ScienceDaily (Feb. 1, 2012) — Hepatitis C, an infectious disease that can cause inflammation and organ failure, has different effects on different people. But no one is sure why some people are very susceptible to the infection, while others are resistant.

Scientists believe that if they could study liver cells from different people in the lab, they could determine how genetic differences produce these varying responses. However, liver cells are difficult to obtain and notoriously difficult to grow in a lab dish because they tend to lose their normal structure and function when removed from the body.

Now, researchers from MIT, Rockefeller University and the Medical College of Wisconsin have come up with a way to produce liver-like cells from induced pluripotent stem cells, or iPSCs, which are made from body tissues rather than embryos; the liver-like cells can then be infected with hepatitis C. Such cells could enable scientists to study why people respond differently to the infection.

This is the first time that scientists have been able to establish an infection in cells derived from iPSCs -- a feat many research teams have been trying to achieve. The new technique, described this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, could also eventually enable "personalized medicine": Doctors could test the effectiveness of different drugs on tissues derived from the patient being treated, and thereby customize therapy for that patient.

The new study is a collaboration between Sangeeta Bhatia, the John and Dorothy Wilson Professor of Health Sciences and Technology and Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT; Charles Rice, a professor of virology at Rockefeller; and Stephen Duncan, a professor of human and molecular genetics at the Medical College of Wisconsin.

Stem cells to liver cells

Last year, Bhatia and Rice reported that they could induce liver cells to grow outside the body by growing them on special micropatterned plates that direct their organization. These liver cells can be infected with hepatitis C, but they cannot be used to proactively study the role of genetic variation in viral responses because they come from organs that have been donated for transplantation and represent only a small population.

To make cells with more genetic variation, Bhatia and Rice decided to team up with Duncan, who had shown that he could transform iPSCs into liver-like cells.

Such iPSCs are derived from normal body cells, often skin cells. By turning on certain genes in those cells, scientists can revert them to an immature state that is identical to embryonic stem cells, which can differentiate into any cell type. Once the cells become pluripotent, they can be directed to become liver-like cells by turning on genes that control liver development.

In the current paper, MIT postdoc Robert Schwartz and graduate student Kartik Trehan took those liver-like cells and infected them with hepatitis C. To confirm that infection had occurred, the researchers engineered the viruses to secrete a light-producing protein every time they went through their life cycle.

"This is a very valuable paper because it has never been shown that viral infection is possible" in cells derived from iPSCs, says Karl-Dimiter Bissig, an assistant professor of molecular and cellular biology at Baylor College of Medicine. Bissig, who was not involved in this study, adds that the next step is to show that the cells can become infected with hepatitis C strains other than the one used in this study, which is a rare strain found in Japan. Bhatia's team is now working toward that goal.

Genetic differences

The researchers' ultimate goal is to take cells from patients who had unusual reactions to hepatitis C infection, transform those cells into liver cells and study their genetics to see why they responded the way they did. "Hepatitis C virus causes an unusually robust infection in some people, while others are very good at clearing it. It's not yet known why those differences exist," Bhatia says.

One potential explanation is genetic differences in the expression of immune molecules such as interleukin-28, a protein that has been shown to play an important role in the response to hepatitis infection. Other possible factors include cells' expression of surface proteins that enable the virus to enter the cells, and cells' susceptibility to having viruses take over their replication machinery and other cellular structures.

The liver-like cells produced in this study are comparable to "late fetal" liver cells, Bhatia says; the researchers are now working on generating more mature liver cells.

As a long-term goal, the researchers are aiming for personalized treatments for hepatitis patients. Bhatia says one could imagine taking cells from a patient, making iPSCs, reprogramming them into liver cells and infecting them with the same strain of hepatitis that the patient has. Doctors could then test different drugs on the cells to see which ones are best able to clear the infection.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

Journal Reference:

R. E. Schwartz, K. Trehan, L. Andrus, T. P. Sheahan, A. Ploss, S. A. Duncan, C. M. Rice, S. N. Bhatia. Modeling hepatitis C virus infection using human induced pluripotent stem cells. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2012; DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1121400109

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

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Stem cells could drive hepatitis research forward

Imaging Technology Tracks Stem Cells to Brain after Carotid Artery Injection in Animals

Newswise — Philadelphia, Pa. (February 1, 2012) – Experiments in brain-injured rats show that stem cells injected via the carotid artery travel directly to the brain, where they greatly enhance functional recovery, reports a study in the February issue of Neurosurgery, official journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

The carotid artery injection technique—along with some form of in vivo optical imaging to track the stem cells after transplantation—may be part of emerging approaches to stem cell transplantation for traumatic brain injury (TBI) in humans, according to the new research, led by Dr Toshiya Osanai of Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan.

