NanoSurface Biomedical announced today that it has executed an exclusive IP license agreement related to innovative heart-on-chip technology developed by researchers at the University of Washington (UW). An experimental system built from the same heart-on-chip technology was launched into space on Friday, March 6, 2020 at 11:50 PM EST aboard SpaceX's 20th resupply mission to the International Space Station (ISS) as part of the Tissue Chips in Space initiative conducted in partnership between the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) and the ISS U.S. National Laboratory (ISS National Lab). NanoSurface will commercialize the heart-on-chip platform for use by pharmaceutical companies in preclinical drug development.

The heart-on-chip system will spend 30 days aboard the ISS as part of a series of experiments intended to study the effects of microgravity on human cells and tissues. "In space we are using the heart-on-chip system in microgravity conditions to help improve our understanding of the aging process and cardiac biology, but this heart-on-chip system also has enormous potential for accelerating the discovery of new medicines back here on Earth," said Deok-Ho Kim, an Associate Professor of biomedical engineering and medicine at Johns Hopkins University, the principal investigator for the heart-on-chip experiment aboard the ISS, and the scientific founder of NanoSurface Bio.

The heart-on-chip platform uses three-dimensional engineered cardiac tissues (3D ECTs) grown from human cardiomyocytes, or beating heart cells, derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). As the 3D ECTs beat, researchers can measure the amount of force generated by each contraction, and then evaluate how that force changes after treating the tissues with candidate drugs. 3D ECTs can be made from cells from either healthy individuals or individuals with diseases, offering great promise in predictive preclinical testing of candidate drugs for safety and efficacy.

"I am incredibly excited that the talented team at NanoSurface will be carrying this technology forward for use in the drug development industry," said Nathan Sniadecki, one of the inventors of the heart-on-chip technology and a professor of mechanical engineering at UW. Last year, Professor Sniadecki joined NanoSurfaces board of scientific advisors to guide the commercial development of the technology.

NanoSurface Bios execution of this exclusive license adds significant value to the portfolio of IP it has already licensed from researchers at UW. "It is well recognized that the drug development process is extremely slow and expensive. At NanoSurface we are eager to develop technologies that enable the use of human iPSC-derived cells and tissues in preclinical drug development, ultimately leading to better prediction of how drugs will affect patients in the clinic, lowering costs, and speeding life-saving medicines to market," said NanoSurface CEO Michael Cho.

About NanoSurface Biomedical

NanoSurface Biomedical is a biotechnology company based in Seattle, WA that develops stem cell-based assay technologies to accelerate drug development. NanoSurfaces structurally matured cardiac tissue models, assay instruments, and discovery services leverage human stem cell technology to help pharmaceutical companies predictively assess the safety and efficacy of candidate drugs early during preclinical development. NanoSurfaces mission is to help bring life-saving medicines to market in less time and at lower cost. To learn more, visit http://www.nanosurfacebio.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200309005703/en/

Contacts

NanoSurface BiomedicalDirector of Sales & Marketing: Heejoon Choi, 800-913-4403 x702heejoon@nanosurfacebio.com

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NanoSurface Bio Executes Exclusive License of Heart-on-Chip Technology Launched Into Space - Yahoo Finance

Cardiac Stem Cells Comments Off on NanoSurface Bio Executes Exclusive License of Heart-on-Chip Technology Launched Into Space – Yahoo Finance | March 10th, 2020

There are only two northern white rhinos left on the planet, and theyre both female. Unless scientists can make a dramatic breakthrough, the entire species will die with those two individuals.

In a nondescript building just north of San Diego, California, the fight to save the northern white rhino is coming down to the wire. However, the battleground here looks less like a scene from a wildlife documentary and more akin to something out of a science fiction novel.

At the San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research, an army of scientists armed with liquid nitrogen, microscopes, and ultrasound machines is working around the clock to create an unprecedented first in the conservation world: they are looking to turn frozen rhino skin cells into baby rhinos.

Its not just the science that is groundbreaking, but also the team looking to save this species. Composed mostly of women, the lab is a rarity in a field traditionally dominated by men.

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The first step in this conservation effort began more than four and a half decades ago in 1975 when scientists established the institutes Frozen Zoo. In a small room measuring no more than 36 square meters the skin cells of more than 10,000 individuals across 1,100 species sit in giant steel tanks suspended in time, frozen in liquid nitrogen.

Among the collection are the skin samples of 12 northern white rhinos. These are vital to the groups efforts because there is such a small gene pool of living northern whites.

The population has been decimated by poachers, who target rhinos because of the belief in parts of Asia that their horns can cure various ailments. The two surviving females both live under guard at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya. Even though embryos have been produced in an Italian lab using eggs extracted from the pair, any future descendants from this kind of embryo would carry the genes of those two females.

That may not be enough genetic diversity to maintain a stable population. The hope is that the skin samples of those 12 individuals at the Frozen Zoo contain enough diversity to sustain the northern white species long-term.

The arduous task for these scientists is to create a rhino population from those samples.

Marlys Houck is curator of the Frozen Zoo. She graduated high school in 1979, the same year the Frozen Zoo froze its very first northern white rhino skin cell. She later joined the institute to work on the rhino project.

I was hired specifically to try to make the cells of the rhinos grow better because they were one of the most difficult to grow cell lines, she told CNN.

Since then, shes figured out how to successfully grow and freeze the skin cells of the northern white.

The impact of this work is not lost on her. Were losing species so rapidly, she said. One of the things we can do is save the living cells of these animals before its too late.

Were at the forefront of science today, she added. If we do everything right these cells should be here 50 years from now being used for purposes that we cant even imagine today.

Marisa Korody is one of the four scientists tasked with turning these frozen cells into new life. They have to reprogram the frozen skin cells into pluripotent stem cells. In laymans terms, Korody explains that stem cells can become any cell type in the body if theyre given the right signals.

Read: Former war zones turn into wildlife paradise

The aim is to ultimately turn the stem cells into sperm and eggs. The ambitious feat has only been achieved in animals by Japanese scientists. While Korody and her team have looked to that research as a road map, she admits that doing the same with rhinos is uncharted territory. We dont really know what twists and turns we need to take in order to get from A to B, she said.

They havent even figured out how to do this in humans, she added. We have as much information as we possibly can about humans. We have a fraction of that for rhinos.

Korody says being at the forefront of this kind of science has been a dream job. This was really the first project thats trying to apply this type of science to conservation as a whole, she said.

She may spend most of her time at work looking through the lens of a microscope, but her mind is always on the final goal for the rhinos: We want to be able to put them back into the wild one day and have them living free.

Because the remaining two female northern white rhinos cant carry a pregnancy, even if the team can create embryos, the last obstacle is finding rhinos who can carry them to term.

The woman tasked with that job is Barbara Durrant. As the director of reproductive sciences, shes spent four years studying the reproductive systems of six female southern white rhinos at the institutes sister facility, the Nikita Kahn Rhino Rescue Center.

Though the rhinos at the center are a different species, Durrant says they are the closest relative to the northern white. The aim is to eventually have them be surrogates for northern white embryos.

On any given day, Durrant can be found conducting ultrasounds to help her understand each rhinos distinct reproductive cycle. In 2019, two of the centers females gave birth to southern white babies. Both were conceived via artificial insemination, giving Durrant and the teams working on the rhino project hope for the future.

Durrant believes one reason the project works so well is because there are so many women involved. Women are naturally collaborative with each other, she said. Because we have so many obstacles along the way and challenges and setbacks, we support each other and we have sympathy for each other.

Read: Rare bird brought back from extinction in the wild

Houck says women tend to be naturally nurturing. The cells are living little organisms that were growing and tending almost every day, and I think women are drawn to taking care of something and growing it into something more.

Its wonderful leading a team of women, and I really think theyre changing the world, she added. People are going to look back and see it was this amazing group of women who quietly, unrecognized, work at this and just get better and better.

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Meet the women racing to save the northern white rhino from extinction - WLS

Skin Stem Cells Comments Off on Meet the women racing to save the northern white rhino from extinction – WLS | March 9th, 2020

Bone remodeling and regeneration are dependent on resident stem/progenitor cells with the capability to replenish mature osteoblasts and repair the skeleton.

Until now, it has been thought that stem cells for bone lie within the bone marrow and the outer surface of the bone. Many studies have described the existence of a network of vascular channels that helped distribute blood cells out of the bone marrow. However, none of the studies had proved the existence of cells within these channels.

A new study by the scientists from the UConn School of Dental Medicine has discovered the population of stem cells that reside along the vascular channels within the cortical bone and have the ability to generate new bone. These stem cells stretch across the bone and connect the inner and outer parts of the bone.

Lead investigator Dr. Ivo Kalajzic, professor of reconstructive sciences, said, This is a discovery of perivascular cells residing within the bone itself that can generate new bone-forming cells. These cells likely regulate bone formation or participate in bone mass maintenance and repair.

This is the first study that reports the existence of these progenitor cells within the cortical bone that can generate new bone-forming cellsosteoblaststhat can be used to help remodel a bone.

To reach this conclusion, the scientists observed the stem cells within an ex vivo bone transplantation model. These cells migrated out of the transplant and started to reconstruct the bone marrow cavity and form new bone.

However, further study is required to determine the cells potential to regulate bone formation and resorption.

The study is presented in the journal Stem Cells.

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These new stem cells have the ability to generate new bone - Tech Explorist

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A year after the London Patient was introduced to the world as only the second person to be cured of H.I.V., he is stepping out of the shadows to reveal his identity: He is Adam Castillejo.

Six feet tall and sturdy, with long, dark hair and an easy smile, Mr. Castillejo, 40, exudes good health and cheer. But his journey to the cure has been arduous and agonizing, involving nearly a decade of grueling treatments and moments of pure despair. He wrestled with whether and when to go public, given the attention and scrutiny that might follow. Ultimately, he said, he realized that his story carried a powerful message of optimism.

This is a unique position to be in, a unique and very humbling position, he said. I want to be an ambassador of hope.

Last March, scientists announced that Mr. Castillejo, then identified only as the London Patient, had been cured of H.I.V. after receiving a bone-marrow transplant for his lymphoma. The donor carried a mutation that impeded the ability of H.I.V. to enter cells, so the transplant essentially replaced Mr. Castillejos immune system with one resistant to the virus. The approach, though effective in his case, was intended to cure his cancer and is not a practical option for the widespread curing of H.I.V. because of the risks involved.

Only one other individual with H.I.V. Timothy Ray Brown, the so-called Berlin Patient, in 2008 has been successfully cured, and there have been many failed attempts. In fact, Mr. Castillejos doctors could not be sure last spring that he was truly rid of H.I.V., and they tiptoed around the word cure, instead referring to it as a remission.

Still, the news grabbed the worlds attention, even that of President Trump.

And by confirming that a cure is possible, it galvanized researchers.

