hidden

Researchers from Rochester, N.Y., and Colorado have revealed that manipulating stem cells prior to transplantation may lead to improved spinal cord repair methods. When nerve fibers are injured in the spinal cord, the severed ends of the nerve fibers fail to regenerate and reconnect with the nervous system circuitry beyond the site of the injury. During early development, the astrocytes cells of the brain and spine are highly supportive of nerve fiber growth, and scientists believe that if properly directed, these cells could play a key role in regenerating damaged nerves in the spinal cord. Rather than transplanting naive stem cells, the team has adopted an approach of pre-differentiating stem cells into better-defined populations of these brain cells. These stem cells are then selected for their ability to promote recovery.

Researchers from Rochester, N.Y., and Colorado have revealed that manipulating stem cells prior to transplantation may lead to improved spinal cord repair methods. When nerve fibers are injured in the spinal cord, the severed ends of the nerve fibers fail to regenerate and reconnect with the nervous system circuitry beyond the site of the injury. During early development, the astrocytes cells of the brain and spine are highly supportive of nerve fiber growth, and scientists believe that if properly directed, these cells could play a key role in regenerating damaged nerves in the spinal cord. Rather than transplanting naive stem cells, the team has adopted an approach of pre-differentiating stem cells into better-defined populations of these brain cells. These stem cells are then selected for their ability to promote recovery.

View Full Story

Follow this link:
Stem Cell Breakthrough in Spinal Cord Injury Repair

Chemotherapy and Radiation Therapy

Before you get the stem cell transplant, youll get the actual cancer treatment. To destroy the abnormal stem cells, blood cells, and cancer cells your doctor will give you high doses of chemotherapy, radiation therapy, or both. In the process, the treatment will kill healthy cells in your bone marrow, essentially making it empty. Your blood counts (number of red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets) will drop quickly. Since chemotherapy and radiation can cause nausea and vomiting, you might need anti-nausea drugs.

Without bone marrow, your body is vulnerable. You won't have enough white blood cells to protect you from infection. So during this time, you might be isolated in a hospital room or required to stay at home until the new bone marrow starts growing. You might also need transfusions and medication to keep you healthy.

A few days after youve finished with your chemotherapy or radiation treatment, your doctor will order the actual stem cell transplant. The harvested stem cells -- either from a donor or from your own body -- are thawed and infused into a vein through an IV tube. The process is essentially painless. The actual stem cell transplant is similar to a blood transfusion. It takes one to five hours.

The stem cells then naturally move into the bone marrow. The restored bone marrow should begin producing normal blood cells after several days, or up to several weeks later.

The amount of time youll need to be isolated will depend on your blood counts and general health. When you are released from the hospital or from isolation at home, your transplant team will provide you with specific instructions on how to care for yourself and prevent infections. Youll also learn what symptoms need to be checked out immediately. Full recovery of the immune system might take months or even years. Your doctor will need to do tests to check on how well your new bone marrow is doing.

There are also variations in the stem cell transplant process being studied in clinical trials. One approach is called a tandem transplant, in which a person would get two rounds of chemotherapy and two separate stem cell transplants. The two transplants are usually done within six months of one another.

Another is called a mini-transplant, in which doctors use lower doses of chemotherapy and radiation. The treatment is not strong enough to kill all of the bone marrow -- and it wont kill all of the cancer cells either. However, once the donated stem cells take hold in the bone marrow, they produce immune cells that might attack and kill the remaining cancer cells. This is also called a non-myeloablative transplant.

View post:
Bone Marrow Transplants and Stem Cell Transplants for ...

Novartis ( NVS ) recently entered into an investment and option agreement with Israel-based Gamida Cell, a company which focuses on stem cell expansion technologies and therapeutic products.

As per the terms of the agreement, Novartis will invest $35 million in Gamida Cell. In exchange, Novartis will receive a 15% stake in Gamida Cell and an option to fully acquire the company.

The option for full acquisition is exercisable for a limited period of time following achievement of certain milestones in connection with the development of pipeline candidate, NiCord. These milestones are expected to be achieved during 2015. Novartis will also be required to pay the other shareholders in Gamida Cell approximately $165 million upon exercising the option along with potential milestone payments of $435 million.

We note that Gamida Cell is developing stem cell therapy for the potential treatment of blood cancers, solid tumors, non-malignant hematological diseases such as sickle cell disease and thalassemia, neutropenia and acute radiation syndrome, autoimmune diseases and genetic metabolic diseases as well as conditions that can be helped by regenerative medicine.

The company is currently evaluating NiCord for the potential treatment of hematological malignancies such as leukemia and lymphoma in a phase I/II study using its proprietary NAM technology.

Meanwhile, enrolment is on for the company's phase I/II study on NiCord for pediatric sickle cell disease.

We remind investors that Novartis has been taking strategic steps to realign its portfolio in order to focus on its core portfolio of pharmaceuticals, eye care and generics. Novartis' recent deal to acquire oncology products from GlaxoSmithKline ( GSK ) and the divestiture of the Vaccines business is a step in the right direction.

