San Diego is buzzing about biotech this week: The BIO International Convention is in town at the San Diego Convention Center. While the conference has drawn big names like entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as its keynote speakers, it's not just the guests who are making headlines.

Companies are announcing new ventures and clinical trials on a wide range of bio-tech topics, including regenerative medicine and stem cells.

A popular method now being used by stem cell researchers is known as "disease in a dish." The process uses a patient's own skin cells and manipulates them into stem cells. The cells are then tested with drug combinations right in the Petri dish to determine if they might assist with a condition or disease. But even though these cells, known as IPS cells, are not controversial embryonic cells, ethical questions about their use remain.

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BIO Convention Puts Spotlight On San Diego Stem-Cell Research

Alzheimer #39;s Disease Prevention and Treatment
http://www.placidway.com/subtreatment-detail/treatment,31,subtreatment,256.html/Alzheimers-Disease-Stem-Cell-Therapy--Treatment-Abroad - Watch this educational video about Alzheimer #39;s disease...

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Alzheimer's Disease Prevention and Treatment - Video

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

17-Jun-2014

Contact: Vera Siegler vera.siegler@tum.de 49-892-892-2731 Technische Universitaet Muenchen

This news release is available in German.

The cells of the human immune system are created from special stem cells in the bone marrow. In diseases affecting the bone marrow, such as leukemia, the degenerate cells must be destroyed using radiation or chemotherapy. Subsequently, the hematopoietic system has to be replaced with stem cells from the blood of a healthy donor. Because of the resulting temporary weakening of the immune system, patients are more exposed to viruses that would normally be warded off.

The cytomegalovirus (CMV), which can cause serious damage to lungs or liver in persons with a weakened defense, poses a major clinical problem. In healthy human beings, a CMV infection will usually not produce any symptoms, since the virus is kept at bay by specific immune cells. In their work, the scientists were able to demonstrate that the transfer of just a few specific immune cells is sufficient to protect the recipient with the weakened immune system against infections. To do this, they used T cells that can recognize and kill specific pathogens.

Tested in an animal model

Dr. Christian Stemberger, first author of the study, and his colleagues, first isolated T cells from the blood of healthy donor mice. These immune cells were directed against molecular elements of a bacterial species which normally causes severe infections in animals. The T cells were then transferred to recipient mice that, due to a genetic modification, could no longer produce immune cells of their own similarly to patients suffering from leukemia.

Following the T cell transfer, the researchers infected the treated recipient mice with the bacteria. The results showed that the animals now have effective immune protection against the pathogens, preventing them from becoming ill. "The most astonishing result was that the offspring cells of just one transferred donor cell were enough to completely protect the animals," Christian Stemberger explains.

Successfully used in patients

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Promising T cell therapy

Stem cells have the unique ability to become any type of cell in the body. Given this, the possibility that they can be cultured and engineered in the laboratory makes them an attractive option for regenerative medicine. However, some conditions that are commonly used for culturing human stem cells have the potential to introduce contaminants, thus rendering the cells unusable for clinical use. These conditions cannot be avoided, however, as they help maintain the pluripotency of the stem cells.

In a study published in Scientific Reports, a group from the RIKEN Center for Life Science Technologies in Japan has gained new insight into the role of CCL2, a chemokine known to be involved in the immune response, in the enhancement of stem cell pluripotency. In the study, the researchers replaced basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF), a critical component of human stem cell culture, with CCL2 and studied its effect. The work showed that CCL2 used as a replacement for bFGF activated the JAK/STAT pathway, which is known to be involved in the immune response and maintenance of mouse pluripotent stem cells. In addition, the cells cultured with CCL2 demonstrated a higher tendency of colony attachment, high efficiency of cellular differentiation, and hints of X chromosome reactivation in female cells, all markers of pluripotency.

To understand the global effects of CCL2, the researchers compared the transcriptome of stem cells cultured with CCL2 and those with bFGF. They found that stem cells cultured with CCL2 had higher expression of genes related to the hypoxic response, such as HIF2A (EPAS1). The study opens up avenues for further exploring the relationship between cellular stress, such as hypoxia, and the enhancement of pluripotency in cells. Yuki Hasegawa of CLST, who led the study, says, "Among the differentially expressed genes, we found out that the most significantly differentially expressed ones were those related to hypoxic responses, and hypoxia is known to be important in the progression of tumors and the maintenance of pluripotency. These results could potentially contribute to greater consistency of human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), which are important both for regenerative medicine and for research into diseases processes."

