C. Carreau/ATG Medialab/ESA

An artists impression of the European Space Agencys Rosetta probe, which aims to be the first to land on a comet.

Several research groups, including a team led by geneticist Erika Sasaki and stem-cell biologist Hideyuki Okano at Keio University in Tokyo, hope to create transgenic primates with immune-system deficiencies or brain disorders. This could raise ethical concerns, but might bring us closer to therapies that are relevant to humans (mice can be poor models for such disorders). The work will probably make use of a gene-editing method called CRISPR, which saw rapid take-up last year.

The European Space Agencys Rosetta spacecraft could become the first mission to land a probe on a comet. If all goes well, it will land on comet ChuryumovGerasimenko in November. Mars will also be a busy place: Indias orbiter mission should arrive at the planet in September, about the same time as NASAs MAVEN probe. And NASAs Curiosity rover should finally make it to its mission goal, the slopes of the 5.5-kilometre-high Aeolis Mons, where it will look for evidence of water. Back on Earth, NASA hopes to launch an orbiter to monitor atmospheric carbon dioxide.

Neurobiologist Miguel Nicolelis at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, has developed a brain-controlled exoskeleton that he expects will enable a person with a spinal-cord injury to kick the first ball at the 2014 football World Cup in Brazil. Meanwhile, attempts are being made in people with paralysis to reconnect their brains directly to paralysed areas, rather than to robotic arms or exoskeletons. In basic research, neuroscientists are excited about money from big US and European brain initiatives, such as Europes Human Brain Project.

In the pharmaceutical industry, all eyes are on trial results from two competing antibody treatments that harness patients immune systems to fight cancer. The drugs, nivolumab and lambrolizumab, work by blocking proteins that prevent a persons Tcells from attacking tumours. In early tests, the drugs evoked a better level of response in patients than ipilimumab, a similar therapy that was launched in 2011 to treat advanced melanoma.

Semiconductors known as perovskites convert light energy into electricity. They are cheap to build and have already shown conversion rates of more than 15% (a leap from 4% when the feat was first reported in 2009). Expect to see still-higher efficiencies this year, perhaps reaching 20% the same as the lower end of existing commercial silicon-based photo-voltaics. A team at the University of Oxford, UK, also hopes to make lead-free perovskites.

In 2013, two research teams showed that broadly neutralizing antibodies that target an array of HIV types quickly cleared an HIV-related virus in monkeys. The therapy will be tested in people who carry HIV, with results expected in the autumn. Meanwhile, last years curing of a baby born with the virus might lead to wider trials of the technique used: high doses of antiretroviral drugs given at birth.

Technology that rapidly sequences DNA as it is fed through a ring of proteins, known as a biological nanopore, will hit the market this year after decades of development. Oxford Nano-pore Technologies in Oxford, UK, aims to release the first data from a disposable sequencer the size of a memory stick, which it is sending to scientists for testing. It promises to read longer strands of DNA than other techniques (potentially useful in sequencing mixed samples of bacterial DNA, for example), and to show results in real time.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change will complete its fifth assessment report by November. The findings of working groups II and III will focus on the impacts of climate change, and on how societies can adapt to or mitigate those effects (working groupI published its findings last year). Away from formal negotiations, United Nations secretary-general Ban Ki-moon is hoping for bold pledges on emissions at a summit in New York in September. In research, a large carbon capture and storage project in Canada the Can$1.24-billion (US$1.17-billion) Boundary Dam coal power-plant in Saskatchewan begins commercial operation in April.

Here is the original post:
What to expect in 2014: Neural feats

(U-T San Diego) -- A new stem cell treatment may help heart attack patients do something once thought medically impossible regenerate dead heart muscle.

Scripps Health in La Jolla is one of three centers testing the therapy from Capricor, a Los Angeles biotech company. The cardiac stem cells are meant to boost the heart's natural ability to perform minor repairs. If it works, scars should shrink and functional heart muscle should grow.

Capricor gets the cells from donor hearts, grows them into the amount needed for treatment, then sends them to doctors taking part in what is called the Allstar trial. Doctors inject the cells into the coronary artery, where they are expected to migrate to the heart and encourage muscle regrowth.

The trial has successfully completed Phase 1, which mainly evaluates safety. On Dec. 17, Capricor said it had received permission to begin Phase 2, which will examine efficacy in about 300 patients who will get the treatment or a placebo. More information can be found at clinicaltrials.gov under the identifier NCT01458405.

The Allstar trial is funded with a $19.7 million "disease team" grant from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine, or CIRM, the state's stem cell agency.

"This is a highly significant announcement for us at CIRM as it's the first time we've funded a therapy into a Phase 2 clinical trial, Chairman Jonathan Thomas said in a Dec. 23 statement.