Novartis, a large-cap pharma, currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Right now, Allergan ( AGN ) and AbbVie ( ABBV ) look well positioned among the large-cap pharmas. While Allergan carries a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), AbbVie is a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) stock.

NOVARTIS AG-ADR (NVS): Free Stock Analysis Report

ABBVIE INC (ABBV): Free Stock Analysis Report

See the rest here:
Novartis to Invest $35M in Gamida Cell for 15% Equity - Analyst Blog

Contact Information

Available for logged-in reporters only

Newswise Blood stem cells have the potential to turn into any type of blood cell, whether it be the oxygen-carrying red blood cells, or the immune systems many types of white blood cells that help fight infection. How exactly is the fate of these stem cells regulated? Preliminary findings from research conducted by scientists from the Weizmann Institute of Science and the Hebrew University are starting to reshape the conventional understanding of the way blood stem cell fate decisions are controlled, thanks to a new technique for epigenetic analysis they have developed. Understanding epigenetic mechanisms (environmental influences other than genetics) of cell fate could lead to the deciphering of the molecular mechanisms of many diseases, including immunological disorders, anemia, leukemia, and many more. It also lends strong support to findings that environmental factors and lifestyle play a more prominent role in shaping our destiny than previously realized.

The process of differentiation in which a stem cell becomes a specialized mature cell is controlled by a cascade of events in which specific genes are turned on and off in a highly regulated and accurate order. The instructions for this process are contained within the DNA itself in short regulatory sequences. These regulatory regions are normally in a closed state, masked by special proteins called histones to ensure against unwarranted activation. Therefore, to access and activate the instructions, this DNA mask needs to be opened by epigenetic modifications of the histones so it can be read by the necessary machinery.

In a paper published in Science, Dr. Ido Amit and David Lara-Astiaso of the Weizmann Institutes Department of Immunology, along with Prof. Nir Friedman and Assaf Weiner of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, charted for the first time histone dynamics during blood development. Thanks to the new technique for epigenetic profiling they developed, in which just a handful of cells as few as 500 can be sampled and analyzed accurately, they have identified the exact DNA sequences, as well as the various regulatory proteins, that are involved in regulating the process of blood stem cell fate.

Their research has also yielded unexpected results: As many as 50% of these regulatory sequences are established and opened during intermediate stages of cell development. This means that epigenetics is active at stages in which it had been thought that cell destiny was already set. This changes our whole understanding of the process of blood stem cell fate decisions, says Lara-Astiaso, suggesting that the process is more dynamic and flexible than previously thought.

Although this research was conducted on mouse blood stem cells, the scientists believe that the mechanism may hold true for other types of cells. This research creates a lot of excitement in the field, as it sets the groundwork to study these regulatory elements in humans, says Weiner.

Discovering the exact regulatory DNA sequence controlling stem cell fate, as well as understanding its mechanism, holds promise for the future development of diagnostic tools, personalized medicine, potential therapeutic and nutritional interventions, and perhaps even regenerative medicine, in which committed cells could be reprogrammed to their full stem cell potential.

Dr. Ido Amits research is supported by the M.D. Moross Institute for Cancer Research; the J&R Center for Scientific Research; the Jeanne and Joseph Nissim Foundation for Life Sciences Research; the Abramson Family Center for Young Scientists; the Wolfson Family Charitable Trust; the Abisch Frenkel Foundation for the Promotion of Life Sciences; the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust; Sam Revusky, Canada; the Florence Blau, Morris Blau and Rose Peterson Fund; the estate of Ernst and Anni Deutsch; the estate of Irwin Mandel; and the estate of David Levinson. Dr. Amit is the incumbent of the Alan and Laraine Fischer Career Development Chair.

The Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel, is one of the world's top-ranking multidisciplinary research institutions. Noted for its wide-ranging exploration of the natural and exact sciences, the Institute is home to scientists, students, technicians, and supporting staff. Institute research efforts include the search for new ways of fighting disease and hunger, examining leading questions in mathematics and computer science, probing the physics of matter and the universe, creating novel materials, and developing new strategies for protecting the environment.

Read more:
Beyond DNA: Epigenetics Plays Large Role in Blood Formation

Brain damage caused by strokes could be repaired through the use of stem cells in a discovery that may revolutionise treatment, a study has suggested.

Researchers at Imperial College London found that injecting a patient's stem cells into their brain may be able to change the lives of the tens of thousands of people who suffer strokes each year.

Their results have been called "one of the most exciting recent developments in stroke research".

Doctors said the procedure could become routine in 10 years after larger trials are conducted to examine its effectiveness.

Researcher Dr Paul Bentley, from the college's Department of Medicine, said: "Currently, the main form of treatment is an unblocking of the blood vessel, and that only helps one-third of the patients who are treated and only 10 per cent are eligible anyway. So we said, 'What about the other 90 per cent?' "

The team targeted patients who had suffered severe strokes involving a clot in a blood vessel in the middle of the brain. Typically, there is a high mortality rate in these patients and those who survive are often severely disabled, unable to walk, talk, feed or dress themselves. The experimental procedure was carried out on five such patients, aged 40 to 70, all of whom showed improvement over the following six months, and three were living independently.