As a way to apply CCL2 towards the culturing of human iPSCs with more consistent quality, the researchers developed dishes coated with CCL2 and LIF protein beads. This allowed stem cells to be cultured in a feeder-free condition, preventing the risk that viruses or other contaminants could be transmitted to the stem cells. While the exact mechanisms of how CCL2 enhances pluripotency has yet to be elucidated, this work highlights the usefulness of CCL2 in stem cell culture.

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The above story is based on materials provided by RIKEN. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.

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Pushing cells towards a higher pluripotency state

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

19-Jun-2014

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

Stroke is a leading cause of death and disability in developed countries, and there is an urgent need for more clinically effective treatments. A study published by Cell Press June 19th in Stem Cell Reports reveals that simultaneous transplantation of neural and vascular progenitor cells can reduce stroke-related brain damage and improve behavioral recovery in rodents. The stem cell-based approach could represent a promising strategy for the treatment of stroke in humans.

"Our findings suggest that early cotransplantation treatment can not only replace lost cells, but also prevent further deterioration of the injured brain following ischemic stroke," says senior study author Wei-Qiang Gao of Shanghai Jiaotong University. "With the development of human embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cell technology, we are optimistic about the potential translation of our research into clinical use."

The most common kind of stroke, known as ischemic stroke, is caused by a blood clot that blocks or plugs a blood vessel in the brain. Although a medicine called tissue plasminogen activator can break up blood clots in the brain, it must be given soon after the start of symptoms to work, and there are no other clinically effective treatments currently available for this condition. Stem cell transplantation represents a promising therapeutic strategy, but transplantation of either neural progenitor cells or vascular cells has shown restricted therapeutic effectiveness.

In the new study, Gao teamed up with colleagues at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, including Jia Li, Yaohui Tang, and Guo-Yuan Yang, to test whether cotransplantation of both neural and vascular precursor cells would lead to better outcomes. They induced ischemic stroke in rats and then simultaneously injected neural and vascular progenitor cells from mice into the stroke-damaged rat brains 24 hours later. The transplanted precursor cells turned into all major types of vascular and brain cells, including mature, functional neurons. The resulting vascular cells developed into microvessels, while the grafted neural cells produced molecules known to stimulate the growth of both neurons and vessels.

"This is the first study to use embryonic stem cell-derived vascular progenitor cells together with neural progenitor cells to treat ischemic stroke," Gao says. "These two types of progenitors generate nearly all types of brain cells, including endothelial cells, pericytes/smooth muscle cells, neurons, and astrocytes, resulting in better restoration of neurovascular units and better replacement of the lost cells in the stroke model. A previously reported cotransplantation approach published in the journal Stem Cells in 2009 (doi: 10.1002/stem.161) was limited because it did not use vascular precursor cells capable of turning into all major types of vascular cells important for recovery. Our findings here suggest that cotransplantation of the two types of cells that restore the neurovascular unit more effectively is a better approach for the treatment of ischemic stroke."

Two weeks after stroke, rats that had undergone cotransplantation showed less brain damage and improved behavioral performance on motor tasks compared with rats that had been treated with neural progenitor cells alone. "Our findings suggest that cotransplantation of neural and vascular cells is much more effective than transplantation of one cell type alone because these two cell types mutually support each other to promote recovery after stroke," Gao says.

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Stem cell-based transplantation approach improves recovery from stroke

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

12-Jun-2014

Contact: Hannah Postles h.postles@sheffield.ac.uk 01-142-221-046 University of Sheffield

A time-lapse study of human embryonic stems cells has identified bottlenecks restricting the formation of colonies, a discovery that could lead to improvement in their use in regenerative medicine.

Biologists at the University of Sheffield's Centre for Stem Cell Biology led by Professor Peter Andrews and engineers in the Complex Systems and Signal Processing Group led by Professor Daniel Coca studied human pluripotent stem cells, which are a potential source of cells for regenerative medicine because they have the ability to produce any cell type in the body.

However, using these stem cells in therapies is currently hampered by the fact they can acquire genetic changes during prolonged culture which are non-random and resemble mutations in cancer cells.

Researchers used time-lapse imaging of single human embryonic stem cells to identify aspects of their behaviour that restrict growth and would be targets for mutations that allow cells to grow more efficiently.

Dr Ivana Barbaric, from the University of Sheffield's Department of Biomedical Science, said: "We study pluripotent stem cells, which have huge potential for use in regenerative medicine due to their ability to become any cell in the human body. A pre-requisite for this is maintaining large numbers of undifferentiated cells in culture. However, there are several obstacles such as cells tend to die extensively during culturing and they can mutate spontaneously. Some of these genetic mutations are known to provide stem cells with superior growth, allowing them to overtake the culture a phenomenon termed culture adaptation, which mimics the behaviour of cancer cells.

