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What It Is: The “Hollywood EGF Facial”, otherwise known as the “Penis Facial” thanks to stars like Sandra Bullock and Cate Blanchett, who both swear by it for radiant, glowy skin Who Tried It: Jillian Ruffo, Associate Beauty Editor Why We Tried It: Let me ask you this: Would you pass up the chance to have skin that looks as smooth as Blanchett or Bullock’s? (We didn’t think so.) Level of Difficulty: 2, if you factor in very mild pain and upkeep It all started back in March, when Blanchett opened up about her skincare secret: a special facial at...

CONVENT STATION - Medical research has been moving at such a lightening pace, it almost doesn't seem far off that doctors in the future might tell many of their seriously ill patients, "Take two stem cells and call me in the morning."  That joke, taken from a political cartoon, points to the fact that the rapidly developing field of stem cell research is growing at a breakneck pace, giving hope of cures to countless patients suffering from diseases such as brain cancer and heart disease and conditions such as spinal cord injury.About these medical developments, the Catholic Church asks a...

SCIENTISTS have controversially yet successfully grown part of a human brain inside a mouse and the organ even managed to survive for months in a major scientific breakthrough. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ For the first ever time miniature human brains have grown in a new species and scientists have suggested the breakthrough could help with stem cell research. Scientists created the pin-sized human brains from stem cells and then placed them inside the skulls of mice, where a piece of tissue had been removed to make room for the new organ. Of the test mice, roughly 80 percent survived the operation, and within...

A team of scientists in California have found a new way to create stem cells that doesn't require the destruction of human embryos. Researchers at the San Francisco-based Gladstone Institute have announced that they were able to create stem cells by using skin cells from mice through a genome editing tool called CRISPR. Sheng Ding, PhD, a senior investigator at the Gladstone Institute, said in a statement released Monday that this was an innovative means of creating stem cells for research. "This is a new way to make induced pluripotent stem cells that is fundamentally different from how they've been...

A former procurement technician of body parts from aborted babies explained that the company she worked for wouldn’t allow them to take parts from babies who died before the abortions, according to a Tuesday video.Another video released from the Center for Medical Progress features Holly O’Donnell, a whistleblower and former StemExpress procurement technician. O’Donell said they were only allowed to take fetal tissue from babies who were alive before they were aborted.“Let’s say a woman comes in for a medication abortion. And sometimes it doesn’t work and when it doesn’t work the baby will, its kinda hard to describe, but...

Artificial human life could soon be grown from scratch in the lab, after scientists successfully created a mammal embryo using only stem cells. Cambridge University mixed two kinds of mouse stem cells and placed them on a 3D scaffold. After four days of growth in a tank of chemicals designed to mimic conditions inside the womb, the cells formed the structure of a living mouse embryo. The breakthrough has been described as a ‘masterpiece’ in bioengineering, which could eventually allow scientists to grow artificial human embryos in the lab without the need for a sperm or an egg.

Biotechnology company ReNeuron Group Plc said its experimental stem cell therapy helped some patients improve motor functions in their arms in a mid-stage study after being disabled by stroke. Shares of the company jumped 22 percent to 3.45 pence per share in morning trade on Monday on the London Stock Exchange. ReNueron's trial adds to a small but growing number of studies being conducted by a few publicly listed companies around the world that are testing stem cell therapies in various indications. Stem cell therapy development has been stalled in the past by stricter regulations in United States, and concerns...

Researchers at the University of Bristol have developed the bio-ink, created by scientists at the University of Bristol, from stem cells. It is expected to pave the way for the production of complex tissues to replace diseased or damaged areas of the body such as knees and hips and eventually the creation of vital organs. Lead researcher Dr Adam Perriman, an expert in cellular medicine at the University of Bristol, said: “This is a very exciting development which we believe could lead to a revolution in the treatment of diseases like osteoarthritis and other causes of tissue damage. “This approach...

In 2004, Vice-Presidential candidate John Edwards promised that if John Kerry won, people would rise out of their wheelchairs and walk. In the 2006 election, actor Michael J. Fox, who suffers from Parkinson’s, made a commercial for Democratic Senate candidates in which he urged voters to support those candidates who opposed restrictions on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research and stood in the way of imminent miracles. Private funding, it should be noted, was never restricted. The only thing that stood in the way of miracle cures from embryonic stem cell research miracle cures, we were told, was the...

Israeli 3D printer firm Nano Dimension has successfully lab-tested a 3D bioprinter for stem cells, paving the way for the potential printing of large tissues and organs, the company said on Wednesday. While 3D printers are used already to create stem cells for research, Nano Dimension said the trial, conducted with Israeli biotech firm Accellta Ltd, showed its adapted printer could make large volumes of high resolution cells quickly....

