Raleigh, NC (PRWEB) February 20, 2014

A study published in the journal Theranostics and reported by the Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma Center finds that a class of drugs that stimulate stem cell production in patients and donors is safe to use.

The drugs are biologically similar to granulocyte colony stimulating factor (G-CSF), a human glycoprotein that stimulates the bone marrow to produce granulocytes (a type of white blood cell) and stem cells and release them into the bloodstream. The drugs can be given to patients with diseases like Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma to stimulate the release of their own stem cells, or to donors for transplantation into sick patients.

Since the patent on G-CSF expired, several companies have begun producing these drugs. Referred to as biosimilars in Europe and follow-on biologics in the US, several have been approved for use, although their safety and efficacy is still being debated.

The new study examines published reports on more than 900 patients with Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma or another blood cancer and healthy stem cell donors treated with the G-CSF biosimilar compounds Ratiograstim, Tevagrastim or Zarzio. The researchers report that the drugs produced good mobilization of CD34+ stem cells and produced side effects similar to the original G-CSF. Once the collected stem cells were grafted into a new host, they behaved comparably to stem cells stimulated by G-CSF.

In summary, the efficacy of biosimilar G-CSFs in terms of peripheral blood hematopoietic stem cell yield as well as their toxicity profile are equivalent to historical data with reference to G-CSF, the researchers write in the European medical journal Theranostics. (Schmitt, M, et al, Biosimilar G-CSF Based Mobilization of Peripheral Blood Hematopoietic Stem Cells for Autologous and Allogeneic Stem Cell Transplantation, January 23, 2014, Theranostics, pp. 280-289. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24505236)

Non-Hodgkins Lymphomas include cancers that involve the lymphocytes or white blood cells. They account for about 4 percent of all new cancer cases in the U.S. The National Cancer Institute estimates that more than 500,000 Americans are currently living with Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. Today, there is more interest on the causes of Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma.

The Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma Center is part of the Cancer Monthly organization. The Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma Center has been established by Cancer Monthly to provide more comprehensive information on the causes, diagnosis, and treatments for the many different subtypes of Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. For over ten years, Cancer Monthly has been the only centralized source of cancer treatment results. Patients can see the actual survival rate, quality-of-life indicators, and other key data for approximately 1,500 different cancer treatments. Cancer Monthly provides timely and ground-breaking news on the causes, diagnoses and treatments of the most common cancers including Bladder, Brain, Breast, Colon, Kidney (Renal), Liver, Lung (NSCLC), Ovarian, Prostate, and Rectal Cancers, Melanoma, Mesothelioma, and Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. Written for patients and their loved ones, Cancer Monthly helps families make more informed treatment decisions.

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Study Finds Biosimilar Compounds Safe and Effective for Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma, According to the Non-Hodgkins ...

Duke University Health SystemDr. Victor J. Dzau, the current president and CEO of Duke University Health System

Dr. Victor J. Dzau, the current president and CEO of Duke University Health System and chancellor for health affairs at Duke University, has been appointed to a six-year term as the next president of the Institute of Medicine (IOM), effective July 1, 2014. Dr. Dzau will take over the lead role from Dr. Harvey Fineberg, who served in the position for twelve years.

Dr. Dzau began his career in medicine as a cardiologist, having previously taught at Harvard Medical School and served as chair of the department of medicine. He also worked at Brigham and Womens Hospital as the director of research. His ongoing award-winning research has been key in the development of cardiovascular drugs, as well as techniques to repair tissue damage from heart attacks and heart disease using stem cell therapies.

Dr. Eugene Braunwald, often called the father of modern cardiology and a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, has known Dr. Dzau for more than 40 years and worked with him at many different stages of his career at Brigham and Womens Hospital and Partners Healthcare. In an interview Wednesday he called the upcoming IOM president a force of nature.

He is what I would call a talented, quadruple threat. A great physician, inspiring teacher, and a very creative scientist, said Dr. Braunwald, who trained Dzau when he was a resident at Brigham and Womens and continued to work with him on cardiovascular research when Dr. Dzau became chief resident, and then faculty at Harvard Medical School. The quadruple threat is that he also sees the larger picture. Hes interested in areas of medicine that most academic physicians have stayed away from. His work and ideas in global and community-based medicine have left an important heritage at each institution where hes worked.

After nearly a decade at Duke, Dr. Dzaus leadership has been credited with the launch of a number of innovative and global-focused medical institutions, including the Duke-National University of Signapore Graduate Medical School, Duke Global Health Institute, Duke Institute for Health Innovation, Duke Cancer Institute, as well as the Duke Translational Medicine Institute.