Dr Madina Kara, a neuroscientist at the Stroke Association, said: "This is one of the most exciting recent developments in stroke research. However, it's still early days in stem cell research, but the findings could lead to new treatments for stroke patients in the future.

"In the UK, someone has a stroke every three and a half minutes, and around 58 per cent of stroke survivors are left with a disability."

The experimental procedure involved harvesting the patient's own bone marrow, which was then sent to a specialist laboratory so specific stem cells, called CD34+, could be selected. The patient then has a wire inserted into the area of the brain damage. Once there, the stem cells are released and the wire retracted. During the trials the whole process took half a day, but it is hoped that with refinement it could be reduced.

It is thought the cells work in two ways: by growing into small blood vessels that allow the brain to grow new nerves and brain tissue surrounding them, and by releasing anti-inflammatory chemicals that encourage tissue repair.

Originally posted here:
Stem cell hope for stroke victims

For the first time, scientists have uncovered new information on how stem cells in the human bowel behave, revealing vital clues about the earliest stages in bowel cancer development and how we may begin to prevent it.

The study, led by Queen May University of London (QMUL) and published today in the journal Cell Reports, discovered how many stem cells exist within the human bowel and how they behave and evolve over time. It was revealed that within a healthy bowel, stem cells are in constant competition with each other for survival and only a certain number of stem cells can exist within one area at a time (referred to as the 'stem cell niche'). However, when investigating stem cells in early tumours, the researchers saw increased numbers of stem cells within each area as well as intensified competition for survival, suggesting a link between stem cell activity and bowel cancer development.

The study involved studying stem cells directly within the human body using a specially developed 'toolkit'. The toolkit worked by measuring random mutations that naturally accrue in aging stem cells. The random mutations recorded how the stem cells had behaved, similarly to how the rings on a tree trunk record how a tree grew over time. The techniques used were unique in that scientists were able to study the human stem cells within their natural environment, giving a much more accurate picture of their behaviour.

Until this research, the stem cell biology of the human bowel has remained largely a mystery. This is because most stem cell research is carried out in mice, and it was uncertain how research findings in mice could be applied to humans. However, the scientists in fact found the stem cell biology of human bowels to have significant similarities to mice bowels. This means researchers can continue investigating stem cell activity within mice with the knowledge it is representative of humans -- hopefully speeding up bowel cancer research.

Importantly, these new research methods can also now be applied to investigate stem cells in other parts of the human body such as skin, prostate, lung and breast, with the aim of accelerating cancer research in these areas too.

Dr Trevor Graham, Lecturer in Tumour Biology and Study Author at Queen Mary University of London, comments: "Unearthing how stem cells behave within the human bowel is a big step forward for stem cell research. Until now, stem cell research was mostly conducted in mice or involved taking the stem cells out of their natural environment, thus distorting their usual behaviour. We now want to use the methods developed in this study to understand how stem cells behave inside bowel cancer, so we can increase our understanding of how bowel cancer grows. This will hopefully shed more light on how we can prevent bowel cancer -- the fourth most common cancer in the UK. We are positive this research lays important foundations for future bowel cancer prevention work, as well as prevention work in other cancers."

Dr Marnix Jansen, Histopathologist and Study Author at Queen Mary University of London, comments: "This study was made possible through the involvement of patients either diagnosed with bowel cancer or born with a tendency to develop bowel cancer. Only by investigating tissues taken directly from patients could we study how bowel cancers develop. Our work underlines the importance of patient involvement in scientific research if we are to tackle bowel cancer and help the greatest number of people."

Story Source:

The above story is based on materials provided by Queen Mary, University of London. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.

See the original post here:
Stem cell behavior of human bowel discovered for first time

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

7-Aug-2014

Contact: Mary Beth O'Leary moleary@cell.com 617-397-2802 Cell Press

While neurons normally fail to regenerate after spinal cord injuries, neurons formed from human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) that were grafted into rats with such injuries displayed remarkable growth throughout the length of the animals' central nervous system. What's more, the iPSCs were derived from skin cells taken from an 86-year-old man. The results, described in the Cell Press journal Neuron, could open up new possibilities in stimulating neuron growth in humans with spinal cord injuries

"These findings indicate that intrinsic neuronal mechanisms readily overcome the barriers created by a spinal cord injury to extend many axons over very long distances and that these capabilities persist even in neurons reprogrammed from very aged human cells," said senior author Mark Tuszynski, MD, PhD, professor of neurosciences and director of the UC San Diego Center for Neural Repair.

After Dr. Tuszynski and his colleagues converted the skin cells into iPSCs, which can be coaxed to develop into nearly any other cell type, the team reprogrammed the cells to become neurons, embedded them in a matrix containing growth factors, and then grafted them into 2-week-old spinal cord injuries in rats.

Three months later, the team found mature neurons and extensive nerve fiber growth across long distances in the rats' spinal cords, including through the wound tissue and even extending into the brain. Despite numerous connections between the implanted neurons and existing rat neurons, functional recovery of the animals' limbs was not restored. The investigators noted that several iPSC grafts contained scars that may have blocked beneficial effects.

