The journey from discovering and developing effective, precise medications to using them correctly and safely in patients is hardly fast and easy. Nor is it a straight shot. Scientists in the UCSF School of Pharmacy are challenging the status quo every step of the way.

Silicon Valley is helping researchers like Wendell Lim move basic science breakthroughs into translational applications, making treatments available to patients faster than normally possible.

Researchers have demonstrated the ability to program groups of individual cells to self-organize into multi-layered structures reminiscent of simple organisms or the first stages of embryonic development. 

The 2018 Grad Slam competition challenged PhD students to use straightforward yet engaging language that non-specialists can understand to describe their intricate research – in three minutes or less.

UCSF bioengineers have shown that many of the complex folded shapes that form mammalian body plans and internal tissue structures can be recreated with very simple instructions.

Organoids serve as dioramas of disease, allowing UCSF scientists to understand how and why problems occur during tissue development. It's also a small step toward the creation of full-sized organs we could use for transplant.

UCSF is the lead institution on a California-based, six-university consortium that was awarded $12 million by the NIDCR to develop strategies for treating craniofacial and dental defects.

A nationwide project that includes two UCSF researchers will use the latest technology, including gene editing, to gain insights into human biology that could one day lead to treatments for complex genetic diseases.