Im deeply honored to become the next president of the IOM and recognize the critically important role that the IOM will have in improving the health of the nation at a time of extraordinary evolution in biomedical research and health care delivery, Dzau said in a press release from Duke University Health System. The explosion of new data resources, novel technologies and breathtaking research advances make this the most promising time in history for driving innovations that will improve health care delivery, outcomes and quality.

As the health sciences extension of the National Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Medicine is known for its leadership in advancing health sciences and objective medical research nationally as a nonprofit academic research organization. The outgoing IOM president, Dr. Harvey Fineberg (previously Dean of the Harvard School of Public Health) has lead the nonprofit for twelve years. His focus and research have centered around public health policy and an improvement in informed medical decision making.

This leaves the medical community wondering what Dr. Dzau will bring to the Institute.

As a former chairman of the Association of Academic Health Centers (AAHC), Dr. Dzau advocated for the innovative transition of academic medical and health centers into institutions that can survive the rapid transitions in the health care industry. In a recent article in the New England Journal of Medicine, Dr. Dzau discusses the uncertain future of academic medical centers. He argues that industry pressures and cost restraints from the Affordable Care Act limit the research and education-based missions of teaching hospitals.

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Duke Health System CEO appointed to head Institute of Medicine

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DALLAS Malena Brown is hoping for a match on this Valentines Day weekend, but its not the kind of match you expect.

The 15-year-old daughter of Dallas Cowboys running backs coach Gary Brown is looking for an "angel donor" whose bone marrow stem cells will match hers and help her overcome what's known as CML, or chronic myeloid leukemia.

Well, its kind of scary knowing that there wasn't a match for me, but we're doing a bone marrow drive now and hopefully find somebody that matches me, Malena said.

Neither one of Malena's siblings is a match, and trying to find one has become a challenge.

The No. 1 challenge has been trying to find a match based on her ancestry, and she being biracial, has been extra difficult because the registry is under-represented with African-American and other multiracial people, said Kim Brown, Malenas mother.

We've had nothing but people trying to help us in any way they can, said dad Gary Brown. When you know your daughter is going through something hard, and there are other people out there that care as much as you do and want to help her as much as you do.

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Cowboys coach seeks marrow match for ailing teen daughter

Freeport, Bahamas (PRWEB) February 11, 2014

Matt Feshbach, CEO of Okyanos Heart Institute whose mission it is to bring a new standard of care and better quality of life to patients with coronary artery disease using cardiac stem cell therapy, announces the company will host a hard hat reception for conference attendees at their new facility in Freeport. The conference, titled Bridging the Gap: Research to Point of Care, brings together medical scientists, clinicians, regulatory experts, and investors to discuss progress in the field of research and clinical protocols and the process of taking promising therapies to fight chronic disease to market in a responsible manner. Gold Sponsor Okyanos Heart Institute hosts a networking reception for conference attendees at their facility in Freeport on Friday, February 21st from 5:00 7:00 p.m. The company is calling the reception a hard hat reception metaphorically as the construction is not yet completed.

Chief Medical Officer Howard Walpole, M.D., M.B.A., F.A.C.C., F.S.C.A.I. and Chief Science Officer Leslie Miller, M.D., F.A.C.C. will host the reception, along with CEO Matthew Feshbach and offer tours of the commercial cath lab which will offer stem cell therapy to qualified patients with advanced coronary artery disease under the new laws and regulations in The Bahamas.

Douglas Hammond, president of STEMSO, states, STEMSO will continue to provide a proactive and positive voice for organizations and jurisdictions using adult stem cells for therapies and transplants. The Commonwealth of The Bahamas, and our Gold Sponsor Okyanos Heart Institute provide an excellent example of the results that can be brought about with realistic, modern and balanced regulations that serve the national economic interest, patient needs for life-saving medicine and the business advantages for commercialization and translation of adult stem cells.

The reception in our facility will showcase the capabilities in The Bahamas to deliver high quality healthcare to patients in need, says Walpole. It will also provide an informal forum for relevant discussion on bridging the gap between research and point of care between scientists, regulatory experts, clinicians and government officials, and help to address issues of paramount importance such as patient safety and effective tracking of progress once the patients return home. We are proud to host this reception at Okyanos Heart Institute.