About 600,000 Americans die of heart disease annually, making it the leading cause of death, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. Even those surviving may be left permanently impaired, if the heart is severely damaged. These are the patients Capricor seeks to help.

Mark Athens received Capricor's treatment on Sept. 25, about a month after having a moderate heart attack. The Encinitas resident was the last treated under Phase 1, said Scripps cardiologist Richard Schatz, who performed the procedure. It will take about six months to know whether the treatment worked, Schatz said.

Unlike many trials, Phase 1 was not placebo-controlled, so Athens knows he got the therapy. He appeared cheerful, smiling and bantering with his examining doctor during a Dec. 17 checkup at Scripps Green Hospital.

There's good reason to be optimistic about the treatment, Schatz said, because an earlier Capricor trial with a slightly different approach showed evidence of working.

Follow this link:
Stem cells tested to repair dead heart muscle

BERLIN, Jan. 3 (Xinhua) -German scientists have developed a prototype of artificial bone marrow, which can simplify the treatment of leukemia in a few years, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) announced on Friday.

Scientists from KIT, Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart and the University of Tubingen have recreated basic properties of the natural bone marrow artificially in a laboratory.

The haematopoietic stem cells provide replenishment of red blood cells or immune cells, so they can be used for the treatment of leukemia, in a way that the diseased cells of the patient are replaced with healthy haematopoietic stem cells from a matched donor.

However, at present not every leukemia patient can find a matchable doner, so a simple solution to this problem would be to increase hematopoietic stem cells.

As the hematopoietic stem cells retain their stem cell properties only in their natural environment, the scientists need to create an environment that resembles the stem cell niche in the bone marrow.

To accomplish this goal, the German scientists created with synthetic polymer a porous structure that mimics the structure of the spongy bone in the area of the hematopoietic bone marrow.

In the artificial bone marrow, the researchers directed isolated hematopoietic stem cells freshly from umbilical cord blood and incubated them for several days.

Analyzes with different methods showed that the cells actually proliferate in the newly developed artificial bone marrow.

Now the scientists can study the interactions between materials and stem cells in detail in the laboratory to find out how the behavior of stem cell is influenced and controlled by synthetic materials.

This knowledge could help to realize an artificial stem cell niche for the targeted increase of stem cells to treat leukemia patients in 10 to 15 years.

Read the original here:
German scientists develope artificial bone marrow - Xinhua ...

Bone marrow stem cells

Diseases such as aplastic anaemia, or infections (such as tuberculosis) can negatively impact the ability of the bone marrow to produce blood cells or platelets. Other diseases, such as leukaemia, also affect the progenitor/stem cells in the bone marrow and are diagnosed by a bone marrow biopsy where a sample of the tissue is taken using a large hollow needle inserted into the iliac crest (the pelvic bone). Harvesting bone marrow is usually done under general anaesthetic, although local anaesthetic is also a possibility.

Recent advances in stimulating and harvesting stem cells from the peripheral blood may mean that the invasiveness of bone marrow harvesting can be avoided for some donors and patients. Stimulatory pharmaceuticals, such as GM-CSF, and G-CSF, which drive the stem cells out of the bone marrow and into the peripheral circulation, can allow for a large yield of stem cells during apheresis. However, bone marrow stem cells have been found through research in the past five years or so to be able to differentiate into more cell types than previously thought. Mesenchymal stem cells from bone marrow have been successfully cultured to create beta-pancreatic cells, and neural cells, with possible ramifications for treatment of diabetes and neurodegenerative diseases. Clinical trials involving stem cell treatments for such conditions in humans remain theoretical however as there are a number of issues that need further investigation to confirm efficacy and safety.

The stem cells contained within bone marrow are of three types; haematopoietic stem cells, mesenchymal stem cells, and endothelial stem cells. Haematopoietic stem cells differentiate into both white and red blood cells, and platelets. These leukocytes, erythrocytes, and thrombocytes, respectively, play a role in immune function, oxygen transportation, and blood-clotting and are destroyed by chemotherapy for cancers such as leukaemia. This is why bone marrow transplants can mean the difference between life and death for someone suffering from such a disease as it is vital to replace and repopulate the bone marrow with stem cells that can then create new blood- and immune-forming cells.

Mesenchymal stem cells are also found in the bone marrow and are responsible for creating osteoblasts, chrondrocytes, and mycocytes, along with a number of other cell types. The location of these stem cells differs from that of the haematopoietic stem cells as they are usually central to the bone marrow, which makes it easier to extract specific populations of stem cells during a bone marrow aspiration procedure.

Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells have also been found to differentiate into beta-pancreatic islet cells, with potential ramifications for treating those with diabetes (Moriscot, et al, 2005). Neural-like cells have also been cultured from bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells making the bone marrow a possible source for stem cell treatment of neurological disorders (Hermann, et al, 2006). More recent research appears to show that donor-heterogeneity (genetic differences between those donating the bone marrow) is at the heart of the variability in mesenchymal stem cells ability to differentiate to neural cells (Montzka, et al, 2009). This means that careful selection of donor stem cells would have to be carried out in order for treatment to be successful if the research ever displays clinical significance. Conditions such as spinal cord injury, Alzheimers Disease, and Multiple Sclerosis, may be able to be treated in the future using mesenchymal stem cells from bone marrow that were previously thought to only be able to produce bone and cartilage cell types.

Patients with leukaemia or other cancer are likely to be treated with radiation and/or chemotherapy. Both of these treatements kill the stem cells in the bone marrow to some degree and it is the effect that this has on the immune system that is responsible for many of the symptoms of chemotherapy and radiation sickness. In some cases, a patient with cancer may have bone marrow harvested and some stem cells stored prior to radiation treatment or chemotherapy. They then have their own stem cells infused after the cancer treatment in order to repopulate their immune system. This presents little risk of graft versus host disease which is a concern with, non-autologous, allograft bone marrow transplants. The use of a patients own stem cells is unlikely to be helpful in cases where an in-borne mutation of the blood and lymph system is present and such procedures are not usually performed in such cases.

Bone marrow transplantation from a donor source will normally require the destruction of the patients own bone marrow in a process called myeloablation. Patients who undergo myeloablation will lose their acquired immunity and are usually advised to undergo all vaccinations for diseases such as mumps, measles, rubella, and so on. Myeloablation also means that the patient has extremely low white blood cell (leukocyte) levels for a number of weeks as the bone marrow stem cells begin to create new blood and immune system cells. Patients undergoing this procedure are, therefore, extremely susceptible to infection and complication making bone marrow transplants only appropriate in life-threatening situations. Many patients will take antibiotics during this time in an attempt to avoid sepsis, infections, and septic shock. Some patients will be given immunosuppressant drugs to lower the risk of graft versus host disease and this can make them even more susceptible to infection.

It is also possible that the new stem cells do not engraft, which means that they do not begin to create new blood and immune-system cells at all. Peripheral blood stem cells harvested at the same time as bone marrow harvesting were found in one study to speed the recovery of the patients immune systems following myeloablation, thus reducing the risk if infection (Rabinowitz, et al, 1993). Peripheral blood stem cells do appear to be quicker in general at engrafting and they may become more widely involved in the treatment of diseases traditionally addressed through bone marrow transplants (Lewis, 2005).

Read more:
Bone Marrow Stem Cells – Stem Cell Treatment

Berlin, Jan 3 : German scientists have developed a prototype of artificial bone marrow, which can simplify the treatment of leukemia in a few years, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) announced Friday.

Scientists from KIT, Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart and the University of Tubingen have artificially recreated basic properties of the natural bone marrow in a laboratory, Xinhua reported.

The haematopoietic stem cells provide replenishment of red blood cells or immune cells, so they can be used for the treatment of leukemia, in a way that the diseased cells of the patient are replaced with healthy haematopoietic stem cells from a matched donor.

However, at present not every leukemia patient can find a matchable donor, so a simple solution to this problem would be to increase hematopoietic stem cells.

As the hematopoietic stem cells retain their stem cell properties only in their natural environment, the scientists need to create an environment that resembles the stem cell niche in the bone marrow.

To accomplish this goal, the German scientists created with synthetic polymer a porous structure that mimics the structure of the spongy bone in the area of the hematopoietic bone marrow.

In the artificial bone marrow, the researchers directed isolated hematopoietic stem cells freshly from umbilical cord blood and incubated them for several days.

Analyses with different methods showed that the cells actually proliferate in the newly developed artificial bone marrow.

Now the scientists can study the interactions between materials and stem cells in detail in the laboratory to find out how the behaviour of stem cell is influenced and controlled by synthetic materials.

This knowledge could help to realise an artificial stem cell niche for the targeted increase of stem cells to treat leukemia patients in 10 to 15 years.

See original here:
German scientists develop artificial bone marrow

London (PRWEB UK) 3 January 2014

Research on how to harness the potential use of stem cells for common conditions is a worldwide subject of scientific discovery spanning over 3 decades. Incredible results in laboratory experiments have been recorded in 2013 for areas such as tissue regeneration for coronary disease, diabetes, cancer, Parkinsons and Alzheimers disease. All stem cells, whether gathered from an early embryo, a foetus or an adult, have two key properties.

