Provided are compositions and methods comprising Jag-1 agonists for increasing proliferation of cochlear supporting cells or vestibular supporting cells, and related methods of treating hearing or balance disorders.

The present invention provides an efficient process for culturing viruses in the presence of an endonuclease and for producing vaccines, typically from live attenuated viruses, under conditions to reduce the presence of host cell DNA and eliminate the need for a post-harvest DNA digestion step.

Human Neural precursor cells (hNPCs)/cell lines derived from human pluripotent stem cells have been stably transduced with inducible lentiviral constructs for knockdown of STIM1 thereby changing their gene expression. The said Human Neural precursor cells (hNPCs)/cell lines has selectively inducible knockdown of STIM1 via stable transduction of lentiviral shRNA vector followed by Doxycycline treatment. Human Neural precursor cells (hNPCs)/cell lines with stable knockdown STIM1 exhibits attenuated SOCE with downregulation of genes associated with cell proliferation and upregulation of genes for neural differentiation.

In some aspects, the invention relates to populations of hematopoietic cells that are enriched in PTP.sup. cells and methods of use thereof.

Pro-fibrotic signaling potently antagonizes cardiac reprogramming. Inhibition of pro-fibrotic signaling using small molecules that target the transforming growth factor-/SMAD, or Rho kinase leads to conversion of approximately 60% of fibroblasts into beating cardiomyocytes. Conversely, over-activation of these pro-fibrotic signaling networks inhibits cardiac reprogramming. Using the disclosed methods, fibroblasts are converted to spontaneously contracting cardiomyocytes in less than two weeks.

Disclosed are cells and cellular compositions useful for treatment of degenerative and/or autoimmune diseases derived from gene edited/gene modified pluripotent stem cells. In one embodiment pluripotent stem cell such as inducible pluripotent stem cells are gene modified to express tissue associated transcription factors such as pdx-1 if endodermal tissue is desired and cells are differentiated into regenerative-type cells such as along the mesenchymal lineage. In one embodiment the invention teaches transfection with IL-27 to induce expression of coinhibitory molecules for suppression of autoimmunity. In some embodiments the invention provides generation of iPSC derived MSC which can not stimulate inflammation due to gene-editing based removal of inflammatory associated transcription factors.

A culture medium is disclosed which comprises STAT3 activator, an ERK1/2 inhibitor and an Axin stabilizer, and optionally also a PKC inhibitor. Cell cultures comprising same and uses thereof are also disclosed.

Provided are methods for expanding tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), which include co-culturing an initial cell population containing TILs with first feeder cells to obtain a first expanded cell population; and then co-culturing the first expanded cell population with second feeder cells to obtain an expanded TIL population. The methods can quickly produce a large number of TILs from a small tumor sample.

The present invention relates to a composition comprising a repressor of mitofusin gene expression, an inhibitor of mitofusin protein activity, or a mixture thereof as an active ingredient for promoting reprogramming a differentiated cell into a pluripotent stem cell, and a use thereof. The composition according to the present invention increases the efficiency of reprogramming as well as reduces the time required for reprogramming to produce pluripotent stem cells. Therefore, the present composition can be beneficially used to develop the production technology of high efficiency pluripotent stem cell and secure a large-scale culture system. Further, the present composition can be beneficially used to maintain pluripotent stem cells and screen the compounds capable of promoting the reprogramming into pluripotent stem cells.

The present invention relates to a method for in vitro cultivation of hematopoietic and/or mesenchymal cells, wherein said cells are cultivated in a cultivation medium comprising gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) or a GABA receptor agonist, to cells obtained by such a method and therapeutic use of such cells in methods of treatment of autoimmune, inflammatory or allergic disorder. The invention further relates to pharmaceutical compositions comprising the cells and cultivation media for use in the method according to the invention.