Treating patients with adipose-derived stem and regenerative cells (ADRCs) is showing existing promise in clinical trials, states Leslie Miller, M.D., F.A.C.C. an investigator in more than eighty clinical trials for heart failure. The next step in delivering stem cells to patients outside of clinical trials is close. I am enormously excited about the opportunity with this conference to engage in meaningful discussion around what parameters must exist to treat heart failure patients safely and tracking the effectiveness of these new options, which previously were unavailable to patients who have had heart attacks and/or stents, and who continue to worsen after exhausting all other interventions available to them.

The complete agenda for the conference can be found on STEMSOs website at http://www.stemso.org. Other speakers include stem cell researchers, scientists and practitioners from around the world with leading discoveries in the field, and investors in the healthcare space.

Registration is open for attending and exhibiting on STEMSOs website.

About Okyanos Heart Institute: (Oh key AH nos) Based in Freeport, The Bahamas, Okyanos Heart Institutes mission is to bring a new standard of care and a better quality of life to patients with coronary artery disease using cardiac stem cell therapy. Okyanos adheres to U.S. surgical center standards and is led by Chief Medical Officer Howard T. Walpole Jr., M.D., M.B.A., F.A.C.C., F.S.C.A.I. Okyanos Treatment utilizes a unique blend of stem and regenerative cells derived from ones own adipose (fat) tissue. The cells, when placed into the heart via a minimally-invasive catheterization, stimulate the growth of new blood vessels, a process known as angiogenesis. The treatment facilitates blood flow in the heart and supports intake and use of oxygen (as demonstrated in rigorous clinical trials such as the PRECISE trial). The literary name Okyanos (Oceanos) symbolizes flow. For more information, go to http://www.okyanos.com.

Okyanos LinkedIn Page: http://www.linkedin.com/company/okyanos-heart-institute Okyanos Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/OKYANOS Okyanos Twitter Page: https://twitter.com/#!/OkyanosHeart Okyanos Google+ Page: https://plus.google.com/+Okyanos/posts Okyanos You Tube Physician Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/okyanosforphysicians

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Newswise NEW YORK, NY (February 6, 2014) In most cases of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrigs disease, a toxin released by cells that normally nurture neurons in the brain and spinal cord can trigger loss of the nerve cells affected in the disease, Columbia researchers reported today in the online edition of the journal Neuron.

The toxin is produced by star-shaped cells called astrocytes and kills nearby motor neurons. In ALS, the death of motor neurons causes a loss of control over muscles required for movement, breathing, and swallowing. Paralysis and death usually occur within 3 years of the appearance of first symptoms.

The report follows the researchers previous study, which found similar results in mice with a rare, genetic form of the disease, as well as in a separate study from another group that used astrocytes derived from patient neural progenitor cells. The current study shows that the toxins are also present in astrocytes taken directly from ALS patients.

I think this is probably the best evidence we can get that what we see in mouse models of the disease is also happening in human patients, said the studys senior author, Serge Przedborski, MD, PhD, the Page and William Black Professor of Neurology (in Pathology and Cell Biology), Vice Chair for Research in the Department of Neurology, and co-director of Columbias Motor Neuron Center.

The findings also are significant because they apply to the most common form of ALS, which affects about 90 percent of patients. Scientists do not know why ALS develops in these patients; the other 10 percent of patients carry one of 27 genes known to cause the disease.

Now that we know that the toxin is common to most patients, it gives us an impetus to track down this factor and learn how it kills the motor neurons, Dr. Przedborski said. Its identification has the potential to reveal new ways to slow down or stop the destruction of the motor neurons.

In the study, Dr. Przedborski and study co-authors Diane Re, PhD, and Virginia Le Verche, PhD, associate research scientists, removed astrocytes from the brain and spinal cords of six ALS patients shortly after death and placed the cells in petri dishes next to healthy motor neurons. Because motor neurons cannot be removed from human subjects, they had been generated from human embryonic stem cells in the Project A.L.S./Jenifer Estess Laboratory for Stem Cell Research, also at CUMC.

Within two weeks, many of the motor neurons had shrunk and their cell membranes had disintegrated; about half of the motor neurons in the dish had died. Astrocytes removed from people who died from causes other than ALS had no effect on the motor neurons. Nor did other types of cells taken from ALS patients.

