Broad Clinical Fellows take a stem cell-based approach to liver disease and bone loss
This year’s Broad Clinical Research Fellows are developing stem cell-based approaches for patients of all ages—from two-week-old infants with liver disease, to senior citizens with bone loss following joint replacement surgeries. Since …
USC Stem Cell PhD student Tracy Tran: Celebrating the journey of a budding developmental biologist
As a child in Vietnam, Tracy Tran helped her family run a small business importing porcelain products from China and assumed she would follow in their footsteps. Neither of her parents had …
USC scientist Ya-Wen Chen receives American Lung Association grant to advance stem cell-based lung therapies
USC Stem Cell scientist Ya-Wen Chen hopes to pioneer a new approach to regenerating damaged lung tissue, with support from a Catalyst Grant from the American Lung Association (ALA). The award provides …
USC alumna Rekha Prakash brings biotech background to Roosevelt High School
As a LAUSD biotechnology instructor at Roosevelt High School, Rekha Prakash works two short miles from USC’s Health Sciences Campus, where she earned her master of science degree in stem cell biology …
USC scientist Albert Almada puts muscle into stem cell research
USC Stem Cell scientist Albert Almada once had ambitions of becoming a catcher in a professional baseball league—until he was sidelined by a rotator cuff injury in his shoulder. “Life painfully closes …
USC Stem Cell scientist Amy Ryan studies diseases from cystic fibrosis to COVID-19
Scientist Amy Ryan has never lived according to a fixed plan. Instead, she has followed where life has led her—to a position as an assistant professor of medicine and stem cell biology …
Mohamed Abou-el-Enein named Executive Director of USC/CHLA Cell Therapy Program
Mohamed Abou-el-Enein, MD, PhD, MSPH, has joined the Keck School of Medicine as the inaugural Executive Director of the Joint USC/CHLA Cell Therapy Program. He began his post Jan. 4. Abou-el-Enein will …
From grains to brains, USC scientist Jianfu (Jeff) Chen uncovers the roots of disease
Although USC scientist Jianfu (Jeff) Chen now studies human neurological disorders, he was originally more interested in organisms without brains, such as rice and wheat. “When I was about to go to …
Is this the gamechanger we’ve been waiting for in craniosynostosis?
One of our every 2,500 infants born in the United States will suffer from craniosynostosis — a craniofacial defect caused by the premature fusion of the different bones that comprise the human …
Stem cells may correct deformity and restore brain function after childhood disorder
USC scientists have regenerated parts of the skull affected by a common birth defect called craniosynostosis. Using stem cells to regenerate parts of the skull, USC scientists partially corrected a skull deformity …
USC Stem Cell PhD Student Ruzanna “Rose” Shkhyan works to end inflamm-aging
USC PhD student Ruzanna “Rose” Shkhyan has gotten a first-hand look at how stem cell discoveries can lead to clinical trials. As member of the USC Stem Cell laboratory of Denis Evseenko, …
USC Stem Cell scientist Giorgia Quadrato receives a 2020 Mallinckrodt Grant
Giorgia Quadrato, an assistant professor in USC’s Department of Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, was recently awarded an Edward Mallinckrodt Foundation (EMF) grant to further her research about modeling human brain …
Can COVID-19 cause diabetes?
Can the novel coronavirus—SARS-CoV-2—cause diabetes? No one knows, but Senta Georgia, PhD, is trying to find out. Dr. Georgia, an investigator in The Saban Research Institute of Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, recently …
Flaws emerge in modeling human genetic diseases in animals
My lab, based at the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine, uses zebrafish to model human birth defects affecting the face. When I tell people this, they are often skeptical …
Brain development and disorder research receives $1.5 million NSF boost
The human brain is an incredibly complex organ to study in its living tissue form. Researchers cannot experiment on human tissue directly, and animal models are often too different to human physiology …
A high-tech look at rejection in pediatric liver transplants
Surgeon-scientist Juliet Emamaullee, MD, PhD, spends much of her time seeing patients and performing pediatric liver transplants at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. But you’ll also find her in the lab—studying how to …
Happy 10th anniversary to USC’s stem cell research center
On October 29, 2010, we opened the doors of the Eli and Edythe Broad CIRM Center for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research at USC. Today, on the 10th anniversary of the …
USC pediatric surgeon aims to heal infants using stem cells
Tracy Grikscheit helps babies with digestive disorders. Stem cells could help her develop life-changing treatments. It’s an instinct many surgeons have: Whatever you have to remove, replace it with something better. Something …
Treatment for Inflammatory bowel disease doesn’t always work; new study uncovers why
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) affects more than 70,000 children in the United States and the prevalence is rising. In fact, 25% of the 3.1 million individuals with IBD present before 21 years …
Pituitary puzzle gets a new piece, revising evolutionary history
Insights into century-old controversy about key gland’s development arise from research led by the Keck School of Medicine of USC A new USC-led study suggests a change to the developmental — and …