Bruce Conklin Talks About Screening Drugs for Toxicity with Human Stem Cells

Jack Hubbard

One possible use for pluripotent stem cells is to screen drugs for toxic side effects. The idea is that researchers could grow those stem cells into mature cell types such as heart, liver, or brains cells, expose them to new drugs or potential environmental hazards, then look for toxic side effects. Dr. Bruce Conklin has a CIRM grant to develop heart cells that could be used in toxicology screens. Conklin is Senior Investigator at the Gladstone Institute of Cardiovascular Disease.