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Toxin from Brain Cells Triggers Neuron Loss in Human ALS Model

RANCHO CORDOVA, Calif., LOS ANGELES and NEW DELHI, India, Feb. 3, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ThermoGenesis Corp. (Nasdaq:KOOL) a cellular therapy medical device company and TotipotentRX Corporation, a clinical-stage regenerative medicine company developing novel therapies for cardiovascular and orthopedic disease, announced the TotiPotentRX cellular therapy clinical team in partnership with Fortis Healthcare, Gurgaon (New Delhi) has achieved its 20 th pediatric bone marrow transplant (BMT). This haploidentical BMT was performed from a mother as a donor for a 10 year old child suffering from combined immunodeficiency due to a DOCK-8 gene mutation. The Fortis Centre has so far performed 15 allogenetic BMT including five haploidentical and one double unrelated cord blood transplants, and 5 autologous transplants. This transplant was completed on February 1, 2014 at the Pediatric Hematology and Bone Marrow Transplant department led by Dr. Satya Yadav, M.D., Head of the Department for Pediatric Hematology and Bone Marrow Transplant, and with scientific and laboratory support by the TotipotentRX's cell therapy GMP laboratory facility. This 20 th transplant is a significant milestone in the pursuit of developing the new FMRI BMT program into one of the leading stem cell transplant centers in Asia.

TotipotentRX provides laboratory services and scientific support to Fortis' cutting edge program at FMRI, some of which employs a proprietary approach to the transplant using the ThermoGenesis AutoXpress AXP and MarrowXpress MXP platforms when the processing of the donor's mobilized peripheral blood or bone marrow is required. These technologies allow for a proprietary transplant approach that increases pediatric patient access to this life saving treatment by enabling the following types of transplants that might otherwise not be an option for the patient:

Dr. Yadav remarked, "this 20 th transplant is a significant milestone for our patients, our research hospital and our transplant team.Achieving 15 allogenetic and 5 autologous transplants in the first half year of our program is remarkable for any leading academic institution.Our goal is to have the most advanced pediatric bone marrow transplant program in India, whilst taking a global leadership role in advanced therapy like the haploidentical transplant approach.We look forward to continuing our cutting edge program with TotipotentRX as a scientific collaborator."

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NEW YORK and SAN DIEGO, Feb. 6, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- JDRF, the world's largest non-profit supporter of type 1 diabetes (T1D) research, and ViaCyte, Inc., a leading regenerative medicine company, jointly announced that JDRF is providing additional milestone-based funding for the continued development of ViaCyte's VC-01 encapsulated cell therapy product candidate for the treatment of T1D. JDRF will fund up to $7 million to help ensure a rapid transition of the project into the clinical phase of development once ViaCyte's investigational new drug application (IND) is filed with and accepted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This commitment builds on JDRF's previous support of ViaCyte's preclinical development program focused on collecting the necessary animal safety and efficacy data to support introduction into clinical testing.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20121026/LA00871LOGO-a)

ViaCyte's innovative VC-01 product candidate is a cell replacement therapy that could transform the way individuals with T1D manage their disease by supplying an alternative source of insulin-producing cells with the potential to free individuals from a dependence on external insulin use. The product candidate uses pancreatic progenitor cells derived from a stem cell line, called PEC-01 cells, which are encapsulated inside a semi-permeable device called the Encaptra drug delivery system. Both the cells and the device are ViaCyte proprietary technologies. The resulting VC-01 product candidate is designed to be inserted under the skin where, after maturation of the PEC-01 cells into islet-like structures including beta cells, they are expected to produce insulin and other pancreatic hormones in response to blood glucose levels, similar in manner to that of normal islets in the pancreas. If the product candidate performs as intended, it has the potential to provide individuals who have T1D with a replacement for the beta cells lost or impaired as a result of their disease.

Beta cell encapsulation research is a high priority research area for JDRF because of its potential benefits for individuals with T1D. JDRF has provided substantial funding for multiple scientific research programs to advance discovery and development research in this area. Based on earlier basic research support, JDRF began its partnership with ViaCyte in December 2011, and previously provided the Company with $6 million in milestone-based funding that has contributed to the progress in developing the VC-01 product candidate toward the filing of an IND.

ViaCyte is planning to file an IND with the FDA as early as next quarter to support initiation of clinical evaluation of the VC-01 product candidate. Assuming an IND filing next quarter and no objections from the FDA, the Company plans to begin testing in individuals with T1D around mid-year. The primary purpose of the first human study will be to establish that the product candidate is safe and well tolerated; however, efficacy will also be assessed. After initial safety is demonstrated in the first group of participants, ViaCyte plans to expand the trial to multiple clinical sites in the United States and Canada.

