For the interview portion of the show, we talk to our very own Dr. Daylon James. In addition to hosting the Stem Cell Podcast, Daylon is an Assistant Professor at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City where he uses stem cells as a tool to investigate cardiovascular and reproductive disorders.

World Health Organisation Declares a Public Emergency of International Concern Over Zika – World Health Organization declared the Zika virus and its suspected link to birth defects an international public health emergency, a rare move that signals the seriousness of the outbreak and gives countries new tools to fight it.

2016 Was 10 Year Anniversary of Yamanaka iPSC Paper – This article discusses the 10 years of iPSC where Cell published the original iPS cell papers, in which Dr. Kazutoshi Takahashi, Dr. Shinya Yamanaka and colleagues showed that mouse and human fibroblasts can be reprogrammed into pluripotent stem cells by introducing into them four genes.

World’s First Baby with Three Genetic Parents Was Born – A five-month-old boy is the first baby to be born using a new technique that incorporates DNA from three people.

Stem Cells Can Make Oocytes – This paper reveals that scientists have for the first time reprogrammed murine embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells into fully functional oocytes in the laboratory.

CO2 Turns into Solid Stone When Pumped into the Ground – Researchers working in Iceland say they have discovered a new way to trap the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2) deep underground: by changing it into rock.

In Vivo Genome Editing Improves Muscle Function in A Mouse Model of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy – Exon 23 deletion by CRISPR/Cas9 resulted in expression of the modified dystrophin gene, partial recovery of functional dystrophin protein in skeletal myofibers and cardiac muscle, improvement of muscle biochemistry, and significant enhancement of muscle force.

Arctic and Antarctic Sea Ice Volumes Both Fall to an All-Time Low – Both the Arctic and Antarctic experienced record lows in sea ice extent in November, with scientists astonished to see Arctic ice actually retreating at a time when the region enters the cold darkness of winter.

Humans Are Now Getting CRISPR’d – This article reveals that a Chinese group has become the first to inject a person with cells that contain genes edited using the revolutionary CRISPR–Cas9 technique.

Proxima B – A newly discovered, roughly Earth-sized planet orbiting our nearest neighboring star might be habitable, according to a team of astronomers using the European Southern Observatory’s 3.6-meter telescope at La Silla, Chile, along with other telescopes around the world.

Major Stem Cell Discovery for Diabetes Retracted – One of the highest-profile researchers in diabetes has retracted a paper once heralded as a breakthrough, following multiple failed attempts to reproduce its headline-grabbing results.

Gravitational Waves – The first gravitational wave signal detected by Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory came from the merger of two black holes spiraling inward, as depicted in this numerical simulation.

Photo Reference: Courtesy of Dr. Daylon James

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