"In order for pluripotent stem cells to be used safely in regenerative medicine we need to understand how suboptimal culture conditions, for example culturing cells at low split ratios, affect the cells and can lead to culture adaptation."

The team's research combined the use of time-lapse microscopy, single-cell tracking and mathematical modelling to characterise bottlenecks affecting the survival of normal human embryonic stem cells and compared them with adapted cells.

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Time-lapse study reveals bottlenecks in stem cell expansion

Dr. Ruth Roberts - Stem Cell Therapy For Pets
Dr. Ruth Roberts visits Lowcountry Live! to discuss the benefits of Stem Cell Therapy for pets.

By: Ruth Roberts

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Dr. Ruth Roberts - Stem Cell Therapy For Pets - Video

treatment available for autism spectrum disorder
After stem cell therapy treatment available for autism spectrum disorder parents of the child from London United Kingdom testifying most of the amazing improvements they saw after stem cell...

By: Neurogen Brain and Spine Institute

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treatment available for autism spectrum disorder - Video

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

19-Jun-2014

Contact: Robert Miranda cogcomm@aol.com Cell Transplantation Center of Excellence for Aging and Brain Repair

Putnam Valley, NY. (June 19, 2014) Researchers in Taiwan have found that peripheral blood stem cells "mobilized" by a special preparation of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) prior to their injection into rats modeling osteoarthritis (OA), stimulated the bone marrow to produce stem cells, leading to the inhibition of OA progression. The finding, they said, may lead to a more effective therapy for OA, a common joint disease that affects 10 percent of Americans over the age of 60.

The study will be published in a future issue of Cell Transplantation and is currently freely available on-line as an unedited early e-pub at: http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/cog/ct/pre-prints/content-ct1109Deng.

"Currently, OA treatment involves the use of anti-inflammatory drugs, analgesics, lubricating supplements, or surgery," said study lead author Dr. Shih-Chieh Hung of the Department of Medical Research and Education at the Taipei Veterans general Hospital in Taiwan. "Recently, hematopoietic (blood) stem cells derived from bone marrow have emerged as a potential treatment for OA. We hypothesized that G-CSF-mobilized peripheral blood stem cells (gm-PBSCs) contain a population of primitive stem cells that have the capacity for mobility once released from stem cell niches."

While the beneficial effects of G-CSF-mobilized peripheral blood stem cells have been documented when used for treating the negative effects of chemotherapy and radiation, as well as peripheral arterial diseases, this is the first study to investigate the use of gm-PBSCs to treat skeletal diseases, such as OA.

"We demonstrated that PBSCs, mobilized by G-CSF and infused for five days in rats modelling OA, provided a number of beneficial results, including increasing cluster of differentiation 34 positive (CD34+) cell percentages up to 55 fold," reported the authors. "Further, we demonstrated that the progression of OA was inhibited by the gm-PBSCs."

The researchers noted that the use of G-CSF administration in humans to treat other diseases and conditions has been found to be "safe and effective," despite known side effects such as bone pain, headache, fatigue, and nausea which, they added, are generally "transient, self-limiting and without long-term consequences."

"Although potential long-term adverse effects, such as malignancy after G-CSF administration have been reported, the frequency is low and the relationship between major adverse effects and G-CSF administration is not clear," said Dr. Hung.

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Stem cell mobilization therapy may effectively treat osteoarthritis

Scientists at A*STAR's Singapore Immunology Network (SIgN) have discovered a new class of lipids in the leukemia cells that are detected by a unique group of immune cells. By recognising the lipids, the immune cells stimulate an immune response to destroy the leukemia cells and suppress their growth. The newly identified mode of cancer cell recognition by the immune system opens up new possibilities for leukemia immunotherapy.

leukemia is characterized by the accumulation of cancer cells originating from blood cells, in the blood or bone marrow. Current treatments for leukemia largely involve chemotherapy to eradicate all cancer cells, followed by stem cell transplants to restore healthy blood cells in the patients.

In a recent study reported in the Journal of Experimental Medicine (JEM) online, the team co-led by Dr Lucia Mori and Prof Gennaro De Libero identified a new class of lipids, methyl-lysophosphatidic acids (mLPA), which accumulate in leukemia cells. Following which, the team identified a specific group of immune cells, described as mLPA-specific T-cells that are capable of recognising the mLPA in the leukemia cells. The detection triggers an immune response that activates the T cells to kill the leukemia cells and limits cancer progression. The efficacy of the T cells in killing leukemia cells was also demonstrated in a mouse model of human leukemia.