"We look forward to our continued work with ViaCyte as we help fund the upcoming clinical trials for the VC-01 product candidate, an important milestone to advance this promising encapsulated cell therapy," said Jeffrey Brewer, JDRF president and chief executive officer. "ViaCyte has an innovative and advanced technology that we believe has the potential to significantly benefit people with type 1 diabetes. A product like VC-01 could someday be a key step in helping JDRF achieve its vision of creating a world without type 1 diabetes."

Dr. Paul Laikind, ViaCyte's president and chief executive officer, said, "JDRF has been and continues to be a valuable partner as we work to develop this potentially transformative new approach to controlling insulin-dependent diabetes. While their financial help has been welcomed, as leading experts on type 1 diabetes, JDRF's advice and advocacy on our behalf has been equally if not more important. Together with JDRF, we will soon determine if the promising results demonstrated in preclinical studies translate to patients. If so, the VC-01 product candidate could potentially represent a practical cure for type 1 diabetes, and possibly an important therapy for patients with insulin-requiring type 2 diabetes as well."

About JDRF

JDRF is the leading global organization funding type 1 diabetes (T1D) research. JDRF's goal is to progressively remove the impact of T1D from people's lives until we achieve a world without T1D. JDRF collaborates with a wide spectrum of partners and is the only organization with the scientific resources, regulatory influence, and a working plan to better treat, prevent, and eventually cure T1D. As the largest charitable supporter of T1D research, JDRF is currently sponsoring $530 million in scientific research in 17 countries. For more information, visit http://www.jdrf.org.

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JDRF to Provide Additional Support for Upcoming Clinical Trial of ViaCyte's Encapsulated Cell Therapy for Type 1 ...

Stamford, CT (PRWEB) February 06, 2014

Alliance for Cancer Gene Therapy (ACGT) the nations only non-profit dedicated exclusively to cell and gene therapies for cancer is redoubling its efforts to treat and combat cancers in the New Year, and announces $1 million in recent grants.

The funding spread across three grants will support basic and clinical science at premier institutions in and outside the United States, with ACGTs mission top-of-mind: uncovering effective, innovative cancer treatments that supersede radiation, chemotherapy and surgery.

This January, ACGTs President and Co-Founder Barbara Netter has announced two Young Investigator Grants that provide promising researchers with $250,000 each for two- to three-year studies.

Young Investigator Fan Yang, PhD Assistant Professor of Orthopedic Surgery and Bioengineering at Stanford University will use the funds to research new treatment options for pediatric brain cancer, the leading cause of death from childhood cancer. Dr. Yangs study will deploy adult-derived stem cells to target solid brain tumor cells, which are often highly invasive and difficult to treat.

Arnob Banerjee, MD, PhD Assistant Professor of Hematology and Oncology at the University of Maryland will use ACGTs funding to further develop the long-term effectiveness of immune-mediated treatments, the most advanced form of gene therapy.

It is imperative that the best and brightest young scientists like Fan Yang and Arnob Banerjee have the funds necessary to study and treat cancer, Netter said. This was my husband Edwards vision in 2001, when gene cell therapy was a fledgling science. We are proud to continue his pioneering foresight today. Partnerships with Dr. Yang, a former fellow at MIT, and Dr. Banerjee, a former fellow and instructor at the University of Pennsylvania, dovetail with ACGTs record of funding outstanding researchers and physicians with the capability to make unprecedented breakthroughs.

The Young Investigator grants come on the heels of a $500,000 Investigators Award to John Bell, PhD, Senior Research Scientist and Professor of Medicine at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute in Canada. Dr. Bell has worked extensively with oncolytic viruses man-made viruses that target only cancer cells, and spare patients the harrowing side-effects of chemotherapy, radiation or surgery and has discovered the enormous promise they offer in the war on cancer.

The research and trials funded by ACGTs grant have the potential to treat metastatic and recurrent brain cancer, extend patients survival timeline, and vastly improve patients quality of life during treatment, Dr. Bell said.

ACGT has served as a major funding engine in the fight against cancer since its formation in 2001, and has provided nearly $25 million in grants to date. ACGT was created by Barbara and Edward Netter after the loss of their daughter-in-law to breast cancer. Since Edwards passing in 2011, Barbara Netter has led the foundation as President and Co-Founder, continuing her husbands vision.