Stem cells have the ability to replicate themselves as needed and can generate any specialised cells that make up the tissues and organs of the body with proper direction. This opens up an exciting potential for the generation of therapies for repair and replacement of damaged and diseased tissues and organs, as models for the testing of new drugs and helping us to understand at a cellular level what goes wrong in many conditions. 1

Stem cells derived from bone marrow or fat has been found to improve recovery from stroke in experiments using rats. This study was published in BioMed Central's open access journal Stem Cell Research & Therapy early last year. Treatment with stem cells improved the amount of brain and nerve repair and the ability of the animals to complete behavioural tasks. Using stem cell therapy holds promise for patients but there are still many questions which need to be answered, regarding treatment protocols and which cell types to use. 2

Other areas in which stem cell transplants are already being successfully used in the clinic trials are for treatment for spinal lesions and the regeneration of epidermal surfaces and in leukaemia, where stem cells are replaced during stem cell-containing bone marrow transplants. 3 These treatments demonstrate the potential of stem cells and intensive research is being performed all over the world to improve our understanding of stem cells and how these can be used therapeutically for PD.

Recently published research by a team of scientists in Wales has shown early signs of being able to regenerate damaged heart tissue. By experimenting at Cardiff and Swansea university laboratories, a team of scientists working in the private sector hopes to develop new treatments for heart failure over the next five years.

In a statement for the research team Ajan Reginald said, "We've identified what we think is a very potent type of stem cell which is heart specific. The interim analysis looks very positive and very fortunately the study does show some signs of early regeneration. What the therapy does is reproduce more cells in large numbers to regenerate the part of the heart that is damaged. The first stage of clinical trial is now completed which was focused on safety. 4

Further research during the next five years will produce more alternative solutions to diseases which currently have treatment but no permanent cures for. 5

References

1.http://www.hta.gov.uk/_db/_documents/stem_cell_pack_200806170144.pdf 2.http://www.parkinsonsnsw.org.au/assets/attachments/research/Stem-Cells.pdf 3.http://stemcellres.com/content/4/1/11 4.http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-25560547 5.http://www.cell.com/stem-cell-reports/abstract/S2213-6711(13)00126-4#Summary

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Chemist Direct reports continued benefits of stem cell research for potential tissue regeneration

January 3, 2014

Rebekah Eliason for redOrbit.com Your Universe Online

Early reports indicate that lay opinions regarding stem cell research with stem cells made from skin or other tissues, known as induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), are generally positive, despite several ethical concerns.

Regardless of personal benefit, most patients indicated during focus group discussions that they would be will to participate in iPSC. When considering donating tissue, patients raised concern regarding consent, privacy and transparency. Jeremy Sugarman, senior author and the Harvey M. Meyerhoff Professor of Bioethics and Medicine at the John Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics, said, Bioethicists, as well as stem cell researchers and policy-makers, have discussed the ethical issues of induced pluripotent stem cells at length, but we didnt have any systematic information about what patients think about these issues, and that is a huge part of the equation if the potential of this research is to be fully realized.

Somewhat taking the edge off of the controversy is the fact that iPSCs do not require the destruction of a human embryo. Using iPSCs in research is extremely valuable in the development of new drugs, disease study and may help develop medical treatments. Although still far off, Sugarman explained that there is hope that iPSCs could eventually be used in the development of organs for transplantation that the bodys immune system will not attack since they can be formed from the persons own cells.

In all five of the focus groups, consent for iPSC research by the patient was highly important. Several of the patients believed that properly informed consent could alleviate other concerns about privacy, the immortalization of cells, and the commercialization of stem cells.

The report noted a strong desire among participants to have full disclosure of the anticipated uses. Some of the participants expressed a desire to be able to veto some of the uses of their cells. Although the authors recognize the practical difficulties of this request, they hope their study will help to prompt investigation into creative approaches to meeting these desires.

The study exposed an additional side to some patients selfless motivations in research participation in relation to eventual commercialization. One participant from the report is quoted as saying, It wont be just taken to become a money maker and the very people who need it the most will no longer be able to benefit from it and another, it was a donation. Its a humanitarian effort.

Unique characteristics of the small study that could influence results were noted by the authors. For example, since the study was conducted in Baltimore, Maryland with patients who have received care at Johns Hopkins, which is home to the first immortal cell line produced from tumor cells that were taken from cancer patient Henrietta Lacks in 1951, related stem cell issues are at the forefront of various focus groups. The report stated, The idea that donated cells would potentially liveforever was unnerving to some participants. In particular, the story about the creation of the HeLa cell line from Henrietta Lacks cervical cancer tissue, taken without consent, was raised in four out of the five focus groups.

In addition, the report suggested that a patients opinion may be affected by their own health and whether they had any personal experience with a debilitating illness. It seems fair to say that everyone experiences serious illness in their lives, whether themselves or through someone they know and care about, and this influences their opinions of healthcare and research, Sugarman says. This study is a first step in getting crucial information about what values are factored into a decision to participate in iPSC research, and what those participants expect from the experience. This study was reported in the journal Stem Cells.