Its really important that it wasnt a one-off, it wasnt a fluke, said Richard Jefferys, a director at Treatment Action Group, an advocacy organization. Thats been an important step for the field.

For Mr. Castillejo, the experience was surreal. He watched as millions of people reacted to the news of his cure and speculated about his identity. I was watching TV, and its, like, OK, theyre talking about me, he said. It was very strange, a very weird place to be. But he remained resolute in his decision to remain private until a few weeks ago.

For one, his doctors are more certain now that he is virus-free. We think this is a cure now, because its been another year and weve done a few more tests, said his virologist, Dr. Ravindra Gupta of the University of Cambridge.

Mr. Castillejo also tested his own readiness in small ways. He set up a separate email address and telephone number for his life as LP, as he refers to himself, and opened a Twitter account. He began talking weekly with Mr. Brown, the only other person who could truly understand what he had been through. In December, Mr. Castillejo prepared a statement to be read aloud by a producer on BBC Radio 4.

After talking through his decision with his doctors, friends and mother, he decided the time was right to tell his story.

I dont want people to think, Oh, youve been chosen, he said. No, it just happened. I was in the right place, probably at the right time, when it happened.

Mr. Castillejo grew up in Caracas, Venezuela. His father was of Spanish and Dutch descent which later turned out to be crucial and served as a pilot for an ecotourism company. Mr. Castillejo speaks reverently of his father, who died 20 years ago, and bears a strong resemblance to him. But his parents divorced when he was young, so he was primarily raised by his industrious mother, who now lives in London with him. She taught me to be the best I could be, no matter what, he said.

As a young man, Mr. Castillejo made his way first to Copenhagen and then to London in 2002. He was found to have H.I.V., the virus that causes AIDS, in 2003.

I do recall when the person told me and the panic set in, he said. At the time, an H.I.V. diagnosis was often seen as a death sentence, and Mr. Castillejo was only 23. It was a very terrifying and traumatic experience to go through.

With the support of his partner at the time, Mr. Castillejo persevered. He turned the passion for cooking he had inherited from his grandmother into a job as a sous chef at a fashionable fusion restaurant. He adopted an unfailingly healthy lifestyle: He ate well, exercised often, went cycling, running and swimming.

Then, in 2011, came the second blow. Mr. Castillejo was in New York City, visiting friends and brunching on the Upper East Side, when a nurse from the clinic where he went for regular checkups called him. Where are you? she asked. When Mr. Castillejo told her, she would say only that they had some concerns about his health and that he should come in for more tests when he returned to London.

He had been experiencing fevers, and the tests showed that they were the result of a Stage 4 lymphoma. I will never forget my reaction as once again my world changed forever, he said. Once again, another death sentence.

Years of harsh chemotherapy followed. Mr. Castillejos H.I.V. status complicated matters. Each time his oncologists adjusted his cancer treatment, the infectious-disease doctors had to recalibrate his H.I.V. medications, said Dr. Simon Edwards, who acted as a liaison between the two teams.

There is little information about how to treat people with both diseases, and H.I.V.-positive people are not allowed to enter clinical trials. So with each new chemotherapy combination, Mr. Castillejos doctors were venturing further into unchartered territory, Dr. Edwards said.

With each treatment that seemed to work and then didnt, Mr. Castillejo fell into a deeper low. He saw fellow patients at the clinic die and others get better, while he kept returning, his body weakening with each round.

I was struggling mentally, he said. I try to look at the bright side, but the brightness was fading.

In late 2014, the extreme physical and emotional toll of the past few years caught up to Mr. Castillejo, and two weeks before that Christmas he disappeared. His friends and family imagined the worst, and filed a missing persons report. Mr. Castillejo turned up four days later outside London, with no memory of how he had ended up there or what he had done in the interim. He described it as switching off from his life.

Around that same time, he said, he felt so defeated that he also contemplated going to Dignitas, the Swiss company that helps terminally ill people take their own lives: I felt powerless. I needed control, to end my life on my own terms. He made it through that dark period, and emerged with a determination to spend whatever was left of his life fighting.

Still, in the spring of 2015, his doctors told him he would not live to see Christmas. A bone-marrow transplant from a donor is sometimes offered to people with lymphoma who have exhausted their other options, but Mr. Castillejos doctors did not have the expertise to try that, especially for someone with H.I.V.

His close friend, Peter, was not ready to give up, and together they searched online for alternatives. (Peter declined to reveal his last name because of privacy concerns.) They discovered that at a hospital in London was Dr. Ian Gabriel, an expert in bone-marrow transplants for treating cancer, including in people with H.I.V. Because of their last-ditch effort, Mr. Castillejo said, Were here today. You never, never know.

Within a week, he met with Dr. Gabriel, who tried a third and final time to tap Mr. Castillejos own stem cells for a transplant. When that failed, Dr. Gabriel explained that Mr. Castillejos Latin background might complicate the search for a bone-marrow donor who matched the genetic profile of his immune system. To everyones surprise, however, Mr. Castillejo quickly matched with several donors, including a German one perhaps a legacy from his half-Dutch father who carried a crucial mutation called delta 32 that hinders H.I.V. infection. A transplant from this donor offered the tantalizing possibility of curing both Mr. Castillejos cancer and the H.I.V.

When Dr. Gabriel called with the news in the fall of 2015, Mr. Castillejo was on the top deck of one of Londons iconic red buses, on his way to see his general practitioner for a checkup. His thoughts raced alongside the scenery: He had only recently been told he was going to die, and now he was being told he might be cured of both cancer and H.I.V.

I was trying to digest what just happened, he recalled. But after that call, I had a big smile on my face. Thats where the journey began as LP.

With the possibility of an H.I.V. cure, the case immediately took on intense importance for everyone involved. Dr. Edwards, who had cared for Mr. Castillejo since 2012, had, as a young doctor in the early 1990s, seen many men his age die of H.I.V. What a privilege it would be to go from no therapy to a complete cure in my lifetime, he recalled telling Mr. Castillejo. So you have to get better no pressure.

Dr. Edwards involved Dr. Gupta, his former colleague and one of the few virologists in London he knew to be doing H.I.V. research. Dr. Gupta initially was skeptical; the approach had worked only once, 12 years earlier, with Mr. Brown. But Dr. Gupta also knew that the payoff could be huge. Antiretroviral drugs can suppress the virus to undetectable levels, but any interruption in the treatment can bring the virus roaring back, so a cure for H.I.V. is still the ultimate goal.

Dr. Gupta began carefully monitoring Mr. Castillejos H.I.V. status. In late 2015, Mr. Castillejo was preparing to receive the transplant when another major setback arose. His viral load shot back up with H.I.V. that appeared to be resistant to the drugs he had been taking.

This gave Dr. Gupta a rare glimpse at the typically suppressed virus, and allowed him to confirm that the viral strain was one that would be cleared by the transplant. But it also delayed the transplant by several months while the doctors adjusted Mr. Castillejos medications. He eventually received the transplant on May 13, 2016.

The next year was punishing. Mr. Castillejo spent months in the hospital. He lost nearly 70 pounds, contracted multiple infections and underwent several more operations. He had some hearing loss and began wearing a hearing aid. His doctors fretted over how to get his H.I.V. pills into his ulcer-filled mouth by crushing and dissolving them, or by feeding them to him through a tube. One of the doctors came to me and said to me, You must be very special, because I have more than 40 doctors and clinicians discussing your medication, Mr. Castillejo recalled.

Even after he left the hospital, the only exercise he initially was allowed to do was walking, so he walked for hours around the trendy Shoreditch neighborhood. He went to the flower market there every Sunday, treated himself to salted beef beigels to celebrate small successes and admired the colorful murals and vintage clothes.

A year on, as he became stronger, he slowly began thinking about forgoing the H.I.V. medications to see if he was rid of the virus. He took his last set of antiretroviral drugs in October 2017. Seventeen months later, in March 2019, Dr. Gupta announced the news of his cure.

Neither he nor Mr. Castillejo was prepared for what came next. Dr. Gupta found himself presenting the single case to a standing-room-only crowd at a conference, and shaking hands afterward with dozens of people. Mr. Castillejo was overwhelmed by the nearly 150 media requests to reveal his identity, and began to see a role he might play in raising awareness of cancer, bone-marrow transplants and H.I.V.

He has enrolled in several studies to help Dr. Gupta and others understand both diseases. So far, his body has shown no evidence of the virus apart from fragments the doctors call fossils and what seems to be a long-term biological memory of having once been infected.

Others in the H.I.V. community are reassured by this news, but expressed concern for Mr. Castillejos privacy and mental health.

It can be very important for people to have these kinds of beacons of hope, Mr. Jefferys, the Treatment Action Group director, said. At the same time, thats a lot of weight for someone to carry.

Mr. Castillejos friends have similar worries. But he is as ready as he will ever be, he said. He sees LP as his work identity and is determined to live his private life to its fullest. Having lost his lustrous dark hair several times over, he has now grown it to shoulder length. He has always enjoyed adventures, and with careful preparation he has begun traveling again, describing himself to fellow travelers only as a cancer survivor. He celebrated his 40th birthday with a trip to Machu Picchu, in Peru.

But in conversations about his status as the second person ever to be cured of H.I.V., Mr. Castillejo still adamantly refers to himself as LP, not Adam. When you call me LP, it calms me down, he said. LP to my name, that is kind of a big step.

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The London Patient, Cured of H.I.V., Reveals His Identity - The New York Times

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Stem Cell Assay Market: Snapshot

Stem cell assay refers to the procedure of measuring the potency of antineoplastic drugs, on the basis of their capability of retarding the growth of human tumor cells. The assay consists of qualitative or quantitative analysis or testing of affected tissues and tumors, wherein their toxicity, impurity, and other aspects are studied.

With the growing number of successful stem cell therapy treatment cases, the global market for stem cell assays will gain substantial momentum. A number of research and development projects are lending a hand to the growth of the market. For instance, the University of Washingtons Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine (ISCRM) has attempted to manipulate stem cells to heal eye, kidney, and heart injuries. A number of diseases such as Alzheimers, spinal cord injury, Parkinsons, diabetes, stroke, retinal disease, cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, and neurological diseases can be successfully treated via stem cell therapy. Therefore, stem cell assays will exhibit growing demand.

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Another key development in the stem cell assay market is the development of innovative stem cell therapies. In April 2017, for instance, the first participant in an innovative clinical trial at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health was successfully treated with stem cell therapy. CardiAMP, the investigational therapy, has been designed to direct a large dose of the patients own bone-marrow cells to the point of cardiac injury, stimulating the natural healing response of the body.

Newer areas of application in medicine are being explored constantly. Consequently, stem cell assays are likely to play a key role in the formulation of treatments of a number of diseases.

Global Stem Cell Assay Market: Overview

The increasing investment in research and development of novel therapeutics owing to the rising incidence of chronic diseases has led to immense growth in the global stem cell assay market. In the next couple of years, the market is expected to spawn into a multi-billion dollar industry as healthcare sector and governments around the world increase their research spending.

