HSCI finds new home in Bauer Lab
The two key components of Harvard Stem Cell Science are finally together under one roof. Over the summer, the Harvard Stem Cell Institute’s core administrative team moved to their new home in the Bauer Laboratory in Cambridge, joining the staff of Harvard University’s Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology (HSCRB). “I’m excited that HSCI is here with us in Bauer and look forward to seeing how our efforts synergize on behalf of stem cell science at Harvard,” said HSCRB Executive Director M. William Lensch, PhD. “I anticipate an even richer working environment in the years ahead.”
Spinal cord injury think-tank
HSCI is taking the first steps toward building a community of scientists, clinicians, and foundations that will specifically study spinal cord injury and repair. At a July “think-tank,” co-organized by neuroscientists Qiao Zhou, PhD, and Zhigang He, PhD, experts met to identify some of the main research questions that need to be addressed regarding spinal cord injury, and discussed how the HSCI network could collaborate to find answers. Representatives from spinal cord research foundations Wings for Life and the Craig H. Neilsen Foundation were also present to lend their knowledge and support. “There are a lot of steps between being fully paraplegic or tetraplegic and being able to walk again,” said HSCI Program Director Claudia Rizzini, PhD. “This initiative is another example of how HSCI brings together leading researchers to find new ways to help patients.”
New tool to map out cell differentiation
There are many recipes that turn a stem cell into a specialized cell, but not every recipe produces cells that have the same properties as those that naturally arise in the human body. A new resource called CellNet can now act as quality assurance. The tool provides a roadmap for scientists looking to generate the “truest” human stem cells to model diseases, test potential drugs, and use as treatments. CellNet was co-developed by HSCI Executive Committee member George Daley, MD, PhD, at Boston Children’s Hospital, along with scientists at the Wyss Institute for Bio - logically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University and Boston University.