Original post:
Public Opinion Generally Supports Stem Cell Research

Monday, October 11, 2010 - Noon

Stephen Ellis, MD Section Head of Invasive/Interventional Cardiology, Robert and Suzanne Tomsich Department of Cardiovascular Medicine

Stem cells are natures own transformers. When the body is injured, stem cells travel to the scene of the accident and help heal damaged tissue. The cells do this by transforming into whatever type of cell has been injured- bone, skin and even heart tissue. Researchers at Cleveland Clinic believe that the efficiency of stem cells for treating heart tissue can be boosted and help the body recover faster and better from heart attacks. Join us in a free online chat with cardiologist Stephen Ellis, MD. Dr. Ellis is leading one of the clinical trials and will be answering your questions about stem cell therapy for heart disease.

Cleveland_Clinic_Host: Welcome to our "Stem Cell Therapy for Heart Disease" online health chat with Stephen Ellis, MD. Dr. Ellis is leading one of the research studies for stem cell therapy and heart disease so he will be answering a variety of questions on the topic. We are very excited to have him here today!

Thank for joining us Dr. Ellis, let's begin with the questions.

Dr__Ellis: Thank you for having me today.

Robert_B: I have a question on Stem Cell and stabilizing a two chamber heart condition.. Could donor adult stem cells help stabilize the heart and repair some of the damage? Patient also suffers from cardiac sclerosis of the liver.

Dr__Ellis: Stem cells are currently being evaluated to see if they may or may not strengthen hearts previously damaged by heart attacks or other conditions. They are considered experimental for this purpose. There are several ongoing clinical trials available in the U.S.

cabbagepatch: I have been going through other tests for heart transplant consideration, & with everything I have been going through would I be a candidate for heart stem cell repair? How would I find out? My cardiologist is Dr. Hsich in Cleveland.

Dr__Ellis: You may be a candidate for the NIH FOCUS trial at the Cleveland Clinic. Please ask Dr. Hsich - she would be able to help you.

Read more:
Stem Cell Therapy for Heart Disease Webchat - Dr. Ellis

Keeping in tradition with the Us commitment to advance the fields of medicine and surgery, our physicians are focusing on regenerative medicine as the next frontier in treating cardiovascular disease. Researchers within the Cardiovascular Center estimate cell therapy will be FDA-approved within three years. The goal of this therapy is to give cells back to the heart in order for it to grow stronger, work harder, and function more like a younger heart. Currently, studies include the potentiality of injecting cardiac repair cells into patients hearts to improve function.

This is the first trial of its kind in the United States, providing heart patients who have limited or no other options with a viable treatment. Using some of the best imaging technology, researchers have been able to see improvements in patients within six months after injecting their own cells directly into the left ventricle of the heart during minimally invasive surgery.

To contact us, please use the contact number provided.

The rest is here:
Heart Stem Cell Therapy - - - University of Utah Health Care ...

Clinical Policy Bulletin: Stem Cells for Bone Marrow Transplant

Aetna considers compatibility testing of prospective donors who are members of the immediate family (first-degree relatives, i.e., parents, siblings and children) and harvesting and short-term storage of peripheral stem cells or bone marrow from the identified donor medically necessary when an allogeneic bone marrow or peripheral stem cell transplant is authorized by Aetna.

Aetna considers umbilical cord blood stem cells an acceptable alternative to conventional bone marrow or peripheral stem cells for allogeneic transplant.

Aetna considers medically necessary the short-term storage of umbilical cord blood for a member with a malignancy undergoing treatment when there is a match. Note: The harvesting, freezing and/or storing umbilical cord blood of non-diseased persons for possible future use is not considered treatment of disease or injury. Such use is not related to the persons current medical care.

Notes:

When a covered family member of a newborn infant has a medically necessary indication for an allogeneic bone marrow transplant and wishes to use umbilical cord blood stem cells as an alternative, Aetna covers the testing of umbilical cord blood for compatibility for transplant under the potential recipients plan.

Performance of HLA typing and identification of a suitable donor does not, in and of itself, guarantee coverage of allogeneic bone marrow or peripheral stem cell transplantation. Medical necessity criteria and plan limitations and exclusions may apply.