Thus far, only proteins in cancer cells have been known to activate T cells. This study is a pioneer in its discovery of mLPA, and the specific T cells which can identify lipids expressed by cancer cells. Unlike proteins, lipids in cancer cells do not differ between individuals, indicating that the recognition of mLPA by mLPA-specific T-cells happens in all leukemia patients. This new mode of cancer cell recognition suggests that the T-cells can potentially be harnessed for a leukemia immunotherapy that is effective in all patients.

"The identification of mLPA and its role in activating specific T cells is novel. This knowledge not only sheds light on future leukemia studies, but also complements ongoing leukemia immunotherapy studies focusing on proteins in cancer cells," said Dr Lucia Mori, Principal Investigator at SIgN. "Current treatments run the risk of failure due to re-growth of residual leukemia cells that survive after stem cell transplants. T-cell immunotherapy may serve as a complementary treatment for more effective and safer therapeutic approach towards leukemia."

Professor Laurent Renia, Acting Executive Director of SIgN, said, "At SIgN, we study how the human immune system protects us naturally from infections. We engage in promising disease-specific research projects that ultimately pave the way for the development of treatments and drugs which can better combat these diseases. A pertinent example will be this study; this mode of immune recognition of leukemia cells is an insightful discovery that will create new opportunities for immunotherapy to improve the lives of leukemia patients."

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The above story is based on materials provided by A*Star Agency for Science, Technology and Research. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.

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New possibilities for leukemia therapy with novel mode of leukemia cell recognition

DUBLIN, June 19, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/v969qd/cell_separation) has announced the addition of the "Cell Separation Technologies Market- Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast, 2013 - 2019" report to their offering.

http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130307/600769

This report consists of the market analysis for the various technologies used in the cell separation market. Increasing cell therapy oriented research and development globally is driving the cell separation technologies market towards significant growth. The stakeholders for this report include providers and manufacturers of cell separation technology instruments.

The cell separation technologies market is segmented on the basis of technologies that are available in the market and application areas of cell separation technologies. The various technology segments covered in this report are gradient centrifugation and separation based on surface markers. Separation based on surface markers technology include two different techniques namely, magnetic activated cell sorting (MACS) and fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS).

The application areas of cell separation technologies comprise stem cell research, immunology, neuroscience research and cancer research. Revenue forecast and market analysis for each segment has been given in this study for the period of 2011 to 2019 in terms of USD million in addition to the compound annual growth rate (CAGR %) for each segment of technology and application. The CAGR is provided for forecast period of 2013 to 2019 and 2012 have been considered as base in year for market size estimation.

Geographically, global cell separation technologies market has been segmented into four areas namely, North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Rest of the World (RoW). This report also provides the present and future market estimation in terms of USD million for the period 2011 to 2019, in addition to compound annual growth rate (CAGR %) for each geographic area. Further to market size estimation, this report provides recommendations and highlights of the market that should be useful for current and new market players to grow and sustain in the global cell separation technologies market.

Market trends and dynamics such as restraints, opportunities and growth drivers that have impact on present and future position of this market are demonstrated in the market overview chapter of this study. In addition, the market overview chapter also consists of Porter's five forces analysis and market attractiveness by geography to give detailed analysis of the entire competitive status of the global cell separation technologies market.

Key information about the top market players operating in the global cell separation technologies market is given in the company profiles section of this report. Some of the key players profiled in this report include BD Bioscience, EMD Millipore, Mitenyi Biotec GmbH, and STEMCELL Technologies, Terumo BCT, pluriSelect GmbH, and Life Technologies (Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc.).

Key Topics Covered:

Chapter 1 Introduction

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Cell Separation Technologies Market- Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast, 2013 - 2019

SOUTH BEND, Ind.--- In the 1970's, researchers discovered that a newborn's umbilical cord blood contained special stem cells that could help fight certain diseases.

More than 30 years later doctors are still experimenting and learning more about the use of cord blood.

Amanda Canale doesn't take time with her daughter and niece for granted.

She's just happy to feel good.

"I've been in the hospital, and I've been sick my whole life," said Amanda.

Amanda was born with a rare blood disorder that required daily shots.

"Basically, I have no white blood cells. I have no immune system at all," said Amanda

At 23 she developed Leukemia and was given two weeks to live.

She desperately needed a Bone Marrow Transplant, but family members weren't matches.

Her doctor suggested an Umbilical Cord Blood Transplant.

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Umbilical cord blood helps to save lives

Madison, Wisconsin - Scientists at the University of Wisconsin Carbone Cancer Center (UWCCC) report that a new class of tumor-targeting agents can seek out and find dozens of solid tumors, even illuminating brain cancer stem cells that resist current treatments.