The report analyzes the prevalent opportunities for the markets growth and those that companies should capitalize in the near future to strengthen their position in the market. It presents insights into the growth drivers and lists down the major restraints. Additionally, the report gauges the effect of Porters five forces on the overall stem cell assay market.

Global Stem Cell Assay Market: Key Market Segments

For the purpose of the study, the report segments the global stem cell assay market based on various parameters. For instance, in terms of assay type, the market can be segmented into isolation and purification, viability, cell identification, differentiation, proliferation, apoptosis, and function. By kit, the market can be bifurcated into human embryonic stem cell kits and adult stem cell kits. Based on instruments, flow cytometer, cell imaging systems, automated cell counter, and micro electrode arrays could be the key market segments.

In terms of application, the market can be segmented into drug discovery and development, clinical research, and regenerative medicine and therapy. The growth witnessed across the aforementioned application segments will be influenced by the increasing incidence of chronic ailments which will translate into the rising demand for regenerative medicines. Finally, based on end users, research institutes and industry research constitute the key market segments.

The report includes a detailed assessment of the various factors influencing the markets expansion across its key segments. The ones holding the most lucrative prospects are analyzed, and the factors restraining its trajectory across key segments are also discussed at length.

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Global Stem Cell Assay Market: Regional Analysis

Regionally, the market is expected to witness heightened demand in the developed countries across Europe and North America. The increasing incidence of chronic ailments and the subsequently expanding patient population are the chief drivers of the stem cell assay market in North America. Besides this, the market is also expected to witness lucrative opportunities in Asia Pacific and Rest of the World.

Global Stem Cell Assay Market: Vendor Landscape

A major inclusion in the report is the detailed assessment of the markets vendor landscape. For the purpose of the study the report therefore profiles some of the leading players having influence on the overall market dynamics. It also conducts SWOT analysis to study the strengths and weaknesses of the companies profiled and identify threats and opportunities that these enterprises are forecast to witness over the course of the reports forecast period.

Some of the most prominent enterprises operating in the global stem cell assay market are Bio-Rad Laboratories, Inc (U.S.), Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (U.S.), GE Healthcare (U.K.), Hemogenix Inc. (U.S.), Promega Corporation (U.S.), Bio-Techne Corporation (U.S.), Merck KGaA (Germany), STEMCELL Technologies Inc. (CA), Cell Biolabs, Inc. (U.S.), and Cellular Dynamics International, Inc. (U.S.).

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TMR Research is a premier provider of customized market research and consulting services to business entities keen on succeeding in todays supercharged economic climate. Armed with an experienced, dedicated, and dynamic team of analysts, we are redefining the way our clients conduct business by providing them with authoritative and trusted research studies in tune with the latest methodologies and market trends.

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Stem Cell Assay Market Competitive Analysis and Forecast 2017-2025 - Monroe Scoop

Cardiac Stem Cells Comments Off on Stem Cell Assay Market Competitive Analysis and Forecast 2017-2025 – Monroe Scoop | March 9th, 2020

This story originally appeared onStockhead.

As with the early medical cannabis plays, a cluster of ASX-listed stocks has wasted little time attaching itself to the c word. Were talking of course about the coronavirus COVID-19 but sadly not another c word: cure.

Or not yet.

According to broker Morgans daily tally, the virulent bug has so far infected 95,332 people, with 38,564 current cases (6,883 of them critical).

Of the remaining 56,768 cases with an outcome, 53,483 recovered and 6,883 achieved a definitive performance indicator. They died.

Okay, a circa 7 per cent mortality rate or even a 1 or 2 per cent rate is nothing to sneeze at, so to speak. But we do wish breathless TV reporters would cease referring to it as the deadly virus, but that would be like asking them to stop referring to a horror smash rather than a sad everyday road accident.

While were on it, we also implore folk to stop hoarding toilet paper: after all, its the coronavirus, not the Caroma-virus.

Named after its crown-like shape but not the Royal Family per se, the common coronavirus is responsible for past pestilences including Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome (MERS).

The virus may indeed fizzle out, as the earlier SARS plague did.

But for the time being, we need the best and brightest minds in the labs to come up with a treatment or more likely a vaccine.

There are some promising developments overseas, which your columnist will return to if he hasnt succumbed as well (he did shake hands with someone who went to a Chinese restaurant a couple of weeks back).

Among the local biotechs and we use the term loosely theres been no lack of endeavour in linking their efforts to the virus.

But to be fair, in some cases investors did it for them.

Take Biotron (ASX:BIT), which was an obvious subject of attention given the company is focused on developing antiviral drugs for HIV and hepatitis.

Biotron also has a program for pan respiratory viruses and mentioned corona in a June 2019 presentation. Some punters latched on to the fact that it wasnt referring to a 1970s Toyota or Mexican beer and the Hot Copper pundits were off and running.

Biotron CEO Dr Michelle Miller has been more circumspect.

Yes, she says, the company has some good advanced compounds to work on, but the reality is that theres nothing that would be ready to fight the current outbreak.

Dr Miller says while the companys work on pan respiratory viruses continues, theres not much to add at this stage.

Uscom (ASX:UCM) shares went on a run after the company reported increased orders for its haemodynamic monitoring devices in China.

Uscom stands for Ultra-Sonic Cardiac Output Monitors.

The Uscom 1A device is a non-invasive diagnostic that monitors cardiovascular functions, using Doppler ultrasound to detect abnormalities.

Chinese health authorities have recommended Uscom 1A as a monitoring device for severe coronavirus cases, while international guidelines also suggest using the device for paediatric sepsis.

Uscom reported that in the first five weeks of 2019, Chinese sales orders rose 124 per cent, from 17 units to 38 units.

Uscom chief Professor Rob Phillips says the company is well positioned with the virus, but notes that Uscom is not a coronavirus story as such: fatalities from cardiovascular pulmonary failure result from conditions such as pneumonia.

Happily for Uscom, the outbreak comes as the company hones-in on the Chinese market with a new direct sales model.

The molecular diagnostics house has a suite of approved tests that cover gastro-enteric strains, flavivirus/alphavirus, sexually-transmitted diseases and drum roll respiratory pathogens.

Genetic Signatures (ASX:GSS) Easyscreen tests cover pan coronaviruses, which until now has not been able to distinguish COVID-19 from, say, SARS.

But thats all changed, with the company introducing a supplementary test that does just that. Management is fast-tracking a validation program to obtain the data required for international regulatory approvals as rapidly as possible.

However, Genetic Signatures cant be accused of beating up its prospects: management says while the bug presents significant opportunities, the outcome of the emerging pandemic is uncertain.

While the early-stage coronavirus is detected by a blood test, chest x-rays are then used to gauge the severity of the illness and assess fluid in the lungs.

Micro-X (ASX:MX1) is all about developing lightweight and portable x-ray machines for medical applications, as well as other purposes such as defence and airports.

The companys first product, Carestream DRX Revolution Nano is approved in the US and Europe.

In mid-February the company said it had procured orders for $780,000 of machines from governments of two Asian countries, in response to the coronavirus threat. This week, another $1m of orders, all marked for urgent delivery, flooded in.

While these are terrible circumstances with the coronavirus spreading so quickly, we are pleased that our equipment will soon be able to assist medical teams with their responses in affected countries, Micro-X CEO Peter Rowland says.

Why waste a crisis? No fewer than four ASX stocks are capitalising on demand for hand and surface sanitisers to halt the bug in the first place.

Antimicrobial solutions house Zoono Group (ASX:ZNO) proclaims that its impressively-monikered Z-71 Microbe Shield, as used in its hand sanitisers, kills COVID-19 99.99 percent of the time.

Zoono is selling into China via a tie up with Eagle Health (ASX:EHH), which manufactures and distributes product into 26 provinces.

Aeris Environmental (ASX:AEI) goes one step better, claiming its Aeris Active product kills influenza and noroviruses in 99.999 percent of cases.

For those remaining 0.001 percent, bad luck and dont buy a lottery ticket.

Interestingly, that announcement did not refer specifically to the coronavirus. But earlier, Aeris announced the Singapore National Environment Agency had listed Aeris Active as one of the general disinfectants effective against the virus.

Meanwhile, fruit juice maker Food Revolution Group (ASX:FOD) has turned from filling its bottles with squeezed oranges to stuffing them with alcohol-based hand sanitiser under the Sanicare brand.

Who would have thought? The swift repositioning results from a 1,260sqm upgrade at the companys plant at Mill Park in outer Melbourne, which enables all sorts of gels, powders, oils and cosmetics to be bottled.

Mainstream sanitiser products such as Dettol and Lysol (made by multinational Reckitt and Benckiser) are flying off the shelves.

But is a good scrub with soap and water just as effective? Australian National University microbiologist Professor Peter Collignon opines theres little difference between hand washing and the alcohol-based sanitisers.

One is just more convenient than the other and contains alcohol, he says. You can put it in your pocket and dont have to be near a sink or basin to use it.

So whos actually tackling the disease? Offshore, theres a conga line of developers having a crack at a vaccine.

In Israel, scientists at the Galilee Research Institute claim to be on the cusp of finalising a product that is capable of getting regulatory assent within 90 days.

Thats what you call fast-track approval.

According to the Jerusalem Post, the same team of scientists has been developing a prophylactic against infectious bronchitis virus, which affects poultry.

The effectiveness of the vaccine has been proven in pre-clinical trials carried out at the countrys Veterinary Institute.

In the US, Gilead Sciences plans to recruit 1,000 patients with coronavirus for a clinical trial to test its experimental anti-viral drug remdesivir (as used to tackle Ebola virus).

With the backing of the World Health Organisation, the drug is also being trialed in China.

Maryland-based, Nasdaq-listed Novavax says it is cloning the coronavirus to develop a vaccine, in the same way it developed one for MERS in 2013.

Novavax is looking at several vaccine candidates for animals and hopes to find one for human testing by the end of May.

Our previous experience working with other coronaviruses, including both MERS and SARS, allowed us to mobilise quickly, Novavax CEO Stanley Eck said.

Fellow Nasdaq minnow Moderna has shipped an experimental vaccine to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases for testing.

Backed by billionaire hedge fund founder Jim Simons, Long Island-based private outfit Codagenix expects to have a vaccine ready for animal testing in four to six weeks, with one suitable for testing about six weeks later.

The Codagenix know-how is based on recoding the genomes of viruses to render them harmless. The technique is not exactly unknown, as its been used to eradicate polio and small pox.

And who can forget Australias very own Relenza anti-influenza Biota, which became Alpharetta Georgias Nabi, changed its name to Aviragen and then was subsumed as a sub-division of San Franciscos Vaxart, popping its head above the parapet to also claim an anti-viral program for COVID-19.

