CIRM spurs translation

Switching septins spurs sporulation

Septins are a family of GTP-binding proteins that, in most fungi and animals, form hetero-octameric rods containing two copies each of four different family members. These rods can then assemble into higher-order structures that perform a variety of cellular functions, depending on their subunit composition. The human genome, for example, encodes 13 different septins expressed by specifi c cell...

Setback spurs Parkinson's disease research

results of the first controlled trial of the technique of implanting foetal cells into the brains of Parkinson’s disease patients, published last month, which found no overall benefit and left a number of the patients with tragic side effects which cannot be undone. But many researchers are concerned that the response to this new study, which some newspapers called a ‘catastrophe’, may overshad...

Stem Cells in Predictive Toxicology CIRM

Association of Achilles tendinopathy and plantar spurs.

Plantar spurs and Achilles tendinopathy are common causes of heel pain. In the authors' practice, it was anecdotally noted that patients with Achilles tendinopathy often presented with plantar spurs. Nonetheless, there is a shortage of studies investigating whether Achilles tendinopathy and plantar spurs exist concomitantly. A better understanding of the association between the 2 pathologies mi...

Prevalence of ghostwriting spurs calls for transparency.

It’s no secret that the names at the top of articles published in medical journals aren’t always a good indication of who actually wrote them. What may be surprising to many, though, is just how prevalent ghostwriting appears to have become. Recently unveiled court documents, for example, show that ghostwriters, paid by the pharmaceutical company Wyeth, produced 26 papers supporting hormone rep...