CCRM, the publisher of Signals, has enhanced its long-standing relationship with the University of Toronto’s Medicine by Design through a new strategic alliance. This profile is one in a series of profiles that feature “people of Medicine by Design.” Some minor edits may have been made to the original published version. Ashton Trotman-Grant, PhD “I want people to love science as much as I do. It leverages our curiosity and creativity as we pursue answers to our questions. Any questions. There’s beauty in the process and it’s also one of the best ways to make an impact on society. I really en ..read more

Diagram courtesy of Dr. Sergiu Paşca, Stanford University In current organoid technologies, human pluripotent stem cells are guided to differentiate into 3D structures that resemble the corresponding human in-vivo organ, which allows researchers the opportunity to study the organ’s specific cells and function. However, organoids are limited by their inability to mimic circuits or interactions between cells of different organs. Building on their 2017 seminal work that introduced the concept of assembloids (where multiple organoids are integrated together), Dr. Sergiu Paşca and colleagues at S ..read more

Regenerative Medicine News Under the Microscope is back! Thank you all for your patience as I wrapped up my PhD; the hiatus is officially over. We’re celebrating the return of this feature with a double header covering regenerative medicine research highlights from both February and March. Representative amniotic fluid-derived lung organoids. Cells are immunofluorescently stained for lung-specific stem and progenitor markers. From Gerli et al. in Nature Medicine. Pick of the month(s): Human amniotic fluid gives rise to fetal lung, intestinal, and kidney organoids Congenital malformations aff ..read more

Today is World Water Day, an observance that the United Nations has been recognizing since 1993. What does water have to do with regenerative medicine? Stick with me. (And no, I’m not going to talk about hydrogels.) World Water Day was established to raise awareness of the 2.2 billion people living without access to safe water. The United Nations is striving to ensure access to water and sanitation for all. Read about its sustainable development goal. This year’s theme is “water for peace” and focuses on the critical role water plays around the world to maintain safety, security and prosperity ..read more

Images: Canva In my role as a communication professional at CCRM, I have had the opportunity to attend industry conferences and events. There, I have met brilliant minds in the regenerative medicine and cell therapy field and learned about the work that’s happening in their facilities. I was recently reflecting on a talk given by my CCRM colleague, Glenn MacLean, at the 2023 Till and McCulloch Meetings, which covered some of the key considerations that Principal Investigators (PIs) and researchers in academia must consider to de-risk their discoveries in preparation for venture creation. It ..read more

If you only read one post for 2023, please make it this one. Below are the 10 most popular posts from last year, as determined by views recorded on the website. These are not my favourite posts, although I like all of them; this ranking is completely unbiased and reflects the number of people who have viewed each post. So let’s get started! Coming in at number 10 is Laine Bodnar’s practical and helpful ideas for post-secondary STEM students seeking summer jobs. Laine shares resources and tips that still apply. Have a read or pass this along to the student(s) in your life. Job postings and resu ..read more

Source: Pexels.com When Caitlin Brodnick tested positive for the BRCA1 gene mutation, she decided to have a preventative double mastectomy. But she was afraid of losing her breasts and worried about the reconstruction, and top on the list was how real they were going to look. Statistically, over 50 per cent of cancer patients opt for a breast reconstruction after a mastectomy, but the options for reconstruction have been limited, involving implants or tissue grafting. How about growing new breast tissue? With regenerative medicine producing a paradigm shift in medicine, new techniques aimed ..read more

Blue Rodeo performing at Massey Hall, October 10, 2023. Photo courtesy of the author. Blue Rodeo is an iconic Canadian band that performs “countrified rock” and has been around for four decades. It has received multiple awards and accolades, including being inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, and lead singers/songwriters Jim Cuddy and Greg Keelor were named Officers of the Order of Canada. I’ve been a fan since the ‘90s and even shook hands with Cuddy at an awards dinner for Queen’s University alumni, where he received an honorary doctor of law degree. I have seen them in concert ..read more

This blog post was written by Jimmy Yu (see LinkedIn page) with supervision by Dr. Chih Wei Teng.  Traditional or natural Aboriginal medicine. Source: Wikimedia. Traditional medicine and the practices of Australia’s First Nations – Australian Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islander – embody a world imbued with ancient wisdom, intricate rituals, and spiritual beliefs that have long eluded the grasp of Western medicine and been viewed with deep scepticism because they challenge Western notions of evidence-based medicine. The Western scientific approach, bound by a reductionist and ri ..read more

In addition to showers, flowers and warmer weather, this spring also brought renewed hope for patients with hematological malignancies undergoing stem cell transplants (SCTs) in the form of the approval of Gamida Cell’s Omisirge® (omidubicel). This cell-based therapy will reduce the risk of life-threatening infections that these patients face during the process of their life-saving SCT. If you read my most recent post on matching stem cell donors and recipients, you’ll recall that there is a significant challenge in finding an appropriate match. Individuals suffering from hematological maligna ..read more