See also the following CPBs related to bone marrow and peripheral stem cell transplantation:

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (2007), cord blood transplantation has been shown to be curative in patients with a variety of serious diseases. Physicians should be familiar with the rationale for cord blood banking and with the types of cord blood banking programs available. Physicians consulted by prospective parents about cord blood banking can provide the following information:

Cord blood donation should be discouraged when cord blood stored in a bank is to be directed for later personal or family use, because most conditions that might be helped by cord blood stem cells already exist in the infant's cord blood (i.e., pre-malignant changes in stem cells). Physicians should be aware of the unsubstantiated claims of private cord blood banks made to future parents that promise to insure infants or family members against serious illnesses in the future by use of the stem cells contained in cord blood. Although not standard of care, directed cord blood banking should be encouraged when there is knowledge of a full sibling in the family with a medical condition (malignant or genetic) that could potentially benefit from cord blood transplantation.

Here is the original post:
Stem Cells for Bone Marrow Transplant

A Vietnamese girl adopted by a Swiss family underwent a stem cell transplant last Friday, months after she was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Joon Gremillet, 18, is under special care at the Geneva General Hospital with visits restricted to protect her from infections, given that her immune system drops close to zero, according to a post on the blog site Help Joon, which was opened to look for a matching donor by her adoptive father Patrick Gremillet, a senior program coordinator at the United Nations Development Program.

Patrick received Joon from a maternity hospital in Hai Phong in northern Vietnam and she has grown up with the family, traveling through Laos, Thailand, US, Austria and France.

Joon, who started her university studies last year in Geneva, was diagnosed with leukemia last May.

She was hospitalized immediately and received chemotherapy before the search began for a bone marrow donor that considerably increases chances of survival.

The father said a donor was a stressful issue as Joon was adopted and there was little chance of finding a matching donor in her current community.

He said there are also few Asians, and Vietnamese in particular, who are enrolled in the international stem cell donor registry.

Fortunately, a compatible donor was found in November, although details are being kept confidential.

Patrick said the donors stem cells were infused into his daughter in a process that lasted nearly two hours.

He said Joon will have to wait for between ten to 30 days before the transplanted cells begin to circulate in her bones and gradually resume production of bone marrow and blood cells. If things go well, she can regain immunity after three months.

Read the original here:
A miracle and a clarion call for more

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

2-Jan-2014

Contact: Leah Ramsay lramsay@jhu.edu 202-642-9640 Johns Hopkins Medicine

In an early indication of lay opinions on research with induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), which are stem cells made from skin or other tissues, a new study by bioethicists at Johns Hopkins University indicates that despite some ethical concerns, patients give the research "broad endorsement".

During focus group discussions patients were largely in favor of participating in iPSC research even if personal benefit was unlikely, though they raised concerns about consent, privacy and transparency when considering donating tissue for this research. The bioethicists report their findings in the journal Cell Stem Cell.

"Bioethicists, as well as stem cell researchers and policy-makers, have discussed the ethical issues of induced pluripotent stem cells at length, but we didn't have any systematic information about what patients think about these issues, and that is a huge part of the equation if the potential of this research is to be fully realized," says Jeremy Sugarman, the senior author of the report and the Harvey M. Meyerhoff Professor of Bioethics and Medicine at the Johns Hopkins Berman Institute of Bioethics.

Unlike human embryonic stem cells, iPSCs are derived without destroying a human embryo. Research with human iPSCs is valuable for developing new drugs, studying disease, and perhaps developing medical treatments. Sugarman explains that, while far off, scientists are hopeful that iPSCs could someday be used to develop organs for transplantation that the body's immune system will not attack, because they can be created from the person's own cells.

The study reveals the importance of prior informed consent for those asked to participate in it. According to the report, consent was highly important for patients in all five of the focus groups that were convened. Some patients even suggested that proper informed consent could compensate for other concerns they had about privacy, the "immortalization" of cells, and the commercialization of stem cells.

There was a "strong desire among participants to have full disclosure of the anticipated uses," the report notes, with some participants wanting to be able to veto certain uses of their cells. The authors acknowledge the "practical difficulties" of this request but hope that their findings will "prompt investigation into creative approaches to meeting these desires."

The study also revealed another side to some patients' selfless motivations to participate in research as they might relate to eventual commercialization. The report quotes one participant as saying, "It won't be just taken to become a money maker and the very people who need it the most will no longer be able to benefit from it" and another, "it was a donation. It's a humanitarian effort."

View original post here:
Study finds patients give 'broad endorsement' to stem cell research

Regenocyte Adult Stem Cell Therapy - LouAnn Rest
Regenocyte Adult Stem Cell Therapy an interview with patient LouAnn Rest.

By: RegenocyteStemCells

Originally posted here:
Regenocyte Adult Stem Cell Therapy - LouAnn Rest - Video

(This is my blog post about the embryonic stem cell study. For my news article about the study, go here.)

Genetically modified human embryonic stem cells can solve one of the toughest problems facing embryonic stem cell therapy, immune rejection of transplanted cells, may have been solved, according to a UC San Diego-led research team.

