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Stem Cell ‘Collaboratory’ Opens on UC San Diego Campus
New facility allows researchers from five institutions to work under one roof
Stem cells are tiny things, microscopic in fact. It’s the power of their pluripotency, their ability to become any kind of cell in the human body (and thus potentially fix almost any kind of human ailment) that makes them huge in the future of medicine. By contrast, the new four-story Sanford Consortium for Regenerative Medicine building – dubbed a “collaboratory” – which celebrated its grand opening Nov. 29 – is indisputably massive: a $127 million, 150,000-square-foot modern edifice of glass and concrete perched above the Pacific Ocean and entirely dedicated to advancing and fulfilling the therapeutic promise of stem cells. More
The UC San Diego Stem cell Program invites members of the UCSD community, patient advocates, patients, caregivers, teachers, students and others to Stem Cell Awareness Day and a public forum on Wednesday, October 5 from 12-1pm entitled Stem Cell Science and Medicine: Advancing in California.
In celebration of Stem Cell Awareness Day, all are welcome to hear and discuss how we are building an impressive group of trained professionals, scholars, and doctors to attack disease and trauma using the multi-level approach that stem cell science, UCSD's experience with multi-disciplinary work, CIRM funding, and federal funding make possible.
Parking and logistic assistance can be organized so that we can meet the individual needs of those who would like to attend. Please contact Dr. Jennifer Braswell if you need special assistance at jbraswell@ucsd.edu; (858) 534-2412.
Watch A new Video that Shares the Promise and Progress of Stem Cell Research for Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS)
New Research at UCSD Aims at a New ALS Therapy
UCSD, the Salk Institute, and Life Technologies, Inc., are partners in the $11.5 million “disease team” grant from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM). The grant funds stem cell research for ALS that exploits a special type of cell called an astrocyte progenitor. Astrocytes are glial cells, a family of cells that support the proper functioning and insulation of neurons. The particular job of astrocytes is to help with neurotransmissions and neuronal metabolism. In ALS, the decay of astrocytes and other cells eventually causes neurons to malfunction and die, leading to a host of debilitating and ultimately fatal consequences. Larry Goldstein at UCSD, along with co-principal investigator Sam Pfaff, PhD, a professor in the Salk Institute’s Gene Expression Laboratory, hope to develop an ALS therapy that uses human embryonic stem cells to create astrocyte precursors that would be transplanted into patients where they would mature into new and healthy astrocytes that could halt – and perhaps reverse – the progressive ravages of ALS. More
"Lou Gehrig's Disease" or ALS -- Accurate Information about this disease
The UCSD Stem Cell Program invites interested families, supporters, and individuals to use the excellent, informative resources of the ALS Association for more information about ALS, treatment options, and support available. The San Diego Chapter offers many services for people in our area. More
ALS Disease Team on KPBS's " These Days"
A UC San Diego researcher, a clinician and a patient discuss the harsh realities of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis — and the potential of stem cell-based therapies — on “These Days,” a topical radio program on KPBS 89.5 FM in San Diego. The program airs June 22 at 9 a.m. Speaking with host Maureen Cavanaugh will be Don Cleveland, co-principal investigator of a new $11.5 million CIRM grant on ALS/stem cell research; Geoffrey Sheean, director of the neuromuscular division in UCSD’s department of neurosciences and a practicing physician who helped establish the ALS Center at the UCSD Medical Center in Hillcrest; and Dan Desmond, a retired Navy veteran who has battled ALS for four years. A live podcast of the These Days program can be heard on June 22 at 9 a.m. at www.kpbs.org, with a printed transcript to follow.
Stem Cell Center Asks Regents for Help
San Diego's stem cell consortium has abandoned efforts to get commercial financing for its planned research center. So the group has a new plan to get the project off the ground.
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UCSD Cheers Obama Stem Cell Order
Stem cell scholars at UCSD are applauding President Barack Obama's lifting of restrictions on federal funding for human embryonic stem-cell studies. After nearly eight years of frustration due to having to circumvent the Bush administration rules by way of state funding or private study grants, "now we can be a little bit more open with the research," says Karl Willert, Ph.D, who is the director of UCSD's Human Embryonic Stem Cell Core facility.
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Students Invited Inside World of Stem Cell Research
How do you become a scientist? Is it difficult? Is it like being on "ER" or "CSI"? These were some of the questions asked by scores of high school students who visited UC San Diego's stem cell research facilities Wednesday. The visit was part of the monthlong San Diego Science Festival, which aims to get youngsters excited about science. more
A New Era In Stem Cell Research
Scientists could expand their investigations and make new discoveries. Laboratories could get more equipment. A new building dedicated to stem cell research could get a boost. UC San Diego stands to reap significant benefits from an executive order signed by President Barack Obama this month lifting certain federal restrictions on stem cells research and from money earmarked for research in the federal stimulus package that became law last month. more
Stem Cell Program Applauds Executive Order
The UCSD Stem Cell Program is pleased to provide this link to President Obama's March 9, 2009 Executive Order, "Removing Barriers to Responsible Scientific Research Involving Human Stem Cells." more
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