The South China Morning Post reports that a 65-year-old woman on her COVID-19 deathbed walked out of Chinas Kunming Hospital after being given a stiff shot of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs).

Two trials are also underway to test the therapy against pneumonia, at a Beijing Military Hospital and Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University (yep, in the coronavirus capital).

Could the excitement rub-off on our ASX-listed plays Mesoblast (ASX:MSB), Cynata Therapeutics (ASX:CYP), Orthocell (ASX:OCC) and Regeneus (ASX:RGS)?

Cynatas Dr Ross Macdonald says the reports look authentic; and he believes that MSCs could be an effective adjunct in managing patients with serious issues pertaining to COVID-19.

This is not because MSCs are inherently anti-viral or can act as a vaccine, but more because they have shown benefit in major pathologies associated with infection, he says.

Cynata, we stress, has not mentioned coronavirus in its dispatches and nor has any of the other non-China MSC plays or not yet anyway.

But still, what decent CEO would not give his company a plug?

The clear advantage of (Cynatas) Cymerus technology (is) the ability to make large quantities of consistent, robust MSCs without having to find gazillions of donors, Dr Macdonald says.

Your columnist stresses that the coronavirus influence on the sector is not all positive, with some biotechs likely to be affected by supply or other disruptions.

In mid-February, Cochlear (ASX:COH) quickly stepped off the mark by announcing its earnings for the 2019-20 year were likely to come in at $270-290m, compared with the previously guided $290-300m.

The reason is that hospitals in China and Hong Kong have delayed cochlear implant procedures to avoid the risk of infection.

The aforementioned Uscom notes that with labs preoccupied with the virus, short-term revenues are less predictable. In other words, the coronavirus is a distraction as well as an opportunity.

IDT Australias (ASX:IDT) Dr David Sparling told Biotech Daily that his company had no direct supply chain exposure to China at all, and was doubtful that even the companys gowns and protective gear had much to do with the Middle Kingdom.

Editors note: Dr. Tim Boreham, who wrote this article for Stockhead, is one of Australias best-known small cap analysts and business journalists.

If you throw enough money and resources at tackling a disease you will get a result, right?

Er, not quite: cures for well-researched ailments such as Alzheimers disease, multiple sclerosis and an array of cancers remain elusive.

But when youve got an ailment that is crippling the global economy, the imperative to find a solution is somewhat more intensive.

Our best guess is that like SARS and MERS, COVID-19 will hang around for years to come, but the ill-effects will be made more tolerable with an effective vaccine and/or improved immunity over time.

In other words, it will become just another disease in the pantheon of maladies blighting humanity.

In the race for a cure, Gileads Remdesivir looks interesting, given it has been used before.

As for the opportunists in the sanitiser game, the surge in demand means tangible revenue gains and good on them.

But lets be clear: theyre hardly breaking new ground technology-wise and their gains will only be short term as other suppliers enter the market.

As for a cure, or lack of one, we suggest that investors hedge their bets with an exposure to the funeral stocks Invocare (ASX:IVC) and Propel Funeral Partners (ASX:PFP).

After all, theyre the last people to let you down.

Stockheadcovers emerging ASX companies and investment opportunities. Get daily stock updates atStockhead.

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The Aussie Biotech Companies Trying To Make A Buck From Coronavirus - D'Marge

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Steven Hodi Jr., the i3 Centers other PI, and director of Melanoma Center and the Center for Immuno-Oncology at Dana-Farber, and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School (HMS), is leading the clinical cancer vaccine trial. He has been at the forefront of developing cancer immunotherapies using immune checkpoint inhibitors, a class of drugs able to re-activate tumor-destroying T cells that are muted in the tumor microenvironment. The funding for this center provides a unique opportunity to unite key investigators for translating fundamental advancements in immunology and biomedical engineering into highly synergistic approaches to improve the treatments for cancer patients, said Hod

Using both in vivo and ex vivo biomaterials-based approaches, the i3 Center aims to boost tumor-specific activities of cytotoxic T cells, by boosting different stages of the normal process by which T cells develop, and acquire anti-cancer activity. T cells normal development starts in the bone marrow where hematopoietic stem cells generate T cell progenitor cells. These migrate to the thymus to differentiate into nave T cells, which then travel further to lymph nodes. There, they encounter cancer-derived antigens presented to them by specialized antigen-presenting cells (APCs) that can activate T cells to recognize and eliminate cancer cells.

In relation to adoptive T cell therapies in which T cells are given to patients to fight their cancers, one team at the i3 Center will be led by Dana-Farber researchers Catherine J. Wu and Jerome Ritz, who along with Mooney, will develop and test biomaterials that can better mimic normal APCs in activating and directing the function of patient-derived T cells outside the human body, prior to their transplantation. Wu is chief of the Division of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapies, and Ritz is executive director of the Connell and OReilly Families Cell Manipulation Core Facility at Dana-Farber.

We need to make efforts to enhance the ability of theimmune systemto recognizetumor cells. One directionmylaboratoryis taking makes use of innovative biomaterialsto help us to efficiently expandpolyclonaltumor-specificfunctionally-effectiveT cellsex vivoin a way that can be readily translated to theclinical setting. In our studies, we are currently focusing on melanoma and acute myeloid leukemia, said Wu, whose research interests include understanding the basis of effective human anti-tumor responses, including the identification and targeting of the tumor-specific antigens.

A second project explores the use of DNA origami, biocompatible nanostructures composed of DNA, to create cancer vaccines. DNA origami could provide significant advantages in presenting tumor-specific antigens and immune-enhancing adjuvants to APCs because the concentrations, ratios, and geometries of all components can be modulated with nano-scale precision to determine configurations that are more effective than other vaccination strategies. The project will be run by Wyss Institute Core Faculty member William Shih, Derin Keskin, lead immunologist at Dana-Farbers Translational Immunogenomics Lab, and Mooney.

In a third project, David Scadden, professor at Harvards Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, will collaborate with Mooney to build on their previous work. They will engineer biomaterials that recreate key features of the normal hematopoietic stem cell niche in the bone marrow. Such implantable biomaterials could help rapidly amplify T cell progenitor cells, and enhance T cell-mediated anti-cancer immunity. Scadden also is the Gerald and Darlene Jordan Professor of Medicine at Harvard University, and co-director of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute.

The i3 Centers investigators anticipate that it will stimulate additional cross-disciplinary concepts and research, due to the culture of continuous interactions, sharing of findings, data and samples between all investigators, as well strong biostatistical expertise provided by Donna Neuberg, a senior biostatistician broadly involved with exploring immune-modulating cancer interventions at the Dana-Farber.

This new i3 Center for cancer immunotherapy innovation really embodies how the Wyss Institute with its unparalleled capabilities in bioengineering and serving as a site for multidisciplinary collaboration, and can liaise with clinicians and researchers at our collaborating institutions to confront major medical problems and bring about transformative change, said Wyss Founding Director Donald Ingber. He is also theJudah Folkman Professor of Vascular Biologyat HMS and the Vascular Biology Program at Boston Childrens Hospital, and Professor of Bioengineering at SEAS.

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NIH-funded i3 Center formed to advance cancer immunotherapy - Harvard Gazette

Bone Marrow Stem Cells Comments Off on NIH-funded i3 Center formed to advance cancer immunotherapy – Harvard Gazette | March 8th, 2020

Dr. Meng-Lun Hsieh and Dr. Andrew Dean Shubin were married March 7 at the Warwick Melrose Hotel in Dallas. The Rev. Beth Dana, a Unitarian Universalist minister, officiated.

The bride, 33, who goes by Meng, is a fourth-year medical school student at Michigan State University, from which she also received a doctorate in biochemistry. She graduated from Williams College.

She is a daughter of Huey-Jen Liaw and Jyh-Cheng Hsieh of San Diego. The brides father is a research scientist at Sheatech, a biotech company in San Diego. Her mother, a stay-at-home parent, was a history teacher at Taibei High School, a private school in Taipei.

The groom, also 33, is a second-year general surgery resident at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. He graduated magna cum laude from the University of Washington, and received a doctorate in biomedical engineering from the University of Rochester, from which he also received a medical degree.

He is a son of Carol E. Shubin and Andy N. Shubin of Vancouver, Wash. His father retired as a photography teacher at Shahala Middle School in Vancouver. The grooms mother retired as a special-education teacher at Burton Elementary School in Vancouver.

The couple met a decade ago at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md., as post-baccalaureate research fellows, she focusing on a virus that infects bacteria, and he on skin stem cells. In April 2016, they met again at a conference for physician scientists in Chicago, and began dating long-distance.

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Meng Hsieh, Andrew Shubin - The New York Times

Skin Stem Cells Comments Off on Meng Hsieh, Andrew Shubin – The New York Times | March 8th, 2020

There are only two northern white rhinos left on the planet, and theyre both female. Unless scientists can make a dramatic breakthrough, the entire species will die with those two individuals.

In a nondescript building just north of San Diego, California, the fight to save the northern white rhino is coming down to the wire. However, the battleground here looks less like a scene from a wildlife documentary and more akin to something out of a science fiction novel.

At the San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research, an army of scientists armed with liquid nitrogen, microscopes, and ultrasound machines is working around the clock to create an unprecedented first in the conservation world: they are looking to turn frozen rhino skin cells into baby rhinos.

Its not just the science that is groundbreaking, but also the team looking to save this species. Composed mostly of women, the lab is a rarity in a field traditionally dominated by men.

Find out more about Call to Earth and the extraordinary people working for a more sustainable future

The first step in this conservation effort began more than four and a half decades ago in 1975 when scientists established the institutes Frozen Zoo. In a small room measuring no more than 36 square meters the skin cells of more than 10,000 individuals across 1,100 species sit in giant steel tanks suspended in time, frozen in liquid nitrogen.

Among the collection are the skin samples of 12 northern white rhinos. These are vital to the groups efforts because there is such a small gene pool of living northern whites.

The population has been decimated by poachers, who target rhinos because of the belief in parts of Asia that their horns can cure various ailments. The two surviving females both live under guard at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya. Even though embryos have been produced in an Italian lab using eggs extracted from the pair, any future descendants from this kind of embryo would carry the genes of those two females.

That may not be enough genetic diversity to maintain a stable population. The hope is that the skin samples of those 12 individuals at the Frozen Zoo contain enough diversity to sustain the northern white species long-term.

The arduous task for these scientists is to create a rhino population from those samples.

Marlys Houck is curator of the Frozen Zoo. She graduated high school in 1979, the same year the Frozen Zoo froze its very first northern white rhino skin cell. She later joined the institute to work on the rhino project.

I was hired specifically to try to make the cells of the rhinos grow better because they were one of the most difficult to grow cell lines, she told CNN.

Since then, shes figured out how to successfully grow and freeze the skin cells of the northern white.

The impact of this work is not lost on her. Were losing species so rapidly, she said. One of the things we can do is save the living cells of these animals before its too late.

