charles (Chuck) Murry (Photo by Gavin Sisk/ University of Washington)

USC Stem Cell welcomes new leader, renowned physician-scientist Chuck Murry

Charles (Chuck) Murry, MD, PhD, has been appointed as the next head of USC Stem Cell. In that capacity, he will be the chair of the Department of Stem Cell Biology and …

National Academy of Inventors elects four Keck School of Medicine of USC faculty as senior members

The National Academy of Inventors (NAI), a nonprofit member organization that encourages inventors in higher education, has announced that four researchers from the Keck School of Medicine of USC are part of …

Rong Lu (right) and Du Jiang (Photo by Gal Manella)

USC Stem Cell study shows how gene activity modulates the amount of immune cell production in mice

As people age or become ill, their immune systems can become exhausted and less capable of fighting off viruses such as the flu or COVID-19. In a new mouse study funded in …

Oliver Bell and Daniel Bsteh

USC Stem Cell study throws our understanding of gene regulation for a loop

The blueprint for human life lies within the DNA in the nucleus of each of our cells. In human cells, around six and a half feet of this genetic material must be …

Building an Incubator for Medicine of the 21st Century

Building an Incubator for Medicine of the 21st Century

USC Stem Cell is pleased to introduce our new publication. We hope you’ll enjoy reflecting back on our history, while looking ahead to the transformative times to come. Read now at https://stemcell.keck.usc.edu/wp-content/themes/stemcell/incubator.

(Image courtesy of iStock)

$2 million grant boosts technological advancements in cutting-edge cell therapy manufacturing facility

The Keck School of Medicine of USC has received $2 million from the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) to further augment its newly launched cGMP Laboratory, a state-of-the-art facility designed to …

Peter Kuhn and researchers at the USC Michelson Center for Convergent Biosciences aim to revolutionize how breast cancer screening. (Image source: National Cancer Institute/Bruce Wetzel and Harry Schaefer.)

Could a simple blood test detect cancer?

Clinicians agree that cancer screenings, such as mammograms, offer the best hope of finding cancer before it’s out of hand. Unfortunately, screening is often uncomfortable and can require invasive techniques. It also …

Laura Perin (left) and Stefano Da Sacco (Image courtesy of CHLA)

Study offers new insights into how the most common kidney cancer starts in kids

Researchers at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles found new clues to how disruption of the early process of kidney formation may be linked to the development of Wilms tumor — also known as …

From left, study authors Jiya Eerdeng, Ivon Garcia, Rong Lu, Charles Bramlett, Mary Vergel-Rodriguez, and Yeachan Lee (Photo by Bowen Wang)

Why does a leukemic mutation not always lead to leukemia? A new clue from a mouse study at USC

Why do some people with a genetic mutation associated with leukemia remain healthy, while others with the same mutation develop the blood cancer? In a new study published in Blood, scientists from …

USC’s Convergent Science Virtual Cancer Center connects experts around the nation to find unconventional approaches to cancer research, diagnosis and treatment. (Image Source: iStock.)

The cancer solution we need: uniting experts from science, engineering and the humanities

Could a virtual cancer center that unites experts throughout the nation in fields as diverse as physics, molecular biology and the humanities be the key to advancing cancer treatments and ultimately a …

The new lab’s collaborative structure promises to play a key role in the development of groundbreaking advancements in health care. (Photo/Steve Cohn)

New USC/CHLA cGMP Lab opens to accelerate next-generation cell therapy

A new laboratory designed to advance early-stage research into lifesaving, commercially viable therapies was celebrated on the USC Health Sciences Campus Tuesday night. Housed at the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, the …

Rong Lu Lab (Photo by Chris Shinn)

Why multipotent progenitor cells matter for patients receiving bone marrow transplants

When patients receive bone marrow transplants, they are infused with complex admixtures of many different cell types with the power to regenerate their blood and immune systems. In a new study in …

Kuo-Chang (Ted) Tseng from the Crump Lab and Michelle Hung from the Ichida Lab enjoy a beachside brainstorm.

Scientists feel the sand between their toes at the retreat for USC’s stem cell department

A pair of young scientists picked up a piece of driftwood and thoughtfully traced a series of letters in the wet sand of Ventura Beach. The word “microglia”—referring to the immune cells …

Image courtesy of the Ostrow School of Dentistry of USC

Mini organs pave the way for understanding gastroesophageal cancer

USC researcher Dechen Lin has created miniature organs — with the hope of fighting a rare type of cancer. CANCERS THAT IMPACT THE JUNCTION of the esophagus and the stomach are rare …

Jean Chen Shih’s areas of expertise include brain development, autism spectrum disorder and repurposing antidepressants for brain cancer and prostate cancer. (Photo/Courtesy of the USC Alfred E. Mann School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences)

Pioneering pharmacy professor learned early to work hard and help others

Editor’s note: Title IX — the landmark legislation that prohibits sex discrimination in educational institutions that receive federal funding — was signed into law on June 23, 1972. In recognition of this anniversary, we’ll …

USC and CHLA awarded $8 million to expand access to cell and gene therapy clinical trials

The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), the state’s stem cell agency, has awarded a five-year, $8 million grant to the Keck School of Medicine of USC and Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA). …

Tianli "Sheldon" Ding

USC stem cell master’s program alumnus Tianli “Sheldon” Ding: Science saved his life at 21, and now this Trojan is on a mission

If Tianli Ding needed any confirmation that he was on the right path in life, he got in the form of a diagnosis: leukemia. When Ding was an undergraduate in college, stem …

From left, Albert Almada and Miller Huang

The Baxter Foundation celebrates promising research in muscle loss and pediatric cancer

For more than 60 years, the Donald E. and Delia B. Baxter Foundation has supported innovative biomedical research at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, each year granting $100,000 awards to …

Min Yu (Photo by Chris Shinn)

USC Stem Cell scientist Min Yu brainstorms new ways to beat breast cancer

For USC cancer researcher Min Yu, starting her lab meant building a culture of like-minded scientists. When she first joined the university as an assistant professor of stem cell biology and regenerative …

Tiffany Mays (Photo by Pam Williams)

Where are they now? Stem cell master’s program alumna Tiffany Mays, a PhD student studying cancer biology at Northwestern University

In this series of alumni profiles, we highlight graduates of USC’s master of science program in stem cell biology and regenerative medicine. Our accomplished alumni have pursued many different paths—ranging from a …