Click here to read Stem Cells 101, an overview of stem cell research

Tiny circles of DNA are the key to a new and easier way to transform stem cells from human fat into induced pluripotent stem cells for use in regenerative medicine, say scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine. Unlike other commonly used techniques, the method, which is based on standard molecular biology practices, does not use viruses to introduce genes into the cells or permanently alter a cell’s genome. (PhysOrg)

JAMA (Vol. 303; No. 4; January 27, 2010) is now available by subscription only.

Articles include:

• “Assessing the Legal Standard of Care in Public Health Emergencies” by James G. Hodge Jr and Brooke Courtney, 361-362.
• “Improving Health by Taking It Personally” by Ralph Snyderman and Michaela A. Dian, 363-364.
• “Ethnic Shifts Raise Issues in Elder Care” by Rebecca Voelker, 321.
• “Stem Cell Lines Cleared” by Bridget M. Kuehn, 322.

Stem cell experts say they believe a small group of scientists is effectively vetoing high quality science from publication in journals. In some cases they say it might be done to deliberately stifle research that is in competition with their own. (BBC)

A Californian biomedical company, iPierian, has been granted the first patent issued outside Japan for the genetic reprogramming technology used to create induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. (Nature News)

For the first time since the National Institutes of Health released its new guidelines for the derivation of human embryonic stem cell (hESC) lines last summer, a line approved under the Bush administration has been recommended for inclusion into the growing federal registry of lines eligible for federal funding. (The Scientist)

State lawmakers could be taking a vote soon on embryonic stem cell research. And there are some who want to make sure that full-fledged human cloning doesn’t inadvertently get the green light, according to WWJ Lansing Bureau Chief Tim Skubick. (WWJ Newsradio 950)

A paper in Nature Medicine has been has been heralded as a major advance for bone marrow transplantation, reporting a new way of manipulating cord blood stem cells to expand their numbers without causing differentiation from stem cells into normal blood cells (which are unsuitable for transplantation). (PHG Foundation)

For the first time in the United States, stem cells have been directly injected into the spinal cord of a patient, researchers announced Thursday. Doctors injected stem cells from 8-week-old fetal tissue into the spine of a man in his early 60s who has advanced ALS, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. It was part of a clinical trial designed to determine whether it is safe to inject stem cells into the spinal cord and whether the cells themselves are safe. (CNN)

Trends in Pharmacological Sciences (Volume 31, Issue 1, January 2010) is now available by subscription only.

Articles include:

• “Homeopathy, a ‘Helpful Placebo’ or an Unethical Intervention” by Edzard Ernst, 1.
• “Small Molecules that Modulate Embryonic Stem Cell Fate and Somatic Cell Reprogramming” by Winlin Li and Sheng Ding, 36.

Cell Stem Cell (Volume 6, Issue 1, January 2010) is now available by subscription only.

Articles include:

• “Human Embryonic Stem  Cell-Derived Keratinocytes: How Close to Clinics?” by Graziella Pellegrini and Michele De Luca, 8.

Five years after a budget-busting $3 billion was allocated to embryonic stem cell research, there have been no cures, no therapies and little progress. So supporters are embracing research they once opposed. (Investors)

State money from 2004’s Proposition 71 is being channeled toward research with the most potential for near-term benefits. (Los Angeles Times)

Biotechnology company Geron Corp. said Tuesday its developing stem-cell technology inhibited tumor activity and reduced tumor size in a laboratory study focusing on the most common form of brain cancer. The company, citing a study authored by collaborators at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, said its drug candidate imetelstat specifically inhibited the activity of the brain cancer, glioblastoma. (ABC News)

Humanity has always longed to possess the regenerative powers of other living things. The Mexican walking fish can regrow a severed limb, and if you cut the freshwater hydra into pieces, each will become a new creature.

The idea of possessing such powers is the stuff of ancient myths and science fiction. But with a new technique known as cell reprogramming, the reality may be soon upon us. (The Age)

When Dr. Shinya Yamanaka arrived in the United States from Japan in 1993, he recalled recently, he was “half a scientist, half a failed surgeon.” A disaffected doctor with a newly minted Ph.D. in pharmacology, he had but one job offer, from the Gladstone Institutes, wedged into crowded laboratories by San Francisco General Hospital. (New York Times)

Scientists using stem cells to chase cures for disease and to repair debilitating injuries may be unknowingly focused on only part of the world’s population — mostly that with northern and western European ancestry, according to a new study by University of Michigan researchers. (Detroit Free Press)

Cellular Dynamics International’s iCell Cardiomyocytes beat like a human heart and can be used early in the development of new drugs to determine whether they will be effective or toxic to people, the company said in a news release. (JSOnline)

The US expansion of federal funding for human embryonic stem-cell research is being hampered by details in consent forms. Earlier this month, researchers celebrated the government’s approval of funding for a broad variety of work on 13 stem-cell lines — the first approved under the policy announced by US President Barack Obama in March. [Premium (Nature News)]

A year after Michigan voters approved the broader use of donated embryos for stem cell research, some state legislators are seeking to put limits on the science. Since the voters already have spoken, Lansing shouldn’t meddle in this promising research. (The Detroit News)

When Japanese scientists found a way to tease out high-quality stem cells from adult skin, their discovery was hailed as a major breakthrough, all but rendering moot the controversy around embryonic stem cells and the related destruction of embryos. (National Post)

Researchers say that a new method of bone marrow transplantation cured nine out of 10 adult patients with sickle cell disease, an inherited condition that causes bouts of severe pain, organ damage and sharply limits life expectancy. (Forbes)