Advanced Imaging Technology Lets Researchers Track Stem Cells
The researchers evaluated a new "intra-arterial" technique of stem cell transplantation in rats. Within seven days after induced TBI, stem cells created from the rats' bone marrow were injected into the carotid artery. The goal was to deliver the stem cells directly to the brain, without having them travel through the general circulation.

Before injection, the stem cells were labeled with "quantum dots"—a biocompatible, fluorescent semiconductor created using nanotechnology. The quantum dots emit near-infrared light, with much longer wavelengths that penetrate bone and skin. This allowed the researchers to noninvasively monitor the stem cells for four weeks after transplantation.

Using this in vivo optical imaging technique, Dr Osanai and colleagues were able to see that the injected stem cells entered the brain on the "first pass," without entering the general circulation. Within three hours, the stem cells began to migrate from the smallest brain blood vessels (capillaries) into the area of brain injury.

After four weeks, rats treated with stem cells had significant recovery of motor function (movement), while untreated rats had no recovery. Examination of the treated brains confirmed that the stem cells had transformed into different types of brain cells and participated in healing of the injured brain area.

Further Progress toward Stem Cell Therapy for Brain Injury in Humans
Stem cells are likely to become an important new treatment for patients with brain injuries, including TBI and stroke. Bone marrow stem cells, like the ones used in the new study, are a promising source of donor cells. However, many questions remain about the optimal timing, dose, and route of stem cell delivery.

In the new animal experiments, stem cell transplantation was performed one week after TBI—a "clinically relevant" time, as it takes at least that long to develop stem cells from bone marrow. Injecting stem cells into the carotid artery is a relatively simple procedure that delivers the cells directly to the brain.

The experiments also add to the evidence that stem cell treatment can promote healing after TBI, with significant recovery of function. With the use of in vivo optical imaging, "The present study was the first to successfully track donor cells that were intra-arterially transplanted into the brain of living animals over four weeks," Dr Osanai and colleagues write.

Some similar form of imaging technology might be useful in monitoring the effects of stem cell transplantation in humans. However, tracking stem cells in human patients will pose challenges, as the skull and scalp are much thicker in humans than in rats. "Further studies are warranted to apply in vivo optical imaging clinically," the researchers add.

###

About Neurosurgery
Neurosurgery, the Official Journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons, is your most complete window to the contemporary field of neurosurgery. Members of the Congress and non-member subscribers receive 3,000 pages per year packed with the very latest science, technology, and medicine, not to mention full-text online access to the world's most complete, up-to-the-minute neurosurgery resource. For professionals aware of the rapid pace of developments in the field, Neurosurgery is nothing short of indispensable.

About Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Lippincott Williams & Wilkins (LWW) is a leading international publisher for healthcare professionals and students with nearly 300 periodicals and 1,500 books in more than 100 disciplines publishing under the LWW brand, as well as content-based sites and online corporate and customer services.

LWW is part of Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading global provider of information, business intelligence and point-of-care solutions for the healthcare industry. Wolters Kluwer Health is part of Wolters Kluwer, a market-leading global information services company with 2010 annual revenues of €3.6 billion ($4.7 billion).

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Encouraging Results with Stem Cell Transplant for Brain Injury

Washington, Feb 1 (IANS) Scientists have successfully converted mouse skin cells directly into cells that become the three main parts of the nervous system, bypassing the stem cell stage, throwing up many new possibilities in the medical world.

This new study is a substantial advance over the previous paper in that it transforms the skin cells into neural precursor cells, as opposed to neurons.

While neural precursor cells can differentiate into neurons, they can also become the two other main cell types in the nervous system: astrocytes and oligodendrocytes.

The finding is an extension of a previous study by the same group from the Stanford University School of Medicine, showing that mouse and human skin cells can be turned into functional neurons or brain cells.