Were at the forefront of science today, she added. If we do everything right these cells should be here 50 years from now being used for purposes that we cant even imagine today.

Marisa Korody is one of the four scientists tasked with turning these frozen cells into new life. They have to reprogram the frozen skin cells into pluripotent stem cells. In laymans terms, Korody explains that stem cells can become any cell type in the body if theyre given the right signals.

Read: Former war zones turn into wildlife paradise

The aim is to ultimately turn the stem cells into sperm and eggs. The ambitious feat has only been achieved in animals by Japanese scientists. While Korody and her team have looked to that research as a road map, she admits that doing the same with rhinos is uncharted territory. We dont really know what twists and turns we need to take in order to get from A to B, she said.

They havent even figured out how to do this in humans, she added. We have as much information as we possibly can about humans. We have a fraction of that for rhinos.

Korody says being at the forefront of this kind of science has been a dream job. This was really the first project thats trying to apply this type of science to conservation as a whole, she said.

She may spend most of her time at work looking through the lens of a microscope, but her mind is always on the final goal for the rhinos: We want to be able to put them back into the wild one day and have them living free.

Because the remaining two female northern white rhinos cant carry a pregnancy, even if the team can create embryos, the last obstacle is finding rhinos who can carry them to term.

The woman tasked with that job is Barbara Durrant. As the director of reproductive sciences, shes spent four years studying the reproductive systems of six female southern white rhinos at the institutes sister facility, the Nikita Kahn Rhino Rescue Center.

Though the rhinos at the center are a different species, Durrant says they are the closest relative to the northern white. The aim is to eventually have them be surrogates for northern white embryos.

On any given day, Durrant can be found conducting ultrasounds to help her understand each rhinos distinct reproductive cycle. In 2019, two of the centers females gave birth to southern white babies. Both were conceived via artificial insemination, giving Durrant and the teams working on the rhino project hope for the future.

Durrant believes one reason the project works so well is because there are so many women involved. Women are naturally collaborative with each other, she said. Because we have so many obstacles along the way and challenges and setbacks, we support each other and we have sympathy for each other.

Read: Rare bird brought back from extinction in the wild

Houck says women tend to be naturally nurturing. The cells are living little organisms that were growing and tending almost every day, and I think women are drawn to taking care of something and growing it into something more.

Its wonderful leading a team of women, and I really think theyre changing the world, she added. People are going to look back and see it was this amazing group of women who quietly, unrecognized, work at this and just get better and better.

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Meet the women racing to save the northern white rhino from extinction - KTVZ

Skin Stem Cells Comments Off on Meet the women racing to save the northern white rhino from extinction – KTVZ | March 8th, 2020

EVERY 20 minutes, someone in the UK is diagnosed with a form of blood cancer, such as leukaemia or lymphoma. It's the fifth most common cancer, and the third biggest cause of cancer deaths.

Yet warning signs of blood cancers can be so unlike those of other cancers, that it's often diagnosed at a very late stage. Research by the blood cancer charity Bloodwise (bloodwise.org.uk) found more than a third of people with blood cancer had to visit their GP three or more times with symptoms before being referred to hospital. This makes it the worst performing cancer in terms of early diagnosis, the charity says.

Why is it so difficult to spot? Well, blood cancers, which stop blood stem cells from working normally and can make you weak and prone to infections, have three main types with many different variations. These variations have numerous diverse symptoms, which can often be mistaken for other less serious conditions.

"Not all signs of blood cancer are easily identifiable, or are associated with typical symptoms of cancer, such as a lump or abnormal mole," explains haematologist Dr Manos Nikolousis, a medical consultant with the blood cancer charity DKMS (dkms.org.uk).

"Blood cancer often presents in ways which are most commonly associated with unrelated and less serious illnesses, like a cold or flu. In other circumstances, patients notice a change in their body which they can't quite put their finger on."

One of the treatments for blood cancer is a stem cell transplant that restores blood-forming stem cells in patients who've had theirs destroyed by very high doses of chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy. But Nikolousis points out that only one in three blood cancer patients who need a transplant will find a matching blood stem cell donor in their family. The remaining two-thirds have to rely on an unrelated donor, which significantly reduces their chance of finding a crucial match.

"The more people who register as potential blood stem cell donors, the better the chances of finding a donor for someone in need," stresses Nikolousis, who points out that potential donors, who should be healthy and aged between 17-55, just need to sign up with DKMS online.

The charity will send a screening kit to obtain a swab from inside the donor's cheeks. If they then prove to be a match for someone, 90 per cent of donations are done by collecting blood and harvesting stem cells from it. The process is simple and could potentially save lives.

What else do you need to know about blood cancer? Here, Nikolousis outlines some blood cancer symptoms and warning signs...

1. Back pain

Musculoskeletal pain in muscles, joints, tendons, bones or structures that support the limbs, neck or back.

2. Bruising or bleeding

One of the most common symptoms associated with blood cancer is bruising, and/or bleeding. The frequency and lasting impact of bruising can be a key warning sign of blood cancer, so it's important to book an appointment with your GP if this develops.

3. Fatigue

Unexplained and persistent tiredness is one of the biggest telltale signs of blood cancer. People who have cancer-related fatigue find it incredibly challenging to complete simple tasks that we tend to take for granted.

4. Swollen lymph nodes/glands

The lymph nodes are small lumps of tissue that contain white blood cells. When inflamed, they can be felt as lumps under the skin; most commonly in the neck, armpit or groin area.

5. Headaches

There may be new headaches that feel different to headaches previously experienced. They're likely to occur frequently and be severe and long-lasting. They also often appear alongside other physical symptoms associated with blood cancer.

6. Stomach discomfort

Persistent abdominal discomfort, presenting as a sharp pain or a sense of feeling full.

7. Numbness in the hands or feet

This can be described as a feeling of pins and needles/numbness in the feet that moves up to the legs, or from fingers into the arms.

8. Heart palpitations

This can feel like a fluttering, a sudden thump or a fast pounding sensation in the chest. It can also be felt in the neck or ear when lying down.

9. Loss of concentration

There may be a prolonged or recurring inability to concentrate or focus, and people may describe this as feeling mentally drained or dizzy.

10. Sleep problems

Blood cancer patients may have continuous trouble falling asleep or staying asleep. This might result in a restless night's sleep causing a feeling of extreme tiredness.

11. Itchy skin

Persistent, irritable and itchy skin. This may be experienced all over the body, or in isolated spots. Again, this symptom often appears alongside other physical symptoms associated with blood cancer.

Get it checked

These symptoms are very common and don't automatically mean you have cancer. But if you notice any unusual or ongoing changes, it's always best to see your doctor and get checked out sooner rather than later.

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Blood cancer symptoms everybody needs to know - The Irish News

Skin Stem Cells Comments Off on Blood cancer symptoms everybody needs to know – The Irish News | March 8th, 2020

Note to editors and reporters: Live coverage on NASA Television of the SpaceX CRS-20 cargo launch carrying this experiment is scheduled at 8:30 p.m. EST, 11:30 p.m. PST March 6 and will be replayed twice on March 7. Coverage of the rendezvous with the International Space Station will be at 5:30 a.m. EST Monday, March 8, with installation at 8:30 a.m. All times are subject to change due if weather or launch conditions are unfavorable

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Space exploration can take a toll on the human heart. Astronauts are at risk for changes in their cardiac function and rhythm. To learn how microgravity and other physical forces in space exact their effects on heart muscle, a Tissue Chips in Space project has now been packed and is awaiting launch to the International Space Station.

The experimental equipment consists of small, compact devices, a little bit larger than cell phone cases. The holders contain a row of tiny, 3-D globs of beating heart tissue grown from pluripotent stem cells, generated from human adult cells. The heart muscle tissue is supported between two flexible pillars that allow it to contract freely, in contrast to the rigid constraints of a Petri dish.

The devices also house a novel invention from the University of Washington. It automatically senses and measures the contractions of the heart tissues, and reduces the amount of time the astronauts will need to spend conducting this study.

The flexible pillars contain tiny magnets, explained UW graduate student Ty Higashi, one of the inventors. When the muscle tissue contracts, the position of the embedded magnets changes, and the motion can be detected by a sensor, he said. That information is then sent down to a laboratory on Earth.

This model will recapitulate, on a miniature scale, what might be happening to the architecture and function of heart muscle cells and tissues in astronauts during a space mission.

The project head is Deok-Ho Kim, a professor in bioengineering, who recently joined the Johns Hopkins University faculty in Baltimore. He and co-investigator, Nathan Sniadecki, a professor in mechanical engineering, began this study two years at the UW Medicine Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine (ISCRM). Jonathan Tsui, a postdoc in bioengineering, Ty Higashi, a graduate student in mechanical engineering , and other members of the UW project team, continue the cross-country collaboration in Seattle. The team is working with several NASA and National Institutes of Health groups, and researchers at other universities, on this effort.

Sniadecki said that each of the tissues heading to the International Space Center contain about a half million heart cells.

They act like a full tissue, he explained. They contract, they beat and you can actually see them physically shorten in the dish. Were actually able to see little heart beats from these tissues.

The SpaceX shuttle delivering this scientific payload is expected to leave from Cape Canaveral no earlier than 8:50 p.m. PST (11:50 p.m. EST) Friday, March 6. The exact departure schedule depends on the weather and other factors.

Once on board, the experiment will run for 30 days before being returned to Earth for further analysis. A related space-based experiment will follow skyward later, to see if medications or mechanical interventions can offset what the heart muscle endures during extended space missions.

The space program is looking at ways to travel longer and farther, Sniadecki said. To do so, they need to think about protecting their crews. Having treatments or drugs to protect astronauts during their travel would make long term space travel possible.

Guarding against cardiac problems would be especially critical during space travel at distances never attempted before, such as a mission to Mars, said Sniadecki. This opportunity to really kind of push the frontier for space travel is every engineers dream.

He added, We also hope to gather information that will help in preventing and treating heart muscle damage in people generally, as well as in understanding how aging changes heart muscle.

Microgravity is known to speed up aging, and likely influence other cell or tissue properties. Because aging is accelerated in space, studies on the International Space Station is a way to more quickly assess this process over weeks, instead of years.

I think the medicine side of it is extremely helpful on Earth, too, because what we discover could potentially lead to treatments for counteracting aging, Sniadecki said.

This space medicine research project is funded by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences and the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering. This heart tissue study is part of the national Tissue Chips in Space program.

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3D beating heart tissue experiment heads to Space Station - UW Medicine Newsroom

Cardiac Stem Cells Comments Off on 3D beating heart tissue experiment heads to Space Station – UW Medicine Newsroom | March 8th, 2020

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. SpaceX is preparing for its fifth launch of the year: a resupply mission to the International Space Station (ISS). The mission, which is scheduled to launch Friday (March 6) at 11:50 p.m. EST (0450 GMT on March 7), will bring a bevy of science material to the astronauts living and working in the orbiting laboratory.