Dr. Tuszynski, along with lead author Paul Lu, PhD, of the UC San Diego Department of Neurosciences, and their collaborators are now working to identify the best way to translate neural stem cell therapies for patients with spinal cord injuries, using grafts derived from the patients' own cells.

###

Neuron, Lu et al.: "Long-Distance Axonal Growth from Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells After Spinal Cord Injury."

See more here:
Human skin cells reprogrammed as neurons regrow in rats with spinal cord injuries

Could stem cell injections help rejuvenate your face or body? Probably not, plastic surgery experts say, but ads for these types of bogus procedures abound on the Internet.

"Stem cells offer tremendous potential, but the marketplace is saturated with unsubstantiated and sometimes fraudulent claims that may place patients at risk," a team led by Dr. Michael Longaker, of Stanford University Medical Center, wrote in a review published in the August issue ofPlastic and Reconstructive Surgery.

The experts say consumers need to be wary of advertisements promoting the benefits of "minimally invasive, stem cell-based rejuvenation procedures." Claims for stem cell procedures for facelifts, breast augmentation and vaginal rejuvenation are not only unsubstantiated, but also risky, Longaker's team said.

They note that, to date, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved only one cosmetic stem cell procedure designed to treat fine facial wrinkles. And since that single procedure was approved, the product involved has been monitored extensively.

Overall, cosmetic stem cell procedures have not undergone significant scientific scrutiny, the Stanford team said. The risks associated with stem cell and tissue processing have not been closely examined. The effects of aging on stem cells are also not well established, the researchers explained.

14 Photos

Tummy tucks and facelifts pale in comparison to these surprising surgeries patients request

To investigate concerning claims being made about cosmetic stem cell procedures, the researchers performed a basic Internet search. They found the most common result was "stem cell facelifts." Most of the procedures used stem cells isolated from fat but did not provide details on the quality of the stem cells.

More than 100 clinical trials are currently evaluating stem cells derived from fat, but few are focusing on cosmetic treatments. The researchers cautioned that the products used in these cosmetic procedures likely involves additional types of cells unless they utilized sophisticated cell-sorting techniques.

Many blood plasma-enriched "platelet protein treatments" are also incorrectly advertised as stem cell therapy, the study's authors noted.

See more here:
Stem cell beauty treatments? Be wary, experts say

What clinical trials for gene and stem cell therapy are under way in your London laboratory?
Robin Ali, BSc, PhD, FMedSci, internationally known for his research in gene and cell-based therapy for the treatment of retinal degeneration, has joined the U-M Department of Ophthalmology...

By: Kellogg Eye Center - Ann Arbor

Go here to read the rest:
What clinical trials for gene and stem cell therapy are under way in your London laboratory? - Video

A new stem-cell discovery might one day lead to a more streamlined process for obtaining stem cells, which in turn could be used in the development of replacement tissue for failing body parts, according to UC San Francisco scientists who reported the findings in the current edition of Cell.

The work builds on a strategy that involves reprogramming adult cells back to an embryonic state in which they again have the potential to become any type of cell.

The efficiency of this process may soon increase thanks to the scientists identification of biochemical pathways that can inhibit the necessary reprogramming of gene activity in adult human cells. Removing these barriers increased the efficiency of stem-cell production, the researchers found.

Our new work has important implications for both regenerative medicine and cancer research, said Miguel Ramalho-Santos, Ph.D., associate professor of obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive sciences and a member of the Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regeneration Medicine and Stem Cell Research at UCSF, who led the research, funded in part by a prestigious NIH Directors New Innovator Award.

The earlier discovery that it was possible to take specialized adult cells and reverse the developmental clock to strip the mature cells of their distinctive identities and characteristics and to make them immortal, reprogrammable cells that theoretically can be used to replace any tissue type led to a share of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine being awarded to UCSF, Gladstone Institutes and Kyoto University researcher Shinya Yamanaka, M.D., in 2012.

These induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells are regarded as an alternative experimental approach to ongoing efforts to develop tissue from stem cells obtained from early-stage human embryos. However, despite the promise of iPS cells and the excitement surrounding iPS research, the percentage of adult cells successfully converted to iPS cells is typically low, and the resultant cells often retain traces of their earlier lives as specialized cells.

Researchers generate stem cells by forcing the activation within adult cells of pluripotency-inducing genes starting with the so-called Yamanaka factors a process that turns back the clock on cellular maturation.

Yet, as Ramalho-Santos notes, From the time of the discovery of iPS cells, it was appreciated that the specialized cells from which they are derived are not a blank slate. They express their own genes that may resist or counter reprogramming.

But the nature of what exactly was getting in the way of reprogramming remained poorly understood. Now, by genetically removing multiple barriers to reprogramming, we have found that the efficiency of generation of iPS cells can be greatly increased, he said. The discovery will contribute to accelerating the safe and efficient use of iPS cells and other reprogrammed cells, according to Ramalho-Santos.