The multiple successes of the direct conversion method overrides the idea that pluripotency (the ability of stem cells to become nearly any cell) is necessary for a cell to transform from one type to another, the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reports.

"We are thrilled about the prospects for potential medical use of these cells," said Marius Wernig, study co-author and assistant professor of pathology and member, Stanford's Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, according to a Stanford statement.

Beside their greater versatility, the newly derived neural precursor cells offer another advantage over neurons because they can be cultivated in large numbers in the lab, a feature critical for their long-term usefulness in transplantation or drug screening.

"We've shown the cells can integrate into a mouse brain and produce a missing protein important for the conduction of electrical signal by the neurons," said Wernig, who co-authored the study with graduate student Ernesto Lujan.

-Indo-Asian News Service

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Some nerve! Now bypass stem cells

Bypassing stem cells, mouse skin cells have been converted directly into cells that become the three main parts of the animal's nervous system, according to new research at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

The startling success of this method seems to refute the idea that "pluripotency" -- the ability of stem cells to become nearly any cell in the body -- is necessary for a cell to transform from one cell type to another.

It raises the possibility that embryonic stem cell research, as well as a related technique called "induced pluripotency," could be supplanted by a more direct way of generating cells for therapy or research.

"Not only do these cells appear functional in the laboratory, they also seem to be able to integrate ... in an animal model," said lead author and graduate student Ernesto Lujan.

The study was published online Jan. 30 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The finding implies that it may one day be possible to generate a variety of neural-system cells for transplantation that would perfectly match a human patient.

While much research has been devoted to harnessing the potential of embryonic stem cells, taking those cells from an embryo and then implanting them in a patient could prove difficult because they would not match genetically.

The Stanford team is working to replicate the work with skin cells from adult mice and humans.

But Lujan emphasized that

much more research is needed before any human transplantation experiments could be conducted.

In the meantime, however, the ability to quickly and efficiently generate cells -- grown in mass quantities in the laboratory, and maintained over time -- will be valuable in disease and drug-targeting studies.

Contact Lisa M. Krieger at 408-920-5565.

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Stanford scientists bypass stem cells to create nervous system cells

Sangeeta Bhatia, MIT professor of health sciences and technology and electrical engineering and computer science

Researchers at MIT and their colleagues said they have devised a way to produce liver-like cells from stem cells, a key step in studying why people respond differently to Hepatitis C.andnbsp;andnbsp;andnbsp;andnbsp;andnbsp;andnbsp;andnbsp;andnbsp;
andnbsp;andnbsp;andnbsp;andnbsp;andnbsp;
An infectious disease that can cause inflammation and organ failure, Hepatitis C has different effects on different people, but no one is sure why, the researchers said in a press release from MIT. Some people are very susceptible to the infection, while others are resistant.

The researchers said that by studying liver cells from different people in the lab, they may determine how genetic differences produce these varying responses. However, liver cells are hard to get and very difficult to grow in a lab dish because they tend to lose their normal structure and function when removed from the body.

The researchers, from MIT, Rockefeller University and the Medical College of Wisconsin, have come up with a way to produce liver-like cells from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), which are made from body tissues rather than embryos. Those liver-like cells can then be infected with Hepatitis C and help scientists study the varying responses to the infection.

The scientists claim this is the first time an infection has been made in cells derived from iPSCs. Their new technique is described in the Jan. 30 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The development, they said, may also eventually enable personalized medicine, in which doctors could test the effect of different drugs on tissues derived from the patient being treated and then customize therapy for that patient.

The new study is a collaboration between Sangeeta Bhatia, professor of health sciences and technology and electrical engineering and computer science at MIT; Charles Rice, professor of virology at Rockefeller; and Stephen Duncan, professor of human and molecular genetics at the Medical College of Wisconsin.

The iPSCs are derived from normal body cells, often skin cells. By turning on certain genes in those cells, the scientists can revert them to an immature state that is identical to embryonic stem cells, which can turn into any cell type. Once the cells become pluripotent, they can be directed to become liver-like cells by turning on genes that control liver development.