This flight, dubbed CRS-20, marks the 20th and final mission for SpaceX under the company's first commercial cargo resupply services contract with NASA. Perched atop a Falcon 9 rocket will sit a cargo Dragon capsule filled with more than 4,300 lbs. (1,950 kilograms) of supplies, including more than 2,100 lbs. (950 kg) of science equipment.

The scientific cargo will support a host of experiments across Expeditions 62 and 63, focusing on a range of topics, from biological sciences (growing human heart cells in space), to water conservation methods, to particle-foam manufacturing and the addition of a new research platform on the ISS.

You can watch SpaceX's Dragon launch livehere on Space.com, courtesy of SpaceX, beginning at about 11:30 p.m. EST (0430 GMT), courtesy of NASA TV. You can alsowatch the launch directly from SpaceX here, beginning at 11:35 p.m. EST (0435 GMT).

Video: What's flying to the space station on SpaceX's CRS-20 mission?Related: SpaceX Dragon cargo ship launching tonight. How to watch live.

In its never-ending quest to create the best athletic shoe, Adidas has turned its sights to the International Space Station. The sportswear company has developed a performance midsole an additional shoe layer between the insole (next to your feet) and the sole (what touches the ground) that will enhance comfort.

To create its midsole, Adidas uses a process called particle foam molding, in which thousands of small pellets are blasted into a mold so they fuse together. To streamline the process and create the best shoe it can, Adidas is going to try this process in microgravity. The experiment, dubbed Adidas BOOST (Boost Orbital Operations on Spheroid Tessellation), will look at how the particles fuse together in space.

By removing gravity from the process, the team can take a closer look at individual pellet motion and location. The results of this investigation could show that the space station is a good platform for testing out new manufacturing methods and could lead to more-efficient means of packing and cushioning materials.

Related: Adidas launching new sneakers inspired by historic NASA spacesuits

Delta Faucet Co., a manufacturer of shower heads and other bathroom hardware, is launching a payload on CRS-20 that will seek to better understand how water droplets form. The company will use that knowledge to build a better shower head that lines up with Delta's ultimate goal: creating the sensation of increased pressure while using less water.

Conserving water is incredibly important, but one of the biggest drawbacks is that eco-friendly, low-flow shower heads do not perform as well as their less environmentally friendly counterparts. Users complain that the water pressure feels so low it's difficult to rinse off properly, which can result in longer showers and, ultimately, more water usage.

To help mitigate this issue, Delta has created a unique shower head, called the H2Okinetic, that controls the size and the speed of the water droplets with the help of an oscillating chip. That chip creates a better shower experience by breaking up the water flow into bigger droplets and shooting them out faster, giving the illusion of more water.

Related: Showering in space: Astronaut home video shows off 'hygiene corner'

"Water is a precious commodity," Garry Marty, principal engineer at Delta Faucet, said during a prelaunch briefing on Thursday (March 5). "We are trying to create a shower head to keep our customers happy while using less water."

He went on to explain that once the water leaves the pipes, it essentially doesn't have any pressure. What you're feeling are the droplets. With this new shower head, Delta Faucet is able to control the size and speed on each drop, revolutionizing the way a shower device delivers a shower.

"Lower-flow showers aren't really great to be under," Marty said. "But the more we understand, the more we can improve."

Marty added that, someday, humanity will be living on the moon or Mars and will need a way to take a shower. The lessons learned from this research go beyond conserving water and user experience, he said; it has implications for the space industry as well. But for now, the bigger concern is to better understand the fundamentals of water droplet formation.

Heart disease is the No. 1 cause of death in the U.S. A team of researchers from Emory University in Atlanta, led by Chunhui Xu, are sending an experiment up to the space station to explore how effectively stem cells can be turned into heart muscle cells.

The data collected could lead to new therapies and even speed up the development of new drugs that can better treat heart disease.

The microgravity environment found on the space station is known to have a profound effect on cell growth. Through this research, the team aims to understand the impact microgravity has on cardiac precursors (cardiac cells created from stem cells) and how effectively they produce cardiac muscle cells, called cardiomyocytes.

Related: Heart cells beat differently in microgravity, may benefit astronauts

Ground-based research shows that when cells are grown under simulated microgravity conditions, the production rate of cardiomyocytes is greater than if they were grown under the effects of gravity. By sending the experiment to the space station, Xu and her team will be able to determine if their results are accurate.

"Our goal is to help make stem cell-based therapy more readily available," Xu said during the briefing. "If successful, the demand for it will be tremendous, because heart disease is the No. 1 killer in America."

In order to have a successful therapy, Xu said that the team will need to produce a large number of high-quality cardiomyocytes. To do that, the researchers need to first understand the mechanisms behind cell transformation.

Bartolomeo is a new research platform that will be installed on the exterior of the space station. Placed outside the European Columbus module, this science balcony will host as many as 12 research experiments at one time.

Built by Airbus, the platform will enable researchers to conduct more experiments on the station's exterior. During a prelaunch briefing, NASA and Airbus explained that Bartolomeos potential uses include Earth observation, robotics, materials science and astrophysics.

"All of your [research] dreams can come true with Bartolomeo," said Andreas Schuette, program manager of Bartolomeo at Airbus.

And parking spots on the washing machine-sized platform are all-inclusive, which means that researchers can pay one price to launch, install, operate and even return to Earth. By working directly with agencies like NASA, ESA, and SpaceX, Airbus is able to offer a cost-effective means of conducting research on the space station.

The company is also working with the United Nations in an effort to entice those who wouldn't otherwise be able to afford to send payloads into space, Schuette told Space.com. The duo have teamed up with the United Nations Office for Outer Space (UNOOSA) to make that happen. (The agency works to make space more accessible.)

If all goes as scheduled, the Dragon will arrive at the International Space Station on Monday (March 9) at approximately 6 a.m. EDT (1000 GMT). From there, NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Drew Morgan will use the station's Canadarm2 robotic arm to capture and attach the spacecraft, before beginning the unloading process.

Follow Amy Thompson on Twitter @astrogingersnap. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom or Facebook.

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SpaceX Dragon to launch heart cell experiment and more to space station tonight - Space.com

Cardiac Stem Cells Comments Off on SpaceX Dragon to launch heart cell experiment and more to space station tonight – Space.com | March 8th, 2020

This new report by Eon Market Research, titled Global Autologous Stem Cell and Non-Stem Cell Based Therapies Market 2020 Research Report, 2015 2025 offers a comprehensive analysis of Autologous Stem Cell and Non-Stem Cell Based Therapies industry at a global as well as regional and country level. Key facts analyzed in this report include the Autologous Stem Cell and Non-Stem Cell Based Therapies market size by players, regions, product types and end industries, history data 2014-2018 and forecast data 2020-2025. This report primarily focuses on the study of the competitive landscape, market drivers and trends, opportunities and challenges, risks and entry barriers, sales channels, distributors in global Autologous Stem Cell and Non-Stem Cell Based Therapies market.

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U.S. STEM CELL, INC.Brainstorm Cell TherapeuticsCytoriDendreon CorporationFibrocellLion BiotechnologiesCaladrius BiosciencesOpexa TherapeuticsOrgenesisRegenexxGenzymeAntriaRegeneusMesoblastPluristem Therapeutics IncTigenixMed cell EuropeHolostemMiltenyi Biotec

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Consumption, production, capacity, market share, growth rate, and prices are included for each product type segment of Autologous Stem Cell and Non-Stem Cell Based Therapies market

Embryonic Stem CellResident Cardiac Stem CellsAdult Bone MarrowDerived Stem CellsUmbilical Cord Blood Stem Cells

Consumption, market share and growth rate for each application segment of Autologous Stem Cell and Non-Stem Cell Based Therapies market

Neurodegenerative DisordersAutoimmune DiseasesCancer and TumorsCardiovascular Diseases

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Key regions analyzed in the global Autologous Stem Cell and Non-Stem Cell Based Therapies market include; North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Middle East Africa. The country-level analysis included for U.S., UK, France, Germany, Russia, China, Japan, India, and Brazil. The Autologous Stem Cell and Non-Stem Cell Based Therapies industry report provides detailed bifurcation of each segment on global, regional and country level. In a word, the Autologous Stem Cell and Non-Stem Cell Based Therapies market report provides major statistics on the state of the industry and is a valuable source of direction and control for companies and individuals interested in the market.

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Global Autologous Stem Cell and Non-Stem Cell Based Therapies Market Provides An In-Depth Insight Of Sales Analysis-US STEM CELL, INC. - Fashion...

Cardiac Stem Cells Comments Off on Global Autologous Stem Cell and Non-Stem Cell Based Therapies Market Provides An In-Depth Insight Of Sales Analysis-US STEM CELL, INC. – Fashion… | March 8th, 2020

Painless non surgical skin tightening procedures are now available and very popular for people who don't want to go through surgery in order to look better. Call LifeGaines in Boca Raton for more information about "Thread Lifts."

Boca Raton, Florida--(Newsfile Corp. - March 5, 2020) - Thread Lifts are a simple, painless procedure used for skin tightening on the face, neck, or anywhere else on the body. As popular and effective as Botox is, it simply doesn't have the ability to lift the skin. In the past, there hasn't been a great way to produce lifting results without surgery.

Call LifeGaines to inquire about this new method of skin tightening in the South Florida area. Call 561-295-9007.

To view an enhanced version of this image, please visit:https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/6848/53186_lifegaines_orig.jpg

Non-surgical aesthetics are in high demand and ThreadLifts, new to the United States, have the ability to produce skin that is instantly lifted and tightened.

This procedure uses no cuts or incisions, only injections. Threads are needles that are pre-loaded with PDO thread. The whole needle is inserted in the tissue at the sub-dermal level, along the surface of the skin and then the needle is pulled out. Threads can be used nearly anywhere on the body, but they are especially effective on the neck and jawline.

What is PDO?

Polydioxanone (PDO) sutures have been used for surgical procedures for many decades. It is one of the safest materials to implant in the body. PDO is completely dissolvable and your skin fully absorbs it within 4 to 6 months, leaving no scar tissue behind. This is especially effective when it's used together with chemical peels, Botox, and fillers to effect a patient's entire facial structure, remove sunspots and other conditions.

It is a great way to rejuvenate and restore youthful contours to brows, cheeks, jowls and the neck area. They are also effective on the breasts, buttocks and upper arms, areas that are prone to sagging due to weight loss, aging, pregnancy and childbirth or poor muscle tone.

Thread Lifts are a great way to rejuvenate and restore youthful contours to brows, cheeks, jowls and the neck area. Results from threads generally last between 12 months to several years depending on the area that has been treated, how many threads are used and what kinds of threads are used in each needle.

Amy Steffey, is a Licensed Nurse Practitioner with LifeGaines Medical and Aesthetics, and with Thread Liftsprocedure, she helps Boca Raton residents regain their confidence with rejuvenating procedures and body contouring.

