Stem Cell Channel (Video)

TBR1 and AUTS2, the development of the cerebral cortex, and developmental transcription factors. Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 33773]

Alysson Muotri of UC San Diego's Stem Cell Program discusses his work creating cortical organoids from modern humans as well as organoids with genetic characteristics similar to Neanderthal to compare differences in neural development. Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Science] [Show ID: 33815]

Steven A. Goldman, MD, PhD discusses cell genesis and neural regeneration in the adult brain, with a focus on the use of neural stem and progenitor cells in treating demyelinating and neurodegenerative diseases. Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 33428]

Exploring the use of primate stem cell systems to understand the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying species differences in cerebral cortex development. Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Science] [Show ID: 32970]

Just ten years ago, questions about editing genomes of the next human generation were largely hypothetical. The prospect of erasing fatal or debilitating diseases was seen as a goal worth pursuing, even as some worried about the slippery slope of using this technology to create “designer babies.” Since then, the science has progressed rapidly. We now have a variety of tools that move these possibilities from theoretical to plausible. Based on his own research, as well as knowledge of the findings of others conducting stem cell research, Evan Y. Snyder, MD, PhD, FAAP will describe some of these tools and lead a discussion addressing key questions such as: Do we want to do this at all? If we are editing human genomes, then should this be done in vitro, in utero, or after birth? Are there some things we should not do? Who decides? Series: "Exploring Ethics" [Health and Medicine] [Humanities] [Science] [Show ID: 32989]

The human brain is one of, if not the most important factor that distinguishes our species from all others. Three experts explore the use of stem cells in understanding the primate brain, genes that guided the evolution of the human brain, and the features that enabled the expansion of human neural characteristics. Series: "CARTA - Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny" [Science] [Show ID: 32927]

Researchers at the UC San Diego Stem Cell Program have used a rare disorder, Aicardi Goutieres (AGS), to explore fundamental brain mechanisms.

By utilizing cortical organoids, or brains in a dish, they have tracked neurodevelopment while discovering new information about the relationship between retrotransposons and neuroinflammation.

Series: "UCTV Prime" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 32743]

Cellular modeling may hold the key to unlocking some the most important questions about autism. Alysson R. Muotri, PhD joins William Mobley, MD, PhD to explain how his work is shedding light on not only the pathology of autism but potential new drugs. Series: "Autism Awareness Programs" [Health and Medicine] [Science] [Show ID: 31433]

Parkinson's disease (PD) affects more than a million people in the US. Jeanne Loring, professor and the founding director of the Center for Regenerative Medicine at The Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, discusses current research and potential future therapies for PD. In 2012, a partnership of scientists, clinicians, PD patients, and patient advocates was formed to develop a therapy for PD using patients' own skin cells that can be transformed into dopamine neurons, which can then be transplanted to their brains to restore lost cells. With further support from the foundation and granting agencies, the research and clinical partners hope to transplant cells to the first patient in about three years. This kind of partnership is unprecedented, and is inspiring for both the researchers and the patients, who are working together to develop the first effective therapy for PD. Series: "Exploring Ethics" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 30484]

People with autism have difficulty with language and social interaction as if they are trapped inside their own brains. There is no cure. Dr. Alysson Muotri of UCSD devised a Fairy Tooth Kit Collection campaign in which autistic and unaffected kids could donate their baby teeth when they fell out. Using the induced pluripotent stem cell (iPS) technique, Muotri's team extracted pulp cells in the teeth and converted them into brain cells. The autistic brain cells showed distinct deficiencies in the petri dish which could be reversed. In this seminar presented to the governing Board of California's Stem Cell Agency, Dr. Muotri describes these results in more detail. Series: "Stem Cell Channel" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 28241]