Carolyn C. Meltzer named dean of Keck School of Medicine of USC
USC leaders have named radiologist and nuclear medicine doctor Carolyn C. Meltzer as dean of the Keck School of Medicine of USC. Currently the William P. Timmie Professor and chair of the …
USC Stem Cell postdoc Aswathy Ammothumkandy recognized by the American Epilepsy Society
USC Stem Cell postdoctoral trainee Aswathy Ammothumkandy vividly recalls when the tour guide shared the story of Dolly the cloned sheep during her ninth-grade field trip to the regional science center in …
Keck School researchers honored for Fall 2021 BioRender Illustration competition
Z. Eda Atmaca, a PhD student in biomedical sciences/development and stem cell and regenerative medicine, was selected as the winner of the Fall 2021 BioRender Illustration competition. Priscilla Chan, a PhD candidate …
Study reveals common loud noises cause fluid buildup in the inner ear and suggests simple possible cure for noise-induced hearing loss
Exposure to loud noise, such as a firecracker or an ear-splitting concert, is the most common preventable cause of hearing loss. Research suggests that 12% or more of the world population is …
How alike are the cancer cells from a single patient?
Even within a single patient with cancer, there is a vast diversity of individual tumor cells, which display distinct behaviors related to growth, metastasis, and responses to chemotherapy. To carry out these …
California’s stem cell agency awards USC $5 million to train scientists and clinicians
USC has been awarded a $5 million training grant from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) to prepare PhD students, postdoctoral researchers, and clinical fellows for careers in stem cell research. …
California’s stem cell agency awards CHLA $5 million training grant
Stem cells are the seeds that grow our hearts, brains, lungs, intestines—every one of the body’s tissues and organs. By studying stem cells and their potential to replace damaged or dysfunctional cells, …
How does air pollution influence Alzheimer’s risk?
Higher exposure to air pollution is strongly associated with cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease, especially for people with certain genetic risk factors for the disease. Exactly how pollution interacts with these genes …
Drug-like molecule points to novel strategies for cancer therapy
A decade ago, genome sequencing revealed a big surprise: about 50 percent of human cancers are linked to mutations in what are known as epigenetic regulators, which control the activity of genes. …
USC Stem Cell: An incubator for medicine of the 21st century
Just over a decade ago, USC was a university with a few scattered stem cell biologists, and a vision for total transformation. The university was committed to designing a unique “incubator” for …
Cycles of a fasting-mimicking diet help mice live longer, healthier
While many diets have been studied for effectiveness in preventing obesity and heart disease in both mice and humans, research on the effects and benefits of short, periodic cycles of fasting on obesity and heart health are lacking. In a new USC study on the health effects of a low-calorie diet that mimics …
Aided by stem cells, a lizard regenerates a perfect tail for the first time in 250 million years
Lizards can regrow severed tails, making them the closest relative to humans that can regenerate a lost appendage. But in lieu of the original tail that includes a spinal column and nerves, …
Bérénice Benayoun receives prestigious investigator-focused grant
The Maximizing Investigators’ Research Award directly supports scientists, providing stability, flexibility and more opportunities for breakthroughs. The National Institute of General Medical Sciences has awarded an R35 Maximizing Investigators’ Research Award (MIRA) …
Children’s Hospital Los Angeles awarded $6.8 million five-year grant to help lead national consortium on healthy brain development
Groundbreaking 25-site study will follow thousands of children from multiple demographics before birth through early childhood. When children are sick, clinicians can consult a known standard for how their heart, lungs and …
2021 Call for Applications: CIRM Training Fellowships in Stem Cell Biology and Tissue Regeneration
We have several positions open for PhD students, postdocs, and clinical trainees who are conducting research related to developmental biology, stem cell biology, and/or regenerative medicine. Fellowships are open to all regardless …
Skeletal muscle grown in a dish offers new insight for neuromuscular diseases
Neuromuscular diseases are debilitating and mostly incurable, affecting 160 out of every 100,000 people worldwide. Disorders such as ALS and multiple sclerosis impact the function of muscles, causing muscle wastage and loss …
Keck School of Medicine of USC: A place where we all belong
Building a diverse, equitable and inclusive culture at the Keck School. For the betterment of the Keck School of Medicine community, an innovative initiative was conceived last year known as the JEDI-WeST …
Steve Shapiro brings a big-picture approach to medicine to USC
Steve Shapiro takes the macro view of medicine. This spring, he became the first senior vice president for health affairs at USC, where he will oversee — and build bridges between — clinical …
USC-led study traces the blueprints for how human kidneys form their filtering units
When it comes to building a kidney, only nature possesses the complete set of blueprints. But a USC-led team of scientists has managed to borrow some of nature’s pages through a comprehensive …
Study of skull birth defect takes it from the top
Contrary to the popular song, the neck bone is actually connected to one of 22 separate head bones that make up the human skull. These plate-like bones intersect at specialized joints called …