Topic description and stories

Stem cells, the 'building blocks' for every type of cell in the body, have tremendous potential to improve human health.

Test tubes in a lab

New way to extend ‘shelf life’ of blood stem cells will improve gene therapy

15 Aug 2024

Researchers have discovered a way to extend the shelf life of blood stem cells outside the body for use in gene therapy, providing patients with...

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Arthur Hatt at a festival

Lab-grown ‘mini-guts’ could change how we treat Crohn’s disease

11 Jun 2024

Cambridge scientists have grown ‘mini-guts’ in the lab to help understand Crohn’s disease, showing that ‘switches’ that modify DNA in gut cells play...

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Cambridge ReseARch Trail

14 Mar 2024

A new augmented reality trail, launched as part of the Cambridge Festival, is showcasing the world leading research of the University of Cambridge in...

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Microscopic image of placental organoids

‘Mini-placentas’ help scientists understand the causes of pre-eclampsia and pregnancy disorders

17 Jan 2024

Scientists have grown ‘mini-placentas’ in the lab and used them to shed light on how the placenta develops and interacts with the inner lining of the...

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Mature Adult Female with Disability

Early-stage stem cell therapy trial shows promise for treating progressive MS

27 Nov 2023

An international team has shown that the injection of a type of stem cell into the brains of patients living with progressive multiple sclerosis (MS...

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Disease mural cells

Lab-grown ‘small blood vessels’ point to potential treatment for major cause of stroke and vascular dementia

16 Nov 2023

Cambridge scientists have grown small blood vessel-like models in the lab and used them to show how damage to the scaffolding that supports these...

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A ball of neuroblastoma cells forming mature nerves after drug treatment

Developing ‘kinder’ treatments for a devastating childhood cancer

20 Sep 2023

Neuroblastomas can be devastating to children and their families and the treatments can be harsh. But thanks to scientists, some tadpoles and a...

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Person having a blood test

Scientists develop test to identify people at risk of developing acute myeloid leukaemia and related cancers

24 Aug 2023

The new ‘MN-predict’ platform will allow doctors and scientists to identify those at risk and to design new treatments to prevent them from...

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Day 4 embryoid

Human embryo-like models created from stem cells to understand earliest stages of human development

27 Jun 2023

Cambridge scientists have created a stem cell-derived model of the human embryo in the lab by reprogramming human stem cells. The breakthrough could...

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Human stem cell embedded in a 3D matrix, Cryo SEM

Project launched to provide guidance on research using human stem cell-based embryo models

16 Jun 2023

The University of Cambridge has launched a project to develop the first governance framework for research involving stem cell-based human embryo...

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Close-up of artwork representing Acinar tissue - "The flowers of diabetes"

Wellcome awards Cambridge £18 million for two Discovery Research Platforms

04 May 2023

Cambridge has been awarded two of Wellcome’s eight new Discovery Research Platforms, the global charitable foundation announced today.

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System of neurons with glowing connections on black background

‘Biohybrid’ device could restore function in paralysed limbs

22 Mar 2023

Researchers have developed a new type of neural implant that could restore limb function to amputees and others who have lost the use of their arms...

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