Miguel Ramalho-Santos

See the original post:
Stem cell discovery may make tissue regeneration more efficient

What is Okyanos Cardiac Stem Cell Therapy?
Cardiac stem cell therapy is a promising new treatment option for advanced heart disease patients. This short video explores the procedure and benefits of ad...

By: Okyanos Heart Institute

The rest is here:
What is Okyanos Cardiac Stem Cell Therapy? - Video

July 24, 2014, 10:29 p.m.

A 60 MINUTES report on new multiple sclerosis stem cell therapy has thrown Wendouree mum Kathryn Johnston a potential lifeline.

A 60 MINUTES report on new multiple sclerosis stem cell therapy has thrown Wendouree mum Kathryn Johnston a potential lifeline.

Hopeful: Wendouree mum Kathryn Johnston is hoping new stem cell therapy treatment will help her be a more active mother to her daughter Dellah, 7. PICTURE: KATE HEALY

Ms Johnston, who has had MS for 15 years, is hoping the treatment will help her be a more active mother to daughter Dellah, 7.

I cant do a great deal with my daughter now but its also the unknown not knowing if Ill wake up one day and not be able to walk, Ms Johnston said.

The 35-year-old emergency nurse hopes to travel to Russia in August next year for the treatment, which involves extracting her stem cells, freezing them while she undergoes a strong course of chemotherapy and then replacing them.

It gets rid of any underlying MS and rebuilds the immune system from scratch. As a general rule, its been about 80 per cent effective.

Ms Johnston first noticed her MS symptoms as an active Ararat 20-year-old doing her nursing degree and about to marry her childhood sweetheart Andrew.

I developed numbness in both hands but thought Id just slept on them until my tummy went numb too.

Continue reading here:
MS stem cell therapy treatment hope for mum

Tissue engineering and vascular biology expert Guohao Dai, assistant professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, recently won a Faculty Early Career Development Award (CAREER) from the National Science Foundation (NSF).

Dai will use the five-year, $440,000 grant to advance his research into bio-fabricating human tissues with 3-D cell printing technology. Adult neural stem cells are known to hold a great potential for treating disease and damage to the nervous system. However, these cells are both rare and difficult to use in a laboratory setting. The cells lose their potency quickly upon being removed from their native environment, making it difficult to study them.

With his CAREER Award, Dai seeks to design and develop a new way of using 3-D cell printing technology to create a "vascular niche" that replicates the native environment of adult neural stem cells. With the ability to prolong the potency of the cells and precisely control the parameters and components of its vascular niche, researchers would be better positioned to study the cells and their role in treating treat spinal cord injury and neurodegenerative diseases.

"Adult neural stem cells hold so much promise for treating injury and disease, but they are extremely difficult to work with," Dai said. "We believe that we can apply 3-D tissue printing technology to create a vascular niche that will prolong the life of the cells and, in turn, enable new opportunities for studying how they may be used to treat injury and fight disease."

The CAREER Award is given to faculty members at the beginning of their academic careers and is one of NSF's most competitive awards, placing emphasis on high-quality research and novel education initiatives. Dai will collaborate on his CAREER project with two stem cells experts, Rensselaer Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering Deanna Thompson and Neural Stem Cell Initiative Scientific Director Sally Temple.

Most laboratory cell cultures are 2-D. This is significantly different from the human body, where most cells are in a 3-D environment. A major challenge in creating and studying 3-D tissues is the diffusion limit in the tissues, which quickly lose potency or die without a flow of blood to provide oxygen and nutrients.

To help overcome this challenge, Dai and his collaborators have spent years developing a 3-D tissue printer -- both the hardware and the software. The unique device prints biological tissue by carefully depositing cells, hydrogels, and other materials one layer at a time. Using this platform, Dai developed the technology to create perfused vascular channels, which provide nutrients and oxygen to the printed tissues.

"Blood vessels run throughout almost every part of our bodies, bringing the oxygen and nutrients that allow our cells to survive. The same is true of 3-D cell cultures. They need a vascular system in order to survive," Dai said. "Our device can print 3-D tissues with small channels that function as blood vessels. This enables us to print cells with extracellular matrices that closely replicate those found within the body."

Dai's research team used the 3-D tissue printing technology to help study how the functions of the vascular endothelium -- a thin layer of cells that line entire circulatory system -- are affected by environmental factors such as interactions with blood and smooth muscle cells. A dysfunctional endothelium is known to be a contributor to many vascular diseases including inflammation, thrombosis, and atherosclerosis.

With his CAREER Award, Dai is applying his expertise and unique 3-D tissue printing technology to replicate the native environment of adult neural stem cells. If successful, the project could significantly expand the potency and life span of the cells in laboratory settings, and lead to a better understanding of how this extracellular environment influences the behavior of the cells.

See the original post here:
3-D-printed tissues advance stem cell research

Renowned Israeli stem-cell researcher in Fairfield Aug. 6

By Cindy Mindell

Dr. Yaqub Hanna

A leading Israeli scientist who has pioneered groundbreaking stem-cell reprogamming research will discuss his work on Wednesday, Aug. 6 at Jewish Senior Services in Fairfield.

