Stem Cell Channel (Video)

Cognitive resilience depends on how the brain responds to environment, aging, and inflammation. J. Tiago Gonçalves, Ph.D., studies the hippocampus to examine how spatial memory is shaped by factors such as cognitive enrichment, exercise, social interaction, disease, and age. Gonçalves explains how adult neurogenesis and microglia help support the brain’s ability to encode information, and how disruptions in these systems can affect memory. He also shows that aging and systemic inflammation can weaken spatial encoding while still revealing signs of adaptation and recovery over time. By connecting brain plasticity, immune activity, and memory formation, Gonçalves presents a broader view of how cognition changes across the lifespan and how these mechanisms may inform future strategies for addressing cognitive decline Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Show ID: 40848]

Alpha Clinics in California accelerate the development of regenerative medicine therapies that use cells and genes to treat serious diseases. Patient advocate Tara Radcliffe Ghiglieri shares lived experience with gene therapy, while Sheldon Morris, M.D., M.P.H., Mehrdad Abedi, M.D., Daniela A. Bota, M.D., Ph.D., Catriona Jamieson, M.D., Ph.D., Michael Lewis, M.D., Mark Walters, M.D., and Leo D. Wang, M.D., Ph.D., describe how Alpha Clinic teams design and deliver clinical trials for a wide range of conditions, including cancer, blood disorders, neurologic disease, osteoarthritis, metabolic disorders, pulmonary arterial hypertension, and Duchenne muscular dystrophy. They highlight how coordinated networks, community partnerships, and genomic tools help expand access, lower financial barriers, and bring promising cell and gene therapies to more patients while carefully tracking safety, effectiveness, and long-term outcomes. Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 41168]

Off-the-shelf immune cell therapies using engineered T cells represent an important direction in cancer treatment. Lili Yang, Ph.D., at UCLA develops an off-the-shelf platform based on invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells generated from hematopoietic stem cells, often sourced from cord blood. Yang programs these stem cells with iNKT cell receptors, chimeric antigen receptors (CARs), and genes such as IL-15 to create pure, expandable iNKT products that recognize lipid antigens presented by non polymorphic CD1d molecules. These cells combine multiple killing mechanisms, infiltrate tissues, target tumor cells and immunosuppressive myeloid cells, and show reduced risk of graft versus host disease and cytokine release syndrome in preclinical models. Yang’s group tests this strategy in models of blood cancers and solid tumors, aiming to generate many therapeutic doses from a single donor. Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 40846]

RNA binding proteins help cells control how genetic information becomes working proteins, and Gene Yeo, Ph.D., M.B.A., at UC San Diego investigates how their disruption contributes to neurodegenerative disease. Yeo focuses on ALS, a severe motor neuron disease in which the RNA binding protein TDP-43 moves from the nucleus to the cytoplasm, loses normal RNA processing functions, and triggers cryptic exons that damage key neuronal genes, including one linked to motor neuropathy. His group maps these RNA changes and develops small nuclear RNA guides packaged in AAV vectors to block harmful splice sites and restore healthy RNA and protein levels. In cell cultures and a humanized mouse model, this strategy improves axon growth and supports the idea that multiplexed RNA-targeted therapies could correct multiple disease pathways at once. Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 41166]

Aging is the leading risk factor for cancer, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, and heart disease, and Robert A.J. Signer, Ph.D., studies how aging stem cells shape pre-cancer and healthspan. As deputy director of the Sanford Stem Cell Discovery Center, Signer focuses on rare blood-forming stem cells that self-renew, generate all blood and immune cells, and normally sustain more than 35 trillion blood cells, including about 2 million new red blood cells every second. His group finds that these “Zen” stem cells slow protein production to limit damaging “trash,” but aging stresses overwhelm these defenses. Stress response programs such as HSF1 then help both healthy and mutant stem cells, fueling clonal hematopoiesis, a common, untreated pre-cancerous condition linked to cardiovascular disease, inflammation, cancer, and increased mortality. Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 41253]

Stem cell science is reshaping treatment for complex disorders of the brain and spinal cord. Researchers develop cell based therapies to replace lost dopaminergic neurons in Parkinson’s disease, fill gaps across spinal cord injuries, and calm seizure networks in refractory epilepsy by restoring the balance of inhibition and excitation. Teams test immune cell therapies against Epstein Barr virus infected B cells in multiple sclerosis and collaborate to move treatments across the blood brain barrier to reach diseased cells. Clinicians combine imaging in the operating room, surgical tools, and research on biological age and the pace of aging to understand disease and guide treatment. Patient advocates describe challenges and hopes for better options, and contemporary art reflects on perception in digital and physical worlds. Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Show ID: 40992]

Alejandro Sánchez Alvarado, Ph.D., argues that real progress in understanding regeneration comes from studying whole organisms rather than cells grown under artificial conditions. Sánchez Alvarado shows how observations from intact animals reveal organizing rules that narrow laboratory systems can miss. He presents evidence that stem cells in a studied animal lack detectable junctions with neighboring cells and instead respond to signals that travel across tissues. Sánchez Alvarado links this communication to extracellular vesicles that carry RNA and to metabolic support involving creatine, highlighting how distant tissues influence repair. Using imaging and molecular analyses, he tracks how signals move through the body and how specific cell populations change state during recovery. Sánchez Alvarado concludes that broad, comparative research is essential for uncovering general principles that govern how adult tissues restore form and function. Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Show ID: 40454]

An in vivo brain organoid platform reveals how human neurons and glia interact across development, aging, and disease. Fred H. Gage, Ph.D., generates three dimensional organoids from induced pluripotent stem cells and examines their maturation, synapses, and network activity with two-photon imaging and single-cell profiling. Gage integrates human microglia and astrocytes to study immune signaling, injury responses, and support functions that shape circuit behavior. Transplantation enables vascularization, reduces cell death, and yields features consistent with a blood brain barrier. Analyses identify diverse astrocyte types and trajectories, while patterns of tau expression inform Alzheimer’s disease modeling. Gage also converts adult fibroblasts into age retaining neurons that assemble into 3D spheroids, creating complementary models to connect genes, cells, and circuits with pathology and to guide strategies for prevention and therapy. Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Show ID: 41160]

Clinical trials turn scientific discoveries into real options for patients and volunteers, advancing care while safeguarding participants. Sheldon Morris, M.D., M.P.H., explains how independent oversight, core ethical principles, and stepwise phases evaluate safety and benefit, and clarifies participants’ rights and responsibilities. Sandip Patel, M.D., F.A.S.C.O., highlights how carefully designed studies open access to promising cell and gene-based approaches while balancing risks and benefits. Robert A.J. Signer, Ph.D., underscores why participation—including consenting to share samples and data—helps researchers understand disease and accelerate better treatments. Morris, Patel, and Signer point audiences to practical ways to locate studies through registries and national databases, discuss what costs are typically covered, and advise asking questions about study design and safety. They also caution against unproven “stem cell tourism” and emphasize informed decisions. Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Show ID: 40438]

Marisa Korody, Ph.D., leads groundbreaking work at the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance’s Beckman Center for Conservation Research, where scientists use advanced genetic and stem cell technologies to protect endangered species. Korody highlights efforts to save the critically endangered northern white rhino by developing induced pluripotent stem cells that can be transformed into egg and sperm precursors, offering a potential path to revive the species. This research is part of a broader conservation mission that includes global projects in genetics, reintroduction, and community engagement. By combining cutting-edge science with wildlife management, the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance works to preserve biodiversity and ensure the survival of species threatened by habitat loss, poaching, and climate change, demonstrating the critical role of innovation in conservation. Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Show ID: 40451]