It was believed that they did not exist, but they are a reality. Scientists at the Francis Crick Institute in London have discovered stem cells in the thymus for the first time. The last organ to have its role described in humans still has properties that researchers could explore to prevent the decline of the immune system throughout life.

Researchers have demonstrated that inhibiting mitophagy in ‘old’ hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) completely restored their blood reconstitution capabilities, raising the prospect of addressing the age-related weakening of the immune system that stems from HSCs deteriorating over time.

One of the key advances in regenerative medicine has been the engraftment of external epithelial stem cells to supplement or replace damaged native cells. However, the difficulty in engrafting internal tissues has hindered the long-term rescue of diseased internal epithelia, such as those in the respiratory airways.

One of the key advances in regenerative medicine has been the engraftment of external epithelial stem cells to supplement or replace damaged native cells. However, the difficulty in engrafting internal tissues has hindered the long-term rescue of diseased internal epithelia, such as those in the respiratory airways.

A study from Weill Cornell Medicine and The Jackson Laboratory has described the epigenetic mark SARS-CoV-2 left on immune system stem cells in the most severe cases of COVID-19 early in the pandemic, before the development of vaccines. In their work published in Cell on Aug. 18, 2023, the researchers presented a new methodology to analyze the epigenetic changes in monocytes and circulating hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) that give rise to monocytes. That allowed corresponding author Steven Josefowicz and his colleagues to see if there were already changes induced by COVID-19 before HSPCs differentiated into monocytes.

IPSirius SAS, an early stage French immuno-oncology firm, hopes to obtain a clinical trial authorization from the U.K.’s Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Products Agency next year, to enable it to move its novel therapeutic cancer vaccine into a first-in-human trial in patients with non-small-cell lung cancer.

The development of an embryo in its early stages involves a series of processes in which cells interact and organize to form tissues. In humans, these stages are studied with animal models, stem cells and cell aggregates that mimic natural development phases, or with human embryos, depending on their availability and a strict protocol. Now, in back-to-back papers published online in Nature, scientists from Yale University and the University of Cambridge have two new embryonic models formed from human stem cells to study development after embryo implantation in the uterus.