Together with a team of researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science Department of Molecular Genetics in Rehovot, Israel, Dr. Jacob (Yaqub) Hanna has overcome a major roadblock in the use of human stem cells for medical purposes. Funded by a grant from the Israel Cancer Research Fund, their pioneering breakthrough was recently published in the peer-reviewed international science journal, Nature.

Its not only Hannas work that is note-worthy: the award-winning research scientist is a Palestinian living in Israel, a native of Kafr Rama in the Galilee and the son of two medical doctors.

Hanna earned a BS in medical sciences summa cum laude in 2001, an MS in microbiology and immunology in 2003, and a PhD-MD in immunology summa cum laude in 2007, all from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he was among the top five percent of all Israeli medical-school graduates. After completing his PhD, Hanna decided to abandon clinical medicine and focus on research, and spent four years conducting postdoctoral research in the lab, part of the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research at MIT.

During his postdoctoral work, Hanna was the first non-American to receive a prestigious Novartis Fellowship from the Helen Hay Whitney Foundation. He joined the Weizmann Institute Department of Molecular Genetics upon his return to Israel in 2011. That year, he received the Clore Prize for distinguished new faculty at the Weizmann Institute and was accepted as a Yigal Alon Program Scholar for junior faculty in Israel. He is also the recipient of the Wolf Foundations Krill Prize for Excellence in Scientific Research and the 2013 Rappaport Prize in Biomedical Research.

Hanna has had to find a way to navigate between his personal and professional identities.

More:
Stem Cells: Promises and Reality

Surgeons have pioneered a new knee operation that could prevent the development of arthritis and extend sporting careers.

The procedure, which is currently being trialled at Southampton General Hospital, involves coating damaged cartilage with stem cells, taken from a patient's own hip, and surgical glue.

Known as Abicus (Autologous Bone Marrow Implantation of Cells University Hospital Southampton), the technique, if successful, will regenerate the remaining tissue and create a permanent "like-for-like" replacement for the first time.

Cartilage is a tough, flexible tissue that covers the surface of joints and enables bones to slide over one another while reducing friction and acting as a shock absorber.

Damage to the tissue in the knee is common and occurs mainly following sudden twists or direct blows, such as falls or heavy tackles playing sports such as football and rugby, but can also develop over time through gradual wear and tear.

Around 10,000 people a year in the UK suffer cartilage damage serious enough to require treatment due to pain, "locking" and reduced flexibility. If left untreated, it can progress to arthritis and severely impair leg movement.

Currently, the most commonly used procedure to repair the injury - microfracture - involves trimming any remaining damaged tissue and drilling holes in the bone beneath the defect via keyhole surgery to promote bleeding and scar tissue to work as a substitute.

However, the technique has variable results, with studies in the US suggesting the procedure offers only a short term benefit (the first 24 months after surgery), and does not lead to the formation of new cartilage.

Patients who undergo the Abicus operation have the cartilage cut and tidied and undergo microfracture, but their cartilage tissue is then coated with a substance made up of bone marrow cells, platelet gel and hyaluronic acid.

During the 30-minute procedure, the bone marrow sample is spun in a centrifuge in the operating theatre to give a concentrated amount of the patient's own stem cells.

Go here to read the rest:
High hopes for new knee operation

Patients' virus levels became undetectable after a bone-marrow therapy with stem cells

Scanning electron microscope (SEM) image of a lymphocyte with HIV cluster. Credit: National Cancer Institute via Wikimedia Commons

Scientists have uncovered two new cases of HIV patients in whom the virus has become undetectable.

The two patients, both Australian men, became apparently HIV-free after receiving stem cells to treat cancer. They are still on antiretroviral therapy (ART) as a precaution, but those drugs alone could not be responsible for bringing the virus to such low levels, says David Cooper, director of the Kirby Institute at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, who led the discovery. A year ago, a different group of researchers had reported cases with a similar outcome.

Cooper presented details of the cases today at a press briefing in Melbourne, Australia, where delegates are convening for next week's 20th International AIDS Conference. The announcement came just a day after the news that at least six people heading to the conference died when aMalaysia Airlines flight was shot down in Ukraine.

Cooper began searching for patients who had been purged of the HIV virus after attending a presentation by a US team last year at a conference of the International AIDS Society in Kuala Lumpur. At that meeting, researchers from Brigham and Womens Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, reported that two patients who had received stem-cell transplants were virus-free.

Cooper and his collaborators scanned the archives of St Vincents hospital in Sydney, one of the largest bone-marrow centres in Australia. We went back and looked whether we had transplanted [on] any HIV-positive patients, and found these two, says Cooper.

The first patient had received a bone-marrow transplant for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2011. His replacement stem cells came from a donor who carried one copy of a gene thought to afford protection against the virus. The other had been treated for leukaemia in 2012.

Unfortunately, several months after the 'Boston' patients stopped taking ART,the virus returned. An infant born with HIV in Mississippi who received antiretroviral therapy soon after birth, then stopped it for more than three years,was thought to have been cured, buthas had the virus rebound, too.

