News Feature in 2008

A biotech start-up sees stem cells as targets, not transplants

Does stem cell therapy contain too many unknowns to move into human clinical trials?

Tumour cells that can initiate a new tumour are not so rare as previously thought, putting the concept of the 'cancer stem cell' under the spotlight again.

A new programme at the US Department of Defense funds regenerative medicine to help wounded vets, but a surprising level of detail seems top secret

Stem cell researchers say that favourable policy in the United Kingdom is the result of taking the time to win over legislators

Some bioethicists see history repeating itself

A new quest for short cuts between specialized states could lay bare the machinery governing cell fate

Worries that the NIH did not properly evaluate informed consent by donors of embryos from which stem cell lines were derived throw oversight committees into disarray

New strategies could lead to changes in the quality, quantity of induced pluripotent cells

A surprising study indicates that non-self mesenchymal stem cells might be just as therapeutic as one's own stem cells

A variety of international efforts hope to warn patients off unregulated treatments

Scientists' enthusiasm grows for induced pluripotent cells

Clean safety reports have cleared the way for a suite of new studies, but how or whether the treatments work is still unclear

Commercial cell banks are charging high prices to store stem cells for therapeutic applications that may never be realized

Some markers scientists rely on to identify stem cells are proving to be flawed

Seventy years ago, the desert sands of Arabia revealed vast oil reserves. That wealth is now being put to work to fund potential new sources of revenue

Decisions by the Supreme Court and the US Patent Office could cause turmoil in the stem cell industry