The researchers’ goal is to take cells from patients who have unusual reactions to hepatitis C infection, transform them into liver cells and study their genetics to see why people respond as they do. “Hepatitis C virus causes an unusually robust infection in some people, while others are very good at clearing it. It’s not yet known why those differences exist,” Bhatia said in a statement.

Bhatia is a 2009 Mass High Tech Women to Watch honoree.
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Stem cells may shed light on hepatitis, MIT researchers find

03-01-2012 20:39 perfectmyskin.com - We often hear this "Build your own dreams before someone else HIRES you to build their dreams!". "Jeunesse", is once again in the forefront of this exploration for youth-enhancing solutions.

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Luminesce Stem Cell Skin Care - Rediscover Your Skin | Rediscover Yourself! - Video

03-01-2012 16:06 Read More @ http://www.BuyTvOffer.com Stem Cell Therapy is a new advanced anti aging skin care cream, that prevents and treats wrinkles. This anti wrinkle cream is specially designed to treat your skin, making fine lines disappear before your very eyes

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15-01-2012 12:18 http://www.SCRxPlasma.Com Welcome to the 21st Century of Modern Medicine. Recent discovery reveals that it is the umbilical cord lining that is the body's greatest source of undifferentiated stem cells. In a single cord skin, billions of ETHICAL epithelial and mesencymal stems cells can be harvested.

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SCRx Skin System. - Video

15-01-2012 00:02 http://www.SCRxPlasma.Com Welcome to the 21st Century of Modern Medicine. Recent discovery reveals that it is the umbilical cord lining that is the body's greatest source of undifferentiated stem cells.

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26-10-2011 11:37 Apple Stem Cell break through technology that offers hopes for damaged skin.

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Apple Stem Cell - Video

13-08-2011 19:49 In a unique formulation including PhytoCellTec ™ Malus Domestica, Alpha-Hydroxy Acid and ATP Pure Bio-Optimised Hylauronic Acid, these vital ingredients combine to rejuvenate aging skin by activating your skin's own stem cells to promote a healthier, radiant complexion. PhytoCellTec™ Malus Domestica is a liposomal preparation based on the stem cells of the rare Swiss Uttwiler Spätlauber Apple

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02-12-2011 14:46 Amazing youthful results using a skin serum derived from Adult Stem Cells

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Rolling Back the Effects of Aging - Video

01-12-2011 21:21 VOILA! Skin Care offers a premium anti-aging stem cell serum, formulated with malus domestica cells, rich in proteins, phyto-nutrients, and long-living cells to combat the signs of aging.

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Anti-Aging Apple Stem Cell Serum - Video

30-11-2011 11:56 Results after 4 months on Adult Stem Cell growth factors skin serum

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Looking Younger With Jeunesse - Video

26-11-2011 11:13 Stem cells are the body's repair cells. They have the ability to divide and differentiate into many different types of cells based on where they are needed throughout the body. Stem cells can divide and turn into tissues such as skin, fat, muscle, bone, cartilage, and nerve to name a few

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Medivet's Stem Cell Therapy Featured on Animal Planets Dogs 101 - Video

26-09-2011 18:57 Lean back and learn in just 3 minutes all benefits of our unique biological health care measure. (We) Back-up Your Life! TICEBA is the first private tissue bank worldwide to obtain stem cells from the skin, assess their quality and preserve them.

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TICEBA presents - Back-up Your Life! - Video

Wawa, QC Chemist of Imed Lab Sdn Bhd explains and demo about Glamore Halal Stem Cell Vitalization, built with EverLaSkin as active ingredients, to stimulate dormant stem cells under your skin -- stem cells that are able to regenerate and repair skin tissue, and counterbalance the aging epidermal cells with new and young cells. Imed Lab Sdn Bhd is a manufacturer of halal cosmetic products.

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GlamoreTV: Glamore Stem Cell Vitalization - Video

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Stem Cell Therapy Anti Aging Skin Cream Review and Exclusive Deal - Video

What do Parkinsons disease and anti-aging skin care have in common? A lot actually Dr. Manny talks to one researcher who stumbled up a fountain of youth secret while trying to find a cure for a devastating disease

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Stem Cells for Your Skin? - Video

Israeli researchers have managed for the first time to repair damaged tissue using components produced by embryonic stem cells.

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Israeli researchers use stem cells to repair damaged tissue for first time - Video