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Alliance for Cancer Gene Therapy (ACGT) Targets Brain, Pediatric Cancers with $1 Million in New Grants

Poway, CA (PRWEB) February 06, 2014

Stem Cell Therapy for Feline Kidney Disease is a special interest piece produced by Nicky Sims, the owner of Kitters, who recently had Vet-Stem Regenerative Cell Therapy for his Feline Kidney Disease. Nicky highlights Kitters journey through diagnosis of the disease and his recent stem cell therapy, as well as educating about stem cells and their benefits.

Nickys film explains that Kitters began showing signs of kidney failure at the age of 15, exhibiting classic symptoms; lack of appetite, excessive thirst, nausea and lethargy. In 2012, Kitters was officially diagnosed with Chronic Renal Failure, or kidney disease. He was prescribed a low protein diet and subcutaneous fluids for rehydration. This has been the standard treatment for decades although it has only been shown to slow the progression of the disease; not reverse it.

Dr. Richter at Montclair Veterinary Hospital thinks that there is something else that can help. In recent years, his hospital has begun using stem cells to treat animals for various orthopedic conditions such as pain from arthritis and dysplasia. In October 2013, Kitters would be the first cat he had treated with stem cell therapy for Feline Kidney Disease.

Dr. Richter explains why this could work for Kitters, Stem cells are cells within your body that are able to turn into any other cell in the body. Kitters has kidney issues, so what weve done is harvested some fat from his abdomen and sent that fat to Vet-Stem in San Diego, and what they do is isolate the stem cells from the fatty tissue. They concentrate them and send them back to us. In the case of an animal with kidney disease, we just give the stem cells intravenously. What that is going to do is begin the healing and rebuilding process.

Nickys film explores the importance of kidneys stating they play a vital role, ridding the body of toxins. As kidney disease progresses scar tissue develops making it harder to filter toxins. Damage to the kidneys makes the animal vulnerable to a number of other health conditions. Unfortunately the disease usually goes undiagnosed given that the symptoms of the disease often do not show until 2/3 of the kidneys are damaged.

Kitters own stem cells were used with the hope of repairing his damaged tissue Dr. Richter goes on, The nice thing about stem cells is that there is no issue of tissue rejection, since it is Kitters own stem cells. Additionally, if there is anything else going on in his body beyond the kidneys its going to address that as well. So, it is a really wonderful systemic treatment.

To find out more or view the special interest piece by Nicky Sims, Stem Cell Therapy for Feline Kidney Disease, visit this link.

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

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Stem Cell Therapy for Feline Kidney Disease, a Video Testimonial by a Pleased Pet Owner Gives Hope for Cats Suffering ...

As one of the follically-challenged, any new breakthroughs in the area of hair regeneration will generally get my attention. When stem cells first started to gain widespread media attention I, no doubt like many others, thought a full head of hair was just around the corner. But despite numerous developments, years later my dome is still of the chrome variety. Providing the latest cause for cautious optimism, researchers have now developed a way to generate a large number number of hair-follicle-generating stem cells from adult cells.

In what they claim is a world first, researchers from the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) and the New Jersey Institute of Technology have developed a technique to convert adult human stem cells into epithelial stem cells (EpSCs).

By adding three genes to human skin cells called dermal fibroblasts that live in the dermis layer of the skin and generate connective tissue, a team led by Xiaowei "George" Xu, MD, PhD, at the Perelman School of Medicine was able to convert them into induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). The iPSCs, which have the ability to differentiate into any cell type, were then converted into epithelial stem cells (EpSCs) that are normally found at the bulge of hair follicles.

Through careful control of the timing of delivery of growth factors to the cells, the researchers say they were able to turn over 25 percent of the iPSCs into EpSCs in 18 days. When they then mixed these EpSCs with mouse follicular inductive dermal cells and grafted them onto the skin of immunodeficient mice, functional human epidermis and follicles similar to hair follicles were produced.

"This is the first time anyone has made scalable amounts of epithelial stem cells that are capable of generating the epithelial component of hair follicles, said Xu, who added that these cells have many potential applications, including wound healing, cosmetics, and hair regeneration.

But some hurdles still need to be jumped before I make my first trip to the hairdresser in a decade. Xu points out that when a person loses hair, they lose not only epithelial cells, but also a kind of adult stem cell called dermal papillae. "We have solved one major problem, the epithelial component of the hair follicle. We need to figure out a way to also make new dermal papillae cells, and no one has figured that part out yet."

On a positive note, researchers from the Tokyo University of Science have reported promising results in reconstructing hair follicle germs from adult epithelial stem cells and cultured dermal papilla cells, so even though we haven't rounded the corner yet,it definitely seems to be getting closer.

