Melanoma feels the STING with new RNA nanoparticle vaccine

by Tara Fernandez | Oct 17, 2019

RNA-based vaccines have been heralded as a new molecular weapon in the arsenal against cancer and infections. Five years ago, they were thrust into the spotlight following a $52 million investment by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to CureVac, a...

Sensors, the long-desired safety net for regenerative medicine

by CCRM Australia | Oct 10, 2019

Dr. Chih Wei Teng is Chief Operating Officer for CCRM Australia and wrote this blog with colleagues Alex Barrington and Dr. Emma Gallaher. To subscribe to the CCRM Australia newsletter: Click here Regenerative medicine is a risky business. The decades-long development...

Right Turn: How AI is enhancing health care

by Stacey Johnson | Oct 4, 2019

One of the speakers invited to the Current Trends in Biotherapeutics Workshop, hosted by the Clinical Translation Education Group (CTEG),* was Alexandre Le Bouthillier, co-founder of Imagia. This Montreal-based company is harnessing the power of artificial...

Right Turn: SOPs, PPE and the DNA of lab life

by Stacey Johnson | Sep 27, 2019

If you have ever visited an academic or industry lab, you will be taught about the protocols for that lab. Even in high school, there are strict rules to follow and ways to behave and dress around lab materials. What you are required to wear is called Personal...

Summer by Design: Filling in the gap between academia and industry

by Guest | Sep 18, 2019

Virginia Palomares Cabeza is a fourth-year PhD candidate at the Erasmus Medical Centre (Rotterdam, the Netherlands) and the University College Dublin (Ireland). Her interdisciplinary research focuses on investigating the immune responses of allogeneic stem cell...

Breathing new life into gut regeneration with living bandages

by Erika Siren | Sep 11, 2019

At first pass, the skin and the gut are not so different: both are lined with an outer layer of cells that serve as the first line of protection from biological, chemical and physical wear-and-tear. Accordingly, both the gut and skin are subject to tissue breakdown...

Right Turn: Trend watching in biotherapeutics

by Stacey Johnson | Sep 6, 2019

The field of biotherapeutics – treatments produced by, or involving, living cells – is quickly evolving with the popularity and pursuit of new cell therapies. If you’re a student or young professional working in this space, you know this already. But how familiar are...

Right Turn: Recharging

by Stacey Johnson | Aug 30, 2019

Hi Signals readers, We hope you’ve had a great summer and enjoyed all of our posts so far in 2019. There is still lots to come, but we’re on vacation this week so we can recharge and come back in September full of energy and brimming with fresh ideas. May...

Blog Carnival: Because we all want to see life-saving cell and gene therapies saving lives

by Stacey Johnson | Aug 21, 2019

Cell and gene therapies are a game changer for patients. As academics and industry have been saying for years now, these therapies offer the promise of cures for previously incurable diseases and disorders. There were over 1,000 clinical trials underway worldwide at...

Bringing innovative cell and gene therapy products to Canadians

by Guest | Aug 21, 2019

Siofradh McMahon is Senior Manager, Clinical Translation and Regulatory Affairs at CCRM. Síofradh works with academic and industry partners to advance promising products and technologies to commercialization. Having worked worldwide, Síofradh brings more than a decade...