The cells can be made invisible to the immune system by genetically modifying them to make two immune-suppressing chemicals, according to a study performed in mice given a human immune system. Immune functioning in the rest of the animal remains active. The immune protection also applies to differentiated cells derived from the stem cells.

If the approach works in people, patients receiving transplanted tissue or organs made from embryonic stem cells wouldn't have to take harsh immune-suppressing drugs, said Yang Xu, a UCSD professor of biology. The method also may prevent immune rejection of tissues grown from other types of stem cells.

These arehumanized laboratory mice that contain a functional human immune system. Such mice have been used for years; a UCSD research team developed a model with a stronger immune response to test their immune-suppressing tissues. / Zhili Rong, UCSD

Researchers placed genes in the stem cells to produce the two chemicals, CTLA4-lg and PD-L1, naturally made in the body. The humanized immune systems of the mice accepted transplants of cells engineered to make the chemicals. The researchers transplanted cardiomyocytes and fibroblasts derived from the engineered stem cells. Transplants derived from regular embryonic stem cells were rejected.

The study was published online Thursday in the journal Cell Stem Cell. Its findings will have to be confirmed for safety and effectiveness in more animal studies before human trials can be considered, which will take years. The mouse model itself was "optimized" for the study to more faithfully reflect the human immune system than other immune models, the study said.

Xu said a further study is being considered in monkeys, a large animal model considered to better reflect human biology than mice.

Embryonic stem cells are being tested along with many other kinds of stem cells to replace diseased or destroyed body parts, such as spinal cord segments and insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas. All of these cells have advantages and drawbacks. Immune rejection, along with a tendency to form tumors, are two big drawbacks to embryonic stem cells.

San Diego-based ViaCyte is preparing to test a therapy with beta cells within a year. The company encapsulates them in a permeable barrier that allows insulin to diffuse out but prevents the immune system from entering. However, that approach won't worth with transplants that must integrate into the body, such as spinal cord tissue. So a way of turning off the immune system just in those cells is an attractive idea.

Continued here:
Stem cell transplant problem solved, UCSD-led study says

Human embryonic stem cells have the capacity to differentiate into a variety of cell types, making them a valuable source of transplantable tissue for the treatment of numerous diseases, such as Parkinson's disease and diabetes.

But theres one major issue: Embryonic stem cells are often rejected by the human immune system.

Now, researchers from the University of California San Diego may have found an effective way to prevent this rejection in humans. Utilizing a novel humanized mouse model, the scientists have revealed a unique combination of immune suppressing molecules that stop the immune system from attacking the injected stem cells without shutting the system down completely.

This discovery could ultimately help resolve some of the major problems currently limiting the use of embryonic stem cells for certain conditions, paving the way for the development of more effective human stem cell therapies.

This is a generic way of immune suppression, so it could potentially be applied not just for stem cells therapies, but for organ transplants as well, Yang Xu, a professor of biology at UC San Diego and lead author of the study, told FoxNews.com. It can be very broad.

Embryonic stem cells are different from the other cells in a patients body, making them allogenic. This means the immune system will recognize them as foreign agents and attack them.

One way of overcoming this rejection problem is to give patients immunosuppressant drugs, which suppress the entire immune system. While short term use of immunosuppressants has been successful for many organ transplants, embryonic stem cell therapies for chronic diseases require long term use of these drugs which can often be very toxic and increase the risk of cancer.

In order for the patient to really use this therapy, they have to decide: Do they want a lifelong use of immunosuppressant drugs, or are they willing to live with the symptoms of their disease, Xu said.

To figure out a way of bypassing this issue, researchers needed a relevant model that could closely mimic the human immune systems response to embryonic stem cell transplantation. To do this, they took immune deficient lab mice and grafted them with human fetal thymus tissues and hematopoietic stem cells derived from the fetal liver.

Essentially, this created a highly specialized mouse model with very robust T cells capable of effectively rejecting foreign embryonic stem cells just like human T cells.

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Stem cell therapy breakthrough

One of the toughest problems facing embryonic stem cell therapy, immune rejection of transplanted cells, may have been solved, according to a UC San Diego-led research team.

The cells can be made invisible to the immune system by genetically engineering them to make two immune-suppressing molecules, according to the study. Researchers tested the approach in mice given a human immune system. Immune functioning in the rest of the animal remained active.

If the approach works in people, patients receiving transplanted tissue or organs made from embryonic stem cells wouldnt have to take harsh immune-suppressing drugs, said study leader Yang Xu, a UC San Diego professor of biology.

Human embryonic stem cells. The green markers indicate the presence of a protein expressed only in these cells. / Samantha Zeitlin, 2006 CIRM fellow

Researchers placed genes in the stem cells to produce the two molecules, called CTLA4-lg and PD-L1, naturally made in the body. The mice accepted transplants of heart and skin cells derived from the engineered stem cells. They rejected transplants derived from regular embryonic stem cells.

