Three scientists from Keck Medicine of USC have won grants exceeding $4.3 million from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) for research that includes creating a temporary liver for patients, finding novel ways to treat immune disorders and blood diseases, and developing new animal models for heart failure, diabetes and neurodegenerative diseases. The grants, …
In 2008, USC broke ground on an $80 million building dedicated solely to stem cell research and regenerative medicine. The plans called for a monolithic structure clad in black marble and reflective glass, rising five stories and enclosing nearly 90,000 square feet. When it was completed, the university had a stunning new contemporary research space …
Have you ever wondered how a scientific discovery in the laboratory becomes a new medical treatment for patients in the hospital? At the public symposium “Bringing Stem Cells to Patients – Treating Age-Related Blindness,” students, families, patients and local community members gathered on the lawn outside of USC’s stem cell research center to learn about …
If anyone has a clear vision of the power of stem cell cures, it’s Anna Kuehl. She suffered a retina-wrecking disease that cost her much of her sight before USC physicians surgically implanted stem cells to restore her ability to see. Today, she can see the letters on computer keys, use her iPhone and read …
Once upon a time, there was a little girl named Anna Kuehl who loved exploring the nature surrounding her home in the Bavarian Forest. Located northeast of Munich not far from the German-Czech border, this verdant landscape, called Bayerischer Wald, is a wooded, low-mountain region. Kuehl’s childhood took place in this idyllic setting, a beautiful …
Physicians and researchers at the USC Roski Eye Institute have collaborated with other California institutions to show that a first-in-kind stem cell–based retinal implant is feasible for use in people with advanced dry age-related macular degeneration. The results of their phase I/IIa study, which was funded in part by the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine …
How do clinical trials work? With the support of Proposition 71 and the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), California stem cell scientists at USC and elsewhere are developing a new generation of cellular therapies, which will come with unique challenges — and, hopefully, benefits — that differ from traditional drug-based medicine.
Americans for Cures produced a white board animation showcasing a clinical trial for age-related macular degeneration, led by USC Stem Cell researchers David Hinton and Mark Humayun:
Working alone, a scientist or university can only make so much progress in finding answers to basic questions or new treatments for diseases ranging from HIV to cancer to diabetes. That’s why nearly 300 scientists from USC, UCLA and UCSF gathered in Santa Barbara for a Tri-institutional Stem Cell Retreat. Hosted by USC at the …
David Hinton’s research is focused on developing novel therapies for age-related macular degeneration (AMD) – the leading cause of irreversible blindness in the elderly. He is approaching this goal in two main ways: (1) restorative cell therapy to replace cells already damaged, and (2) neuroprotection to prevent the retinal degeneration.
Few 10 year olds have brought 10 potential medical treatments into clinical trials. The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), however, is a truly exceptional 10 year old. In 2004, the people of California created CIRM to dispense $3 billion in voter-approved dollars to fund stem cell research in the state. Progress has been impressive. …
Video by Alric Devotta The students in the new PhD program in Development, Stem Cells, and Regenerative Medicine recently presented some ideas that would give Dr. Frankenstein a run for his money. For the summer course DSR 542 Principles of Developmental and Stem Cell Biology, eight teams of students presented elevator pitches and scientific posters …
Video by Ryan Ball For years, people were throwing away cells that could bring eyesight to the blind. These dark, blackened cells looked like spots of contamination in the petri dishes in which researchers around the world were carefully nurturing highly purified colonies of human stem cells. It took Keck School of Medicine of USC …
Keck Medicine of USC research to slow vision loss for macular degeneration patients has been funded as part of the third round of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine’s (CIRM) Disease Team awards. The nearly $19 million study is led by principal investigators Mark Humayun, professor of ophthalmology and biomedical engineering and cell and neurobiology …
