Meet Dr. Andrew McMahon. He's the Principal Investigator at the University of Southern California's (USC) Stem Cell McMahon Lab. Dr. McMahon's research focuses on the generation and repair of the kidney by identifying the regulatory processes that maintain, expand and differentiate kidney stem cells to the mature cell types of the functional kidney. In the adult,
If you visit the Chicago Air Museum (now called the Museum of Science and Industry) you can see the actual plane the Wright brothers flew, on the world’s first leap into the sky. It is an amazing museum, well worth your time and the sixteen-dollar admission fee. But one of the most interesting exhibits might
My cousin Michael lay on his back in the hospital bed. A tube ran from the top of his right foot down to a plastic bag of dark liquid. Mike has diabetes, and the circulation in his foot had been shutting down: the skin was turning black. Two days ago, the doctor used a marker
“You ought to get a computer!” said my cousin Tommy Snyder, a couple of decades ago, “It would help you write your books!” “Sure,” I snapped, ”Next time I get an extra $5,000 (computers cost a lot back then) I will just dash right out and get one!” Months passed, and I forgot about the
Mary Bass is the executive director of Americans for Cures, a nonprofit advocacy organization that works to make stem cell research and science accessible to everyone. It was founded in 2004 after the passage of Proposition 71, California’s groundbreaking investment in stem cell research. Mary spoke with Student Society for Stem Cell Research (SSSCR) about
Gloria, my wife of 48 years, was walking down the street toward me. But something was wrong. Her face was gray. She said she had pain in her back and chest. One arm felt heavy, and she had broken out in a cold sweat. It took some doing, but last she was safe and snug
First (and this is important) with rare exceptions, every dollar of the California stem cell research program is spent in California. The exceptions are for equipment or materials that cannot be had for reasonable prices in California. Other than that, our home state money gets spent at home. But what if one of our scientists
One day in the eleventh grade, I did a thousand situps without stopping; I don’t know why. I just started doing them in PE class, going for a hundred at first, then continuing on and on. The person holding my ankles got bored and quit; somebody else tossed a cupful of water on the floor
Do you want to become a stem cell scientist, or know someone who does? If so, this article is a Christmas gift for you; or, more accurately, three gifts— all from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), which our beloved state voted into law in 2004. First, if you are in High School or