Amy Steffey works at LifeGaines, which is one of the most highly respected Age Management Medical teams in South Florida. Age Management Medicine pioneer Dr. Richard Gaines is the founder of LifeGaines, and he has years of experience specializing in Hormone Replacement Therapy, Sexual Wellness, Platelet-rich Plasma, Stem Cells, Aesthetics, and Advanced Age Management protocols.

LifeGaines is located at 3785 N Federal Hwy #150, Boca Raton, FL 33431.

Call 561-295-9007 Today to Schedule a Consultation with Amy Steffey at LifeGaines Medical & Aesthetics Center in Boca Raton.

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people-who-dont-want-to-do-surgery.jpg People who don't want to do surgery could consider a non-surgical way of tightening skin. Call LifeGaines to inquire about this new method of skin tightening in the South Florida area. Call 561-295-9007.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/53186

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Non Surgical Aesthetics Are in High Demand, So Thread Lifts Are a New Way to Achieve Instant Skin Tightening - Yahoo Finance

Skin Stem Cells Comments Off on Non Surgical Aesthetics Are in High Demand, So Thread Lifts Are a New Way to Achieve Instant Skin Tightening – Yahoo Finance | March 6th, 2020

1 Molecular missing link: Research explains why some creams cause a skin rash

Allergic skin reactions can be caused by many different chemical compounds found in skincare creams, cosmetics and other topical consumer products, but how they trigger the reaction has remained somewhat mysteriousuntil now.

New research that suggests the way some chemicals displace natural fat-like molecules known as lipids in skin cells may explain how many common ingredients trigger allergic contact dermatitis.

The breakthrough could help stem soaring cases of rashes, lumps, blisters, itchy eyes and facial swellings. It has been dubbed the molecular missing link because it might have brought a new way to treat the condition.

Currently, the only way to stop allergic contact dermatitis is to identify and avoid coming into contact with the chemical that causes the reaction.

Most allergies are attributed to proteins or synthetically produced peptide antigens that set off the immune system.

A new study from the Hamamatsu University School of Medicine has discovered that docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) could potentially be an important component in creating more efficient lip care products.

The university collaborated with Kose Corporations research laboratories in order to better understand the molecular profile of the lip area.

The study highlighted it was especially important to study the lip in closer detail as it was one of the major targets of cosmetics.

Its important to under the molecular profile specific to human lips to discover the intrinsic ingredients for lip cosmetics.

To gain a better understanding, the team aimed to map out the human lip using imaging mass spectrometry to gather insight into its lipid distribution.

Researchers at Kao Corporation have developed a method to predict odour intensity, a skill previously dependent on the experience of perfumers.

The development of the technology was the result of a project by the firms Sensory Science Research Laboratory, which compiled a database of 314 commonly used fragrance ingredients.

The database of olfaction characteristics allowed scientists to develop a method that can predict the odour intensity based on the concentration of perfumery raw materials (PRMs) present in a gas sample.

Data were obtained from an evaluation testing performed by 18 perfumers and researchers, who scored the intensity of samples emitted from a fragrance diluter with different gas concentrations.

Based on evaluations of those results, the team managed to visualise the relationship between gas concentration and odour intensity.

Singapore biotech start-up Insectta is rearing black soldier flies on its urban farm to produce a more sustainable and purer chitosan for the cosmetics industry.

The company, which claims to have the first insect farm in Singapore, raises black soldier flies that feed on food waste before being converted into viable materials such as chitosan.

It is a useful material that has many functions. For cosmetics, it has antioxidant, antimicrobial and wound-healing properties. Additionally, it can enhance penetration into skin.

Chitosan is conventionally sourced from shrimp and crab. However, the company believes using insects is cleaner and more sustainable.

These flies are not pests, they don't bite. They are native to Singapore and not an invasive species. They feed on food waste which would otherwise go into the incinerator. We're trying to promote a circular economy, said Chua Kai Ning, chief marketing officer of Insectta.

The flies on the farm, which are housed in a small room, can consume around 7.5 tonnes of food waste a month.

Experts in Australia have been urging the public to carry on using sunscreen even though a widely publicised study has shown chemicals can be absorbed from some products into the bloodstream.

US Food and Drug Administration scientists found that sunscreen users might be taking in more of the active ingredients into our blood, far beyond regulatory thresholds.

They tested six of the main active ingredients in sunscreen lotions, sprays and pumps, revealing quantities of sunscreen chemicals in the blood high enough for the products to have to undergo additional FDA safety studies.

This happens when formulations surpass a threshold that requires them to be taken for further testing. The chemicals studied were avobenzone, oxybenzone, octocrylene, ecamsule, homosalate, octisalate and octinoxate.

The researchers stress the findings do not mean that sunscreens are unsafe, merely that more research is needed. The FDA will now conduct more research to determine the maximum levels of sunscreen ingredients that are safe to use.

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Skin science: Top five stories on cosmetics science and formulation - CosmeticsDesign-Asia.com

Skin Stem Cells Comments Off on Skin science: Top five stories on cosmetics science and formulation – CosmeticsDesign-Asia.com | March 6th, 2020

Buyers looking to own a private, well-stocked fishing pond or enjoy the simplicity of a quiet paddle across 18 acres of tranquil water will find all of that and a 5,619-square-foot custom contemporary home at 355 Pond St. in Uxbridge.

Set back from the road on more than 56 scenic acres, the 10-room home, on the market for $1.1 million, offers unique upgrades such as cedar paneled ceilings and 14-karate-gold plated fixtures in the master bath.

The house also features a 2,400-square-foot, wraparound deck that overlooks Lee Pond.

Owner Dr. Charles A. Vacanti said his favorite feature of the property is its pond, which is stocked upstream along Emerson Brook by two fishing clubs.

Both of their ponds drain into our 18-acre pond, he said. It may be the best fishing hole in New England.

Listing agent Gary Smith of Mendon Area Real Estate called the pond and its surrounding property beautiful, while his favorite feature in the home is the spectacular family room.

The sunken combination family and dining room share a wood burning stove with a two-story stone surround. The cathedral ceilings are paneled in cedar and hold skylights and fans. Light from two panels of floor to ceiling glass brightens this room that gives access to the deck.

The modern, eat-in kitchen holds a center island, custom-built cabinetry, granite countertops and large pantry.

The upstairs hallway is an open loft overlooking the family/dining room.

The master suite offers scenic views through a wall of glass with a door that opens to a balcony. The master bath has marble flooring, a cathedral ceiling with skylights, custom built closet and cabinets, a spa hot tub, and large stall shower.

Also upstairs are an office and gym space.

Dr. Vacanti and his wife, Linda, bought the property in 1998.

Since then, the couple has replaced all 27 skylights, all external doors and windows, and the roof. The installation of solar panels, Dr. Vacanti said, has reduced annual utility costs to nearly zero.

Dr. Vacanti is widely known for his research work in stem cell and tissue engineering. While at the University of Massachusetts Medical School in 1996, he grew new cartilage in the shape of a human ear under the skin of a lab mouse. The Vacanti Mouse was part of research on organ generation and the first demonstration of growing new tissue from cells in a lab.

As for the property, Smith called it a beautiful high and dry pasture that just begs for equestrian use, a corporate retreat, Bed and Breakfast, or Rod and Gun Club.

The property is minutes from Route 146.

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House of the Week: Uxbridge property is a sportsmans paradise - Worcester Telegram

Skin Stem Cells Comments Off on House of the Week: Uxbridge property is a sportsmans paradise – Worcester Telegram | March 6th, 2020

Technology Networksrecently had the pleasureof speaking with Bruce Steel, CEOEquillium, Inc. to learn more about how they are leveraging their comprehensive understanding of immunobiology to develop novel treatments for inflammatory and autoimmune disorders.Bruce provides insight on the various indications the company is currently developing treatments for, elaborates on the clinical progress of their initial product candidate EQ001 (itolizumab), and explains the role CD6 plays in autoimmunity and how it can be targeted therapeutically.

Laura Lansdowne (LL): How can immunobiology be harnessed to develop therapeutics?Bruce Steel (BS): The role of the immune system is to defend the body against foreign organisms and cells, including cancerous cells, and in doing so, it must distinguish accurately between self- and non-self-entities a process called tolerance. Autoimmunity is an immune response directed against the bodys own healthy cells and tissues and is the underlying process in many inflammatory diseases. Autoimmunity results from a loss of tolerance caused in part by an imbalance in the relationship between effector T cells and regulatory T cells. Therefore, developing therapeutics, such as EQ001 (itolizumab), that target these critical regulators of immune activation pathways has the potential dramatically improve the lives of patients with severe autoimmune and inflammatory disorders.LL: What indications are you currently developing treatments for?BS: We select target indications based on three primary criteria: strong scientific rationale for why itolizumab has potential to be a best-in-class therapeutic approach, areas of high unmet medical need where there are little or no treatments available today, and indications where we believe there is an attractive future commercial opportunity. Today we have ongoing clinical trials with itolizumab in acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), uncontrolled asthma and lupus/lupus nephritis.

While these three indications are our initial areas of focus, we believe itolizumab has the potential to be developed in other areas such as transplant science, systemic autoimmunity, pulmonary, neurologic, gastrointestinal, renal, vascular, ophthalmic and dermatologic disorders.We licensed itolizumab from our partner Biocon Limited who developed the drug and received regulatory approval in India for the treatment of psoriasis.LL: Can you tell us more about the mechanism of your drug candidate EQ001 (itolizumab)?BS: Itolizumab is a clinical-stage, first-in-class monoclonal antibody that selectively targets the CD6-ALCAM pathway, which plays a central role in modulating the activity and trafficking of effector T cells that drive a number of immune-inflammatory diseases.LL: What role does CD6 play in autoimmunity?BS: CD6 is a novel co-stimulatory receptor that uniquely modulates T cell activity and trafficking. It is a key checkpoint in regulating effector T cells that are central to autoimmune responses. CD6 binds activated leukocyte cell adhesion molecule (ALCAM). ALCAM is expressed on both antigen-presenting cells and tissue including the skin, gut, lung and kidney.In preclinical studies, blockade of CD6 with itolizumab leads to reduction in effector T cell activation and proliferation. Additionally, inhibiting the binding of ALCAM to CD6 with itolizumab modulates lymphocyte trafficking and reduces effector T cell infiltration into inflamed tissues.

Our work with CD6 builds upon the research conducted from researchers at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, our partner Biocon, and other leading academic centers. Today there are numerous peer reviewed publications related to the novel CD6 checkpoint receptor and targeting the CD6-ALCAM pathway.LL: Can you elaborate on the clinical progress of itolizumab?BS: Itolizumab is currently being studied in three different indications: acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD), uncontrolled moderate to severe asthma and lupus/lupus nephritis. This is an important catalyst year for Equillium as we expect initial data from all three programs in 2H 2020.

