The invention relates to improved culture methods for expanding epithelial stem cells and obtaining organoids, to culture media involved in said methods, and to uses of said organoids.

Methods for producing hepatocytes from pluripotent human stem cells are disclosed herein. The stem cells are plated on a cell culture substrate comprising two laminins. The stem cells are then exposed to different cell culture mediums to induce differentiation. The resulting hepatocytes have higher metabolic capacity compared to hepatocytes cultured on different substrates.

An isolated rat liver cancer stem cell line which is named as TW-1 is provided. A method for drug screening by using the isolated rat liver cancer stem cell line is also provided.

This invention provides for a network of cell-derived microfilaments. Also provided are methods of producing a network of microfilaments via culturing cells in a matrix support and cell culture medium wherein the cells proliferate and form aggregated cell masses, which produce microfilaments external to and surrounding the cell masses, and wherein the extracellular microfilaments connect and form a continuous extracellular microfilament network, and methods for treating a medical condition as well as facilitating wound repair and tissue regeneration comprising applying the microfilament network to an area in need of treatment.

Described herein is the discovery that cancer stem cells (CSCs) can be induced to differentiate by altering CD47 signaling. Provided herein are methods and compositions for inducing differentiation of cancer stem cells, for instance irreversible differentiation, including methods of treating subjects with cancer such as breast cancer, colon cancer, lung cancer, ovarian cancer, or melanoma, and including metastatic as well as primary cancer. Also provided are methods for treating subjects with triple negative breast cancers involving forcing differentiation of bCSCs of the subjects through targeting of CD47.

This invention provides for methods and compositions for generation of cytocapsulae and cytocapsular tubes in a 3D matrix.

The present invention relates in part to methods for producing tissue-specific cells from patient samples, and to tissue-specific cells produced using these methods. Methods for reprogramming cells using RNA are disclosed. Therapeutics comprising cells produced using these methods are also disclosed.

Provided is an epithelial tissue stem cell derived from an adult, which lacks at least one tumor suppressor gene.

The present application describes a method of culturing, expanding or growing stem or stem-like cells or induced pluripotent stem cells on a surface, including attaching the cells to the surface through a ligand that binds to the surface and the cells.

An in vitro co-culture system comprising cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs) and cancer cells for producing and maintaining cancer stem cells and uses thereof for identifying agents capable of reducing cancer cell stemness. Also disclosed herein are a paracrine network through which CAFs facilitate production and/or maintenance of cancer stem cells and the use of components of such a paracrine network for prognosis purposes and for identifying cancer patients who are likely to respond to certain treatment.