Adult Stem Cells Continue to Effectively Treat Illnesses Apr. 13, 2016 A diagram showing how a stem cell in bone marrow becomes different types of blood cells. (click for credit) A diagram showing how a stem cell in bone marrow becomes different types of blood cells. (click for credit) In a 2003 speech, John Kerry complained about the Bush administration, saying: Nothing illustrates this administration’s anti-science attitude better than George Bush’s cynical decision to limit research on embryonic stem cells. During the heat of the “stem cell wars,” this was a common refrain. Life-saving treatments could be produced with embryonic...

Stem cells could help treat people with cataracts and even some who are blind by regenerating eye tissue and replacing flawed lenses, according to new experiments in children and rabbits. In order for people to see properly, both the lens of the eye and the cornea — the layer of tissue that covers the eye in front of the lens — must be transparent. Current treatments for people who have clouding in the lens or cornea involve artificial implants or donor transplants, respectively, but these surgical procedures can be risky, researchers said. In the new research, scientists performed minimally invasive...

If this human breakthrough had occurred with embryonic stem cells, the front page stories would have screamed around the world. But it was adult stem cells and so the reporting was muted. You see, the media still–after all these years–tend to judge the newsworthiness of a story based on whether a breakthrough is embryonic. The story is sensational, nonetheless. Adult stem cells have cured blindness and may provide a splendid treatment for cataracts. From the Telegraph story: Cataracts can be cured by using a patient’s own stem cells to regrow a ‘living lens’ in their eye, restoring sight in just...

Essentially, the 'traditional route' of lab-to-animals-to-clinical-trials takes too long, Weiss says, so he figured out how to game the system and start testing his new treatment on his own terms. The catch is that stem cells aren’t classified as a drug - they’re extracted from a patient's body, go through very little processing, and are used on that same patient, so Weiss was able to bypass FDA approval to register his NIH trials. He did need approval and oversight from an ethics review panel, and got his from the International Cellular Medicine Society, an independent, pro-stem cell therapy group based...

The U.K. press are reporting heartening results for the use of adult stem cells to treat relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS), including descriptions of “remarkable” improvements and “miraculous” results. Yet this is not hype; these are descriptions from some of the doctors themselves, who treated the patients, made detailed examinations of their progress, and scientifically validated the observations. The results are part of an FDA-approved, ongoing clinical trial, with collaborations between investigators in the U.S., U.K., Sweden and Brazil. The phase 3 trial originally started in 2006, and has been adding patients and observing results since that time. The adult stem...

UNITED KINGDOM, January 20, 2016 (LifeSiteNews) – British sufferers from multiple sclerosis are reporting remarkable improvements in their condition after injection with adult stem cells taken from their own bodies. The treatment is part of a clinical trial of techniques pioneered at America's Northwestern University by Dr. Richard Burt. The adult stem cell treatment for MS is just one of many being applied around the world for more than 100 medical conditions, many to do with diseases of the auto-immune system. Sheffield patient Holly Drewry, a 25-year-old mother of one, went into that city's Royal Hallamshire Hospital in a wheelchair...

Planned Parenthood continues to lure collegians to its side but might be missing a fact or two when they sign up new supporters. For example, despite its claims to the contrary, Planned Parenthood’s primary activity is providing abortions. Indeed, Planned Parenthood performs more abortions annually than the entire country of France, Catholic University Professor David A. Prentice pointed out at the Family Research Council on December 3, 2015. Additionally, PP gets more than $500 million of its $1.3 billion in revenue from government funds, meaning all taxpayers support it. Dr. Prentice is a professor at the John Paul II Institute...

It’s time for scientists and bioethicists to establish a Embryonic Stem Cell Truth and Reconciliation Commission.It all seems so long ago now. But from 2002 to 2008 they barnstormed, fibbed, exaggerated, hyped, and caricatured to get government funding so that they could play God with human embryos. It was a brutal battle in which truth came second. "People need a fairy tale," said Ronald D.G. McKay, a leading stem cell scientist, in 2004.The claims made for the near-miraculous potential of human embryonic stem cells were extraordinary. Celebrities and scientists spoke with the breathless enthusiasm normally associated with crystal medicine or ayurvedic...

A BRITISH pensioner has become the first person to undergo revolutionary eye surgery aimed at curing blindness in millions of people. The 60-year-old woman, who had severely impaired sight and was in danger of going blind, is said to have had no complications so far following the three-hour operation last month. The surgical team hopes to determine how successful the treatment was by early December. The woman has asked to remain anonymous. The scientists behind the pioneering procedure hope it will dramatically transform lives, allowing the blind to recognise faces of loved ones again and regain the ability to carry...

Fears are growing over the side effects of cholesterol-lowering pillsScientists have found the heart disease drug badly affects our stem cells, the internal medical system which repairs damage to our bodies and protects us from muscle and joint pain as well as memory loss. Last night experts warned patients to “think very carefully” before taking statins as a preventative medicine. A GP expert in the field said: “They just make many patients feel years older. Side effects mimic the ageing process.” The new research by scientists at Tulane University in New Orleans has reignited the debate about statin side effects which many doctors...