Each of these studies will allow us to understand the safety of itolizumab in these different disease areas and understand what potential dose we will carry forward. This is important as we consider making a larger investment in Phase II studies to advance the program.Bruce Steel was speaking with Laura Elizabeth Lansdowne, Senior Science Writer for Technology Networks.

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Exploiting Immunobiology To Treat Severe Autoimmune and Inflammatory Disorders - Technology Networks

Skin Stem Cells Comments Off on Exploiting Immunobiology To Treat Severe Autoimmune and Inflammatory Disorders – Technology Networks | March 6th, 2020

Avoid close contact with sick patients. Stay home if youre feeling unwell. Scrub your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds and for goodness sake, stop touching your face.

By now, youve probably heard or seen the advice from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for staving off COVID-19, the viral epidemic ricocheting across the globe. Most cases of the disease are mild, triggering cold-like symptoms including fever, fatigue, dry cough and shortness of breath. The death rate appears to be lowabout two or three percent, perhaps much less. But the virus responsible, called SARS-CoV-2, is a fearsomely fast spreader, hopping from person to person through the droplets produced by sneezes and coughs. Since COVID-19 was first detected in Chinas Hubei province in December 2019, nearly 100,000 confirmed cases have been reported worldwide, with many more to come.

To curb the virus spread, experts stress the importance of hand hygiene: keeping your hands clean by regularly lathering up with soap and water, or, as a solid second choice, thoroughly rubbing them down with an alcohol-based sanitizer. That might sound like simple, even inconsequential advice. But such commonplace practices can be surprisingly powerful weapons in the war against infectious disease.

[Washing your hands] is one of the most important ways to interrupt transmission of viruses or other pathogens, says Sallie Permar, a physician and infectious disease researcher at Duke University. It can have a major impact on an outbreak.

In the strictest sense of the word, viruses arent technically alive. Unlike most other microbes, which can grow and reproduce on their own, viruses must invade a host such as a human cell to manufacture more of themselves. Without a living organism to hijack, viruses cant cause illness. Yet viral particles are hardy enough to remain active for a while outside of the host, with some staying infectious for hours, days or weeks. For this reason, viruses can easily spread unnoticed, especially when infected individuals dont always exhibit symptomsas appears to be the case with COVID-19.

Researchers are still nailing down the details of exactly how SARS-CoV-2 is transmitted and how resilient it is outside the body. Because the virus seems to hang out in mucus and other airway fluids, it almost certainly spreads when infected individuals cough or sneeze. Released into the air, infectious droplets can land on another person or a frequently touched surface like a doorknob, shopping cart or subway seat. The virus can also transfer through handshakes after someone carrying the virus sneezes or coughs into their hand.

After that, its a short trip for the virus from hand to head. Researchers estimate that, on average, humans touch their faces upwards of 20 times an hour, with about 44 percent of these encounters involving eyes, mouths and nosessome of the quickest entry points into the bodys interior.

Breaking this chain of transmission can help stem the spread of disease, says Chidiebere Akusobi, an infectious disease researcher at Harvards School of Public Health. Sneezing or coughing into your elbow can keep mucus off your mitts; noticing when your hand drifts towards your face can help you reduce the habit.

All this public-health-minded advice boils down to a game of keep away. To actually infect a person, viruses must first get inside the body, where they can infect living cellsso if one lands on your hands, the best next move is to remove or destroy it.

The most important step to curbing infection may be hand-washing, especially before eating food, after using the bathroom and after caring for someone with symptoms. Its simply the best method to limit transmission, says Kellie Jurado, a virologist at the University of Pennsylvanias Perelman School of Medicine. You can prevent yourself from being infected as well as transmitting to others.

According to the CDC, you should wet your handsfront and backwith clean, running water; lather up with soap, paying mind to the easily-forgotten spaces between your fingers and beneath your nails; scrub for at least 20 seconds; then rinse and dry. (Pro tip: If counting bores you or youre sick of the birthday song, try the chorus of these popular songs to keep track.)

Done properly, this process accomplishes several virus-taming tasks. First, the potent trifecta of lathering, scrubbing and rinsing physically removes pathogens from your skin, says Shirlee Wohl, a virologist and epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins University.

In many ways, soap molecules are ideal for the task at hand. Soap can incapacitate SARS-CoV-2 and other viruses that have an outer coating called an envelope, which helps the pathogens latch onto and invade new cells. Viral envelopes and soap molecules both contain fatty substances that tend to interact with each other when placed in close proximity, breaking up the envelopes and incapacitating the pathogen. Basically, the viruses become unable to infect a human cell, Permar says.

Alcohol-based hand sanitizers also target these vulnerable viral envelopes, but in a slightly different way. While soap physically dismantles the envelope using brute force, alcohol changes the envelopes chemical properties, making it less stable and more permeable to the outside world, says Benhur Lee, a microbiologist at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. (Note that alcohol here means a chemical like ethanol or isopropyl alcoholnot a beverage like vodka, which contains only some ethanol.)

Alcohol also can penetrate deep into the pathogens interior, wreaking havoc on proteins throughout the virus. (Importantly, not all viruses come with outer envelopes. Those that dont, like the viruses that cause HPV and polio, wont be susceptible to soap, and to some extent alcohol, in the same way.)

Hand sanitizers made without alcohollike some marketed as baby-safe or naturalwont have the same effect. The CDC recommends searching for a product with at least 60 percent alcohol contentthe minimum concentration found to be effective in past studies. (Some water is necessary to unravel the pathogens proteins, so 100 percent alcohol isnt a good option.)

As with hand-washing, timing matters with sanitizers. After squirting a dollop onto your palm, rub it all over your hands, front and back, until theyre completely drywithout wiping them off on a towel, which could keep the sanitizer from finishing its job, Jurado says.,

But hand sanitizers come with drawbacks. For most people, using these products is less intuitive than hand-washing, and the CDC notes that many people dont follow the instructions for proper application. Hand sanitizers also dont jettison microbes off skin like soap, which is formulated to lift oily schmutz off surfaces, Akusobi says.

Soap emulsifies things like dirt really well, he says. When you have a dirty plate, you dont want to use alcoholthat would help sterilize it, but not clean it.

Similarly, anytime the grit is visible on your hands, dont grab the hand sanitizer; only a full 20 seconds (or more) of scrubbing with soapy water will do. All told, hand sanitizer should not be considered a replacement for soap and water, Lee says. If I have access to soap and water, I will use it.

Technically, it is possible to overdo it with both hand-washing and hand sanitizing, Akusobi says. If your skin is chronically dry and cracking, thats no good. You could be exposing yourself to other infections, he says. But it would take a lot to get to that point.

In recent weeks, hand sanitizers have been flying off the shelves, leading to shortages and even prompting some retailers to ration their supplies. Some people have begun brewing up hand sanitizers at home based on online recipes.

Many caution against this DIY approach, as the end products cant be quality controlled for effectiveness, uniformity or safety, says Eric Rubin, an infectious disease researcher at Harvards School of Public Health. On average, one would imagine that [a homemade sanitizer] would not work as well, so it would be a mistake to rely on it, he says.

As more information on SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 emerges, experts stress the importance of awareness. Even as the news changes and evolves, peoples vigilance shouldnt.

Do the small things you need to do to physically and mentally prepare for whats next, Wohl says. But dont panic. That never helps anybody.

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Why Is Washing Your Hands So Important, Anyway? - Smithsonian

Skin Stem Cells Comments Off on Why Is Washing Your Hands So Important, Anyway? – Smithsonian | March 6th, 2020

A new population of stem cells that can generate bone has been revealed by researchers, which they say could have implications in regenerative medicine.

A population of stem cells with the ability to generate new bone has been newly discovered by a group of researchers at the University of Connecticut (UConn) School of Dental Medicine, US.

The researchers present a new population of cells that reside along the vascular channels that stretch across the bone and connect the inner and outer parts of the bone.

This is a new discovery of perivascular cells residing within the bone itself that can generate new bone forming cells, said lead investigator Dr Ivo Kalajzic. These cells likely regulate bone formation or participate in bone mass maintenance and repair.

Stem cells for bone have long been thought to be present within bone marrow and the outer surface of bone, serving as reserve cells that constantly generate new bone or participate in bone repair. Recent studies have described the existence of a network of vascular channels that helped distribute blood cells out of the bone marrow, but no research has proved the existence of cells within these channels that have the ability to form new bones.

In this study, Kalajzic and his team are the first to report the existence of these progenitor cells within cortical bone that can generate new bone-forming cells osteoblasts that can be used to help remodel a bone.

To reach this conclusion, the researchers observed the stem cells within an ex vivo bone transplantation model. These cells migrated out of the transplant and began to reconstruct the marrow cavity and form new bone.

While this study shows there is a population of cells that can help aid formation, more research needs to be done to determine the cells potential to regulate bone formation and resorption, say the scientists.

According to the authors of the study: we have identified and characterised a novel stromal lineagerestricted osteoprogenitor that is associated with transcortical vessels of long bones. Functionally, we have demonstrated that this population can migrate out of cortical bone channels, expand and differentiate into osteoblasts, therefore serving as a source of progenitors contributing to new bone formation.

The results are published inSTEM CELLS.

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Stem cells that can grow new bone discovered by researchers - Drug Target Review

Bone Marrow Stem Cells Comments Off on Stem cells that can grow new bone discovered by researchers – Drug Target Review | March 6th, 2020

Researchers from UConn School of Dental Medicine have recently discovered a group of stem cells that help in generating a new bone. In regards with this, Dr Ivo Kalajzic, professor of reconstructive sciences, stated that, this newly discovered perivascular stem cells that reside in the bone itself have capability of generating the bone and these cells are highly instrumental in repair & mass maintenance of the bone along with its formation.

Since ages, it has been thought that stem cells only reside in bone marrow and exterior surface of the bone stores the cells that continuously generate new bone or repair the bone. Postdoctoral individuals Dr Sierra Root and Dr Natalie Wee, and collaborators at Harvard, Maine Medical Research Center, and the University of Auckland also were part of this study along with Dr Ivo Kalajzic and confirmed that these new cluster of cells residing in the vascular channels that range across the bone and serve as connection between inner and outer part of the bone is capable of generating a new bone.

This team is also pioneer in bringing forward a study that says existence of these progenitor cells inside cortical bone not only generates a new bone but also help remodeling of the bone. The conclusion was made after these researchers observed that these stem cells within an ex vivo bone transportation model migrated out of the transplant and started manufacturing a new bone marrow cavity along with completely new bone.

In order to establish this, more research needs to done as it will definitely turn out wonderful to the field of medical science and mankind.

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Stem Cells that will aid new bone generation discovered as per latest research - Medical Herald

Bone Marrow Stem Cells Comments Off on Stem Cells that will aid new bone generation discovered as per latest research – Medical Herald | March 6th, 2020