Natural resistance At the moment, there is only one person in the world who is still considered cured of HIV:Timothy Ray Brown, the 'Berlin patient', who received a bone-marrow transplant and has had no signs of the virus in his blood for six years without ART. The bone marrow received by the Berlin patient came from a donor who happened to have a natural genetic resistance to his strain of HIV.

Continue reading here:
HIV Cleared in 2 Patients via Cancer Treatment

July 21, 2014

Michigan State University

Not unlike looking for the proverbial needle in a haystack, a team of Michigan State University researchers have found a gene that could be key to the development of stem cells cells that can potentially save millions of lives by morphing into practically any cell in the body.

The gene, known as ASF1A, was not discovered by the team. However, it is at least one of the genes responsible for the mechanism of cellular reprogramming, a phenomenon that can turn one cell type into another, which is key to the making of stem cells.

In a paper published in the journal Science, the researchers describe how they analyzed more than 5,000 genes from a human egg, or oocyte, before determining that the ASF1A, along with another gene known as OCT4 and a helper soluble molecule, were the ones responsible for the reprogramming.

This has the potential to be a major breakthrough in the way we look at how stem cells are developed, said Elena Gonzalez-Munoz, a former MSU post-doctoral researcher and first author of the paper. Researchers are just now figuring out how adult somatic cells such as skin cells can be turned into embryonic stem cells. Hopefully this will be the way to understand more about how that mechanism works.

In 2006, an MSU team identified the thousands of genes that reside in the oocyte. It was from those, they concluded, that they could identify the genes responsible for cellular reprogramming.

In 2007, a team of Japanese researchers found that by introducing four other genes into cells, stem cells could be created without the use of a human egg. These cells are called induced pluripotent stem cells, or iPSCs.

This is important because the iPSCs are derived directly from adult tissue and can be a perfect genetic match for a patient, said Jose Cibelli, an MSU professor of animal science and a member of the team.

The researchers say that the genes ASF1A and OCT4 work in tandem with a ligand, a hormone-like substance that also is produced in the oocyte called GDF9, to facilitate the reprogramming process.

Here is the original post:
Researchers Find Gene That Could Make It Easier To Develop Life-saving Stem Cells

HIV on macrophage image by Public Library of Science

A 53-year-old and a 47-year-old man appear to be clear of HIV after receiving bone marrow transplants for leukaemia and lymphoma respectively at St Vincent's Hospital in Sydney, Australia, in partnership with the University of New South Wales' Kirby Institute.

Moreover, the leukaemia patient is the first recorded case of clearing the virus without the presence of a rare anti-HIV gene in the donor marrow.

To date, there have been several reported cases of cleared HIV. Timothy Ray Brown, a US citizen, was treated in 2007 and 2008 for leukaemia with transplanted stem cells from a donor with the CCR5 delta32 mutation, which is resistant to HIV, and was reported clear of the virus in 2008. Brown stopped taking his antiretroviral medication and has remained HIV-free.

In 2012, two other patients in Boston had similar treatments with bone marrow cells that did not contain the mutation. They initially tested clear of the virus, but -- when they ceased taking antiretroviral medication -- the virus returned.

The lymphoma patient, treated in 2010, did receive one transplant of bone marrow that contained one of two copies of a gene that is possibly resistant to HIV. The leukaemia patient, treated in 2011, received donor marrow with no resistive gene. Both patients remain on antiretroviral medication as a precaution, since the virus may be in remission rather than completely cured.

"We're so pleased that both patients are doing reasonably well years after the treatment for their cancers and remain free of both the original cancer and the HIV virus," said study senior author and UNSW Kirby Institute director Scientia Professor David Cooper said.

The next step is to figure out why the body responds to a bone marrow transplant in a way that makes the virus retreat. One possible explanation is that the body's immune response to the foreign cells of the transplant causes it to fight harder against HIV. This is because, while bone marrow transplant seems to be the most effective means of clearing the AIDS virus to date, it is not an acceptable risk for patients whose lives aren't already endangered by bone cancer.

"The procedure itself has an up to 10 percent mortality rate," Professor Cooper explained. "But you take that risk in someone with leukaemia or lymphoma because they're going to die without it, and the transplantation will result in cure. For someone with HIV, you would certainly not transplant them when they have an almost normal life span with standard antiretroviral therapy."

The team of researchers plans to replicate the immune response to bone marrow transplantation in a laboratory setting in the hope of devising a less invasive and less dangerous immunotherapy against the virus.

Continue reading here:
Two men cleared of AIDS virus after bone marrow transplants

Freeport, Bahamas (PRWEB) July 15, 2014

Okyanos Heart Institute, a leader in cardiac adult stem cell therapy, has selected Perkins Healthcare Technologies to provide video integration solutions for its new state-of-the-art cardiac catheterization lab. The video integration system is paired with Phillips equipment, creating a top-grade comprehensive solution for the cath lab by providing the ability to view high definition clinical cardiac procedures video information on a large screen collaged layout 8-megapixel display. Built to US surgical standards, the lab equipment is being installed over the next few weeks, bringing the highest standard of care and most advanced technology to cardiac care.

