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Stories
Newborn cells in the epileptic brain provide a potential target for treatment
Over the years, everyone loses a few brain cells. A study led by scientists from USC Stem Cell and the USC Neurorestoration Center presents evidence that adults can replenish at least some …
Stem cell scientists explore the mysteries of regeneration at the Junior Faculty Candidate Seminar and Symposium
How can we regenerate tissues that are damaged, lost or diseased in the human body? This was the central question driving the four scientists who presented their research at the Junior Faculty …
For USC Stem Cell faculty member Rong Lu, science is in her blood
When Rong Lu joined USC as an assistant professor of stem cell biology and regenerative medicine in 2014, she knew that earning tenure would figuratively require blood, sweat and tears. But after …
Meet the scholarship winners in USC’s stem cell master’s program
For the second consecutive year, USC’s master’s program in stem cell biology and regenerative medicine has been able to offer scholarships to its talented students. Supported by the generosity of an anonymous …
Arthritis-related gene also regenerates cartilage in joints and growth plates
The IL-6 family of proteins has a bad reputation: it can promote inflammation, arthritis, autoimmune disease and even cancer. However, a new USC-led study published in Communications Biology reveals the importance of …
A crowning achievement in understanding head development
Cranial neural crest cells, or CNCCs, contribute to many more body parts than their humble name suggests. These remarkable stem cells not only form most of the skull and facial skeleton in …
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. …
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 …
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, …
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 …
USC Stem Cell scientists explore the latent regenerative potential of the inner ear
Scientists from the USC Stem Cell laboratory of Neil Segil have identified a natural barrier to the regeneration of the inner ear’s sensory cells, which are lost in hearing and balance disorders. …
USC Professor Scott E. Fraser redefines impossible problems
USC Professor Scott E. Fraser is known for inventing new microscopes and other tools to observe living, developing embryos. But one of his lab’s most important pieces of technology filters coffee instead …
USC Stem Cell study points to a common ancestor for cells involved in hearing and touch
The sensory cells in the inner ear and the touch receptors in the skin actually have a lot in common, according to a new study from the USC Stem Cell laboratory of …
USC Professor Megan McCain crafts an approach to tissue engineering
Megan McCain has always liked using her hands to create things, ranging from art projects to human heart cells that grow on silicon chips. “I’ve always loved building things and doing crafts, …
The same cell type can help or hinder repair after acute kidney injury
The USC Stem Cell laboratory of Andy McMahon has identified a type of injured cell that might contribute to the transition from an acute kidney injury to chronic kidney disease, as described …
The Baxter Foundation advances USC research on optic nerve disease and colorectal cancer
For over 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 two …
USC Stem Cell scientists make big progress in building mini-kidneys
A team of scientists at the Keck School of Medicine of USC has created what could be a key building block for assembling a synthetic kidney. In a new study in Nature …