The FDA pauses the research program on a lentivirus-based treatment for a rare neurological condition after a patient developed a bone marrow disorder that could presage leukemia.
If approved, Proposition 14 would authorize the state to sell $5.5 billion in bonds to extend the life of CIRM, which funds stem cell research. The ballot measure has its critics.
As the first clinical data become available on treating coronavirus patients with the cells, scientists are equivocal about the rationale for the intervention.
Age-related macular degeneration patients who received injections of retinal cells derived from donors’ induced pluripotent stem cells have maintained their level of eyesight for a year.
Critics say the misleading term actually refers to a heterogeneous population of cells, including possible tissue-specific progenitor cells and nonstem cells all lumped together.
Stem-cell–derived natural killer cells engineered in a similar way to CAR-T cells may pave the way to “off the shelf” cancer therapies that aren’t patient-specific.