The study was published online Thursday in the journal Cell Stem Cell. Its findings will have to be confirmed for safety and effectiveness before human trials can be considered, which will take years.

Three scientists given the paper for comment had mixed reactions. While they praised the works scientific prowess, two said genetically engineering the transplanted cells could cause serious side effects that might preclude their use.

The researchers employed a clever strategy to use the immune systems natural regulatory systems, said Mitchell Kronenberg, president of the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology.

This is an especially promising approach, because it avoids the toxic side effects of the drugs now used to suppress the rejection response, and therefore this is an important step forward in showing the feasibility of using human embryonic stem cells from unrelated donors, Kronenberg said.

More skeptical were Jeanne Loring, a stem cell researcher at The Scripps Research Institute, and Craig M. Walsh, associate director of the Institute for Immunology at UC Irvine.

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Embryonic stem cell rejection problem fixed, study says

stem cell therapy treatment for beckers muscular dystrophy by dr alok sharma, mumbai, india
[gujarati] improvement seen in just 5 days after stem cell therapy treatment for beckers muscular dystrophy by dr alok sharma, mumbai, india. Stem Cell Thera...

By: Neurogen Brain and Spine Institute

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stem cell therapy treatment for beckers muscular dystrophy by dr alok sharma, mumbai, india - Video

Regenocyte Adult Stem Cell Therapy - Barbara McKean

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Regenocyte Adult Stem Cell Therapy - Barbara McKean - Video

Regenocyte Adult Stem Cell Therapy -Howard Lindeman

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Regenocyte Adult Stem Cell Therapy -Howard Lindeman - Video

Poway, CA (PRWEB) January 02, 2014

Phizer is a seven year old black lab belonging to Ohio Task Force 1 that recently had stem cell therapy by Vet-Stem, Inc. Phizer was brought to Cleveland Road Animal Hospital for a limp in his right hind. Dr. Chad Bailey recommended stem cell therapy. Both Vet-Stem and Cleveland Road Animal Hospital value the working dog and offered their services pro-bono in hopes that Phizers stem cell therapy would permit him to continue to provide search and rescue service.

Phizer is one of only five search and rescue canines owned by Ohio Task Force 1, one of 28 Task Forces across the US that make up the FEMA Urban Search and Rescue System. Phizer is trained to find living victims who may be trapped under collapsed buildings. He is unique because he is certified to work with more than one handler meaning that he can be used on more missions. If one of his handlers is not available the other may be. Phizer is trained to cover obstacles and treacherous terrain, climb metal ladders and investigate acres of terrain quickly and efficiently. These skills came in handy when Phizer was assigned to a mission recovering victims from hurricane Sandy.

Handlers Maureen May and Deana Hudgins noticed an intermittent limp in Phizers right rear leg when he first started moving, but got better with exercise. Although the limp was not preventing Phizer from his job, he was started on pain medicine, joint supplements and taken for exams to the local veterinarian. His radiology report showed signs consistent with mild degenerative joint disease in addition to another injury. Deana and Dr. Bailey started Phizer on injectable treatments, laser therapy, and discussed stem cells.

Since Phizers stem cell therapy used his own stem cells, a small portion of fat was collected and sent to Vet-Stems lab in California. Within 48 hrs the doses of stem cells were ready for injection by Dr. Bailey. Stem cells are regenerative cells that can differentiate into many tissue types and reduce pain and inflammation thus helping to restore range of motion and regenerate tendon, ligament and joint tissues (http://www.vet-stem.com/science). For Phizer this means that all of the issues identified in his exams may be helped with one therapy.

About Vet-Stem, Inc. Vet-Stem, Inc. was formed in 2002 to bring regenerative medicine to the veterinary profession. The privately held company is working to develop therapies in veterinary medicine that apply regenerative technologies while utilizing the natural healing properties inherent in all animals. As the first company in the United States to provide an adipose-derived stem cell service to veterinarians for their patients, Vet-Stem, Inc. pioneered the use of regenerative stem cells in veterinary medicine. The company holds exclusive licenses to over 50 patents including world-wide veterinary rights for use of adipose derived stem cells. In the last decade over 10,000 animals have been treated using Vet-Stem, Inc.s services, and Vet-Stem is actively investigating stem cell therapy for immune-mediated and inflammatory disease, as well as organ disease and failure. For more on Vet-Stem, Inc. and Veterinary Regenerative Medicine visit http://www.vet-stem.com or call 858-748-2004.

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FEMA Search and Rescue Canine Receives Stem Cell Therapy So He Can Continue to Save Lives