The teams research is published in the journal Nature Communications.

Source: University of Pennsylvania

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Stem cell-based treatment for baldness a step closer

Webinar: Reimbursement Strategies for Stem Cell Therapy Products
Planning Your Payment Strategy in Early Product Development EXPERT SPEAKERS: Michael Werner, J.D., Executive Director, Alliance for Regenerative Medicine;...

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stem cell therapy treatment for traumatic brain injury by dr alok sharma, mumbai, india
improvement seen in just 5 days after stem cell therapy treatment for traumatic brain injury by dr alok sharma, mumbai, india. Stem Cell Therapy done date 7 ...

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Purtier Placenta Stem Cell Therapy Presented By Dr. Chen
Presentasi Purtier Placenta oleh Dr. Chen Nikmati hidup bebas rasa sakit dan selalu awet muda bersama Purtier Placenta: http://www.stemcellworld.net.

By: Yohanes Wasono

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Purtier Placenta Stem Cell Therapy Presented By Dr. Chen - Video

A new method of producing stem cells is being described as a "game-changing" scientific breakthrough.

It is said that the research, carried out by scientists in Japan, could hail a new era of personalised medicine, offering hope to sufferers of diseases such as stroke, heart disease and spinal cord injuries.

The scientists bathed blood cells in a weak acidic solution for half an hour, which made the adult cells shrink and go back to their embryonic stem cell state. Using this process, a patient's own specially created stem cells could then be re-injected back into the body to help mend damaged organs.

The scientists in Japan used mice in this experiment but believe the approach may also work on human cells too.

The new method - much cheaper and faster than before - is being heralded as revolutionary, and could bring stem cell therapy a step closer, and all without the controversy linked to the use of human embryos.

But there is still research that some find ethically questionable.

On Inside Story: Is the controversy over using human embryos over? And how should ethics determine medical progress?

Presenter: Shiulie Ghosh

Guests:

Dusko Ilic, a reader in Stem Cell Science at King's College London School ofMedicine

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The ethics of medical progress

Stem Cell Therapy - Obat segala penyakit
Stem cell therapy terbukti mampu sembuhkan kanker, stroke, diabetes, jantung, Parkinson, Alzheimer, AIDS, dll.

By: Yohanes Wasono

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Stem Cell Therapy - Obat segala penyakit - Video

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

30-Jan-2014

Contact: Tom Vasich tmvasich@uci.edu 949-824-6455 University of California - Irvine

Irvine, Calif., Jan. 30, 2014 Two UC Irvine research teams will receive $1.54 million to further studies on the fundamental structure and function of stem cells. Their work will aid efforts to treat and cure a range of ailments, from cancer to neurological diseases and injuries.

The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine awarded the two grants today to Lisa Flanagan and Peter Donovan of the Sue & Bill Gross Stem Cell Research Center as part of its basic biology awards program.

CIRM's governing board gave 27 such grants worth $27 million to 11 institutions statewide. The funded projects are considered critical to the institute's mission of investigating the underlying mechanisms of stem cell biology, cellular plasticity and cellular differentiation in order to create a foundation for future translational and clinical advances.

Today's grants bring total CIRM funding at UC Irvine to $98.8 million.

"Innovative basic research like this paves the way to better designs for the use of stem cells," said Sidney Golub, director of the Sue & Bill Gross Stem Cell Research Center. "Even more importantly, it can open up entirely new approaches based on a better understanding of how stem cells function."

In one project, Flanagan and her UC Irvine colleagues will utilize a $1 million grant to study what happens on the surface of early-stage neural stem cells that causes them to develop into either neurons or astrocytes different kinds of brain and spinal cord cells. In the course of this work, the team aims to uncover specific properties of human stem cells used to treat neurological diseases and injuries.

"We expect this knowledge will enhance the benefit of these cells in transplants by enabling more control over what sort of mature cells will be formed from transplanted cells," said Flanagan, an assistant professor of neurology, biomedical engineering and anatomy & neurobiology. "We hope our research will greatly improve the identification, isolation and utility of certain types of human neural stem cells."

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UC Irvine stem cell researchers awarded $1.54 million in state funding

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Newswise Scientists from UCLAs Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research have received new awards from the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), the state stem cell research agency, that will forward revolutionary stem cell science in medicine.