Whats more, years of animal studies and early human clinical trials show that this tumor-targeting alkylphosphocholine (APC) molecule can deliver two types of payloads directly to cancer cells: a radioactive or fluorescent imaging label, or a radioactive medicine that binds and kills cancer cells.

This series of images shows how the alkylphosphocholine (APC) molecule targets and illuminates cancer cells.

The results are featured in todays issue of the journal Science Translational Medicine with the journals cover illustration and a podcast.

The APC targeting molecule was created to exploit a weakness shared by tumors as diverse as breast, brain, colorectal, lung, prostate and skin cancers. Unlike normal cells, cancer cells lack the enzymes to metabolize APC and similar phospholipid ethers that merge with cell membranes.

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New tumor-targeting agent images and treats variety of cancers

2014 Vanderbilt GSC 3MT Finalist: Dikshya Bastakoty - Cardiovascular cell therapy
2014 Vanderbilt GSC 3MT Finalist: Dikshya Bastakoty - Cardiovascular cell therapy: teaching stem cells to fix the broken heart.

By: VanderbiltGSC

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2014 Vanderbilt GSC 3MT Finalist: Dikshya Bastakoty - Cardiovascular cell therapy - Video

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

9-Jun-2014

Contact: Lucia Lee NewsMedia@mssm.edu 212-241-9200 The Mount Sinai Hospital / Mount Sinai School of Medicine

(New York June 9, 2014) -- A protein may be the key to maintaining the health of aging blood stem cells, according to work by researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai recently published online in Stem Cell Reports. Human adults keep stem cell pools on hand in key tissues, including the blood. These stem cells can become replacement cells for those lost to wear and tear. But as the blood stem cells age, their ability to regenerate blood declines, potentially contributing to anemia and the risk of cancers like acute myeloid leukemia and immune deficiency. Whether this age-related decline in stem cell health is at the root of overall aging is unclear.

The new Mount Sinai study reveals how loss of a protein called Sirtuin1 (SIRT1) affects the ability of blood stem cells to regenerate normally, at least in mouse models of human disease. This study has shown that young blood stem cells that lack SIRT1 behave like old ones. With use of advanced mouse models, she and her team found that blood stem cells without adequate SIRT1 resembled aged and defective stem cells, which are thought to be linked to development of malignancies.

"Our data shows that SIRT1 is a protein that is required to maintain the health of blood stem cells and supports the possibility that reduced function of this protein with age may compromise healthy aging," says Saghi Ghaffari, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Developmental and Regenerative Biology at Mount Sinai's Black Family Stem Cell Institute, Icahn School of Medicine. "Further studies in the laboratory could improve are understanding between aging stem cells and disease."

Next for the team, which includes Pauline Rimmel, PhD, is to investigate whether or not increasing SIRT1 levels in blood stem cells protects them from unhealthy aging or rejuvenates old blood stem cells. The investigators also plan to look at whether SIRT1 therapy could treat diseases already linked to aging, faulty blood stem cells.

They also believe that SIRT1 might be important to maintaining the health of other types of stem cells in the body, which may be linked to overall aging.

The notion that SIRT1 is a powerful regulator of aging has been highly debated, but its connection to the health of blood stem cells "is now clear," says Dr. Ghaffari. "Identifying regulators of stem cell aging is of major significance for public health because of their potential power to promote healthy aging and provide targets to combat diseases of aging," Dr. Ghaffari says.

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Mount Sinai researchers identify protein that keeps blood stem cells healthy as they age

Dr. Omar Gonzalez presents his Integrative Medicine Clinic in Mexico
http://www.placidway.com/profile/705/ - Watch this Video as Dr.Omar Gonzalez, MD, specialist in Stem Cell Therapy, Integrative Medicine and Chronic Diseases, presents his new clinic located...

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Dr. Omar Gonzalez presents his Integrative Medicine Clinic in Mexico - Video

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

9-Jun-2014

Contact: Kimberly Brown kbrown@snmmi.org 703-652-6773 Society of Nuclear Medicine

St. Louis, Mo. (June 9, 2014) Researchers at the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging's 2014 Annual Meeting revealed how a protein encourages the production of stem cells that regenerate damaged tissues of the heart following an acute attack (myocardial infarction). They further assert that it has a better chance of working if provided early in treatment. This was confirmed by molecular imaging, which captured patients' improved heart health after therapy.

If given after a heart attack, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) mobilizes bone marrow stem cells that turn down the collateral damage of cell death that occurs after acute myocardial infarction. Other research has shown G-CSF having