Okyanos Heart Institute utilizes adult stem cells derived from ones own adipose (fat) tissue, placing them in the heart to help it repair damaged or diseased tissue. This is done using a minimally invasive catheterization procedure, as demonstrated in multiple rigorous clinical trials from around the world.

Okyanos Chief Medical Officer Howard T. Walpole, Jr., M.D., M.B.A., F.A.C.C., F.A.C.A.I. noted, The most important functions of the video integration system are to provide high quality images with the right projections of the image. When you visualize a heart, you need to be able to get a complex angle to see the back side of the heart. This enables the cardiologist to deliver the stem cells where they are most needed. The size of the image detector is smaller and the more flexible positioner makes it easier to pivot around the patients body to obtain those difficult views.

Perkins Healthcare Technologies has been providing clinical video integration solutions for over 25 years and looks forward to bringing its expertise to Okyanos Heart Institute. We are very excited to have our state-of-the-art video integration system included as a part of this innovative solution for cardiac care. Our video integration system provides Okyanos a flexible solution to meet its staff needs, said Steve Plaugher, COO of Perkins Healthcare Technologies. Instead of having to assimilate patient data from multiple sources and locations, the staff can now access and view this information in their respective work area in an instant.

The combination of Okyanos adult stem cell treatments and Perkins state-of-the-art video integration solutions are designed to enhance patient care, improve the quality of life and deliver an exceptional patient experience.

To learn more about Okyanos and cardiac stem cell therapy, take a few minutes to view this video or visit http://www.Okyanos.com.

To learn more about Perkins and its clinical video integration and control technology, visit http://www.PerkinsHealthcareTechnologies.com for information on Perkins Solutions.

About Okyanos Heart Institute: (Oh key AH nos) Based in Freeport, Grand Bahama, 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 CEO Matt Feshbach and Chief Medical Officer Howard T. Walpole Jr., M.D., M.B.A., F.A.C.C., F.A.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. Angiogenesis 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, the Greek god of rivers, symbolizes restoration of blood flow.

About Perkins Healthcare Technologies: Perkins Healthcare Technologies has designed, developed, manufactured and distributed clinical video integration solutions for more than 25 years. Perkins vendor neutral video integration solutions work seamlessly with new or existing imaging, surgical, or hybrid procedure suites; complementing the functionality, improving workflow, and providing critical patient information to the stakeholder where and when they need it.

Read the rest here:
Okyanos & Perkins Partner for Cardiac Stem Cell Therapy Innovation

A woman in the US has developed a tumour-like growth eight years after a stem cell treatment to cure her paralysis failed. There have been a handful of cases of stem cell treatments causing growths but this appears to be the first in which the treatment was given at a Western hospital as part of an approved clinical trial.

At a hospital in Portugal, the unnamed woman, a US citizen, had tissue containing olfactory stem cells taken from her nose and implanted in her spine. The hope was that these cells would develop into neural cells and help repair the nerve damage to the woman's spine. The treatment did not work far from it. Last year the woman, then 28, underwent surgery because of worsening pain at the implant site.

The surgeons removed a 3-centimetre-long growth, which was found to be mainly nasal tissue, as well as bits of bone and tiny nerve branches that had not connected with the spinal nerves.

The growth wasn't cancerous, but it was secreting a "thick copious mucus-like material", which is probably why it was pressing painfully on her spine, says Brian Dlouhy at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City, the neurosurgeon who removed the growth. The results of the surgery have now been published.

"It is sobering," says George Daley, a stem cell researcher at Harvard Medical School who has helped write guidelines for people considering stem cell treatments. "It speaks directly to how primitive our state of knowledge is about how cells integrate and divide and expand. "

The case shows that even when carried out at mainstream hospitals, experimental stem cell therapies can have unpredictable consequences, says Alexey Bersenev, a stem cell research analyst who blogs at Cell Trials. "We have to realise complications can also happen in a clinical trial," he says.

Stem cells have the prized ability to divide and replenish themselves, as well as turn into different types of tissues. There are several different stem cells, including ones obtained from an early embryo, aborted fetuses, and umbilical cord blood. There are many sources within adult tissues, too, including bone marrow.

While often hailed as the future of medicine, stem cells' ability to proliferate carries an inherent danger and the fear has always been that when implanted into a person they could turn cancerous.

Still, a few stem cell therapies have now been approved, such as a treatment available in India that takes stem cells from the patient's eye in order to regrow the surface of their cornea, and a US product based on other people's bone stem cells.

Many groups around the world are investigating a wide range of other applications, including treating heart attacks, blindness, Parkinson's disease and cancer. Research groups at universities and hospitals need to meet strict safety guidelines for clinical trials but some small private clinics are offering therapies to people without research or marketing approval. There is a growing number of lawsuits against such clinics and a few cases have been reported of tumours or excessive tissue growth (see "Ongoing stem cell trials" below).

More here:
Stem cell treatment causes nasal growth in woman's back