Recipients included Dr. Lili Yang, assistant professor of microbiology, immunology and molecular genetics who received $614,400 for her project to develop a novel system for studying how stem cells become rare immune cells; Dr. Denis Evseenko, assistant professor of orthopedic surgery, who received $1,146,468 for his project to identify the elements of the biological niche in which stem cells grow most efficiently into articular cartilage cells; Dr. Thomas Otis, professor and chair of neurobiology and Dr. Ben Novitch, assistant professor of neurobiology, who received $1,148,758 for their project using new light-based optigenetic techniques to study the communication between nerve and muscle cells in spinal muscular atrophy, an inherited degenerative neuromuscular disease in children; and Dr. Samantha Butler, assistant professor of neurobiology, received $598,367 for her project on discovering which molecular elements drive stem cells to become the neurons, or nerve cells, in charge of our sense of touch.

These basic biology grants form the foundation of the revolutionary advances we are seeing in stem cell science, said Dr. Owen Witte, professor and director of the Broad Stem Cell Research Center, and every cellular therapy that reaches patients must begin in the laboratory with ideas and experiments that will lead us to revolutionize medicine and ultimately improve human life. That makes these awards invaluable to our research effort.

The awards were part of CIRMs Basic Biology V grant program, carrying on the initiative to foster cutting-edge research on significant unresolved issues in human stem cell biology. The emphasis of this research is on unravelling the secrets of key mechanisms that determine how stem cells, which can become any cell in the body, differentiate, or decide which cell they become. By learning how these mechanisms work, scientists can then create therapies that drive the stem cells to regenerate or replace damaged or diseased tissue.

Using A New Method to Track Special Immune Cells All the different cells that make up the blood come from hematopoietic or blood stem cells. These include special white blood cells called T cells, which serve as the foot soldiers of the immune system, attacking bacteria, viruses and other invaders that cause diseases.

Among the T cells is a smaller group of cells called invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells, which have a remarkable capacity to mount immediate and powerful responses to disease when activated, a small special forces unit among the foot soldiers, and are believed to be important to immune system regulation of infections, allergies, cancer and autoimmune diseases such as Type I diabetes and multiple sclerosis.

The iNKT cells develop in small numbers in the blood, usually less than 1 percent of all the blood cells, and can differ greatly in numbers between individuals. Very little is known about how the blood stem cells produce iNKT cells.

Dr. Lili Yangs project will develop a novel model system to genetically program human blood stem cells to become iNKT cells. Dr. Yang and her colleagues will track the differentiation of human blood stem cells into iNKT cells providing a pathway to answer many critical questions about iNKT cell development.

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In a step that has implications for stem cell research, human biology and the treatment of disease, researchers in Japan and at Harvard University have managed to turn adult cells back into flexible stem cells without changing their DNA.

The researchers discovered that they could put cells in various challenging circumstances ?? including in acidic solutions and under physical pressure ?? and turn mature blood cells into cells that were capable of turning into virtually any cell in the body.

The research, published today in the journal Nature, was in mice. If it can be repeated in people, it has the potential to transform research using stem cells to treat disease, and it may lead to a new understanding of how the body heals from injury, said Charles Vacanti, the Harvard Medical School stem cell and tissue engineering biologist who led the research.

Biology textbooks say that once a cell matures to serve a specific role, like, say a red blood cell, it can never go back into a less mature state. Vacanti and his colleagues say their new research upends that dogma.

"This study demonstrates that any mature cell when placed in the right environment can go back, become a stem cell, which then has the potential to become any cell needed by that tissue," said Vacanti, also of Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.

He believes that that process happens naturally in the body after injury, and the more significant the injury, the farther back these cells will revert. "With a very significant injury, you will cause it to revert clear back to what is basically an embryonic stem cell," he said.

In an early embryo, all cells are stem cells, capable of turning into any cell in the body. As the fetus develops, those cells differentiate into cells with specific functions in muscles, blood, organs, etc. Some of those mature cells develop diseases and injuries. The promise of stem cells ?? as yet largely unrealized ?? is to provide patients with healthy versions of their own cells that can then repair damage and reverse disease.

Most people are familiar with stem cell research because until 2006, embryos had to be destroyed to study them.

Then, Japanese researcher Shinya Yamanaka developed a strategy for tinkering with adult cells, reverting them to stem cells. This has led to dramatic advances in the field, but because his approach required changes to the genetic material in a cell's nucleus, researchers have been anxious about using these cells in patients.

If stem cells can be created simply by bathing adult cells in a low-pH solution or putting them under physical pressure, that would make research simpler and more applicable to the real world, according to several researchers not involved in the new work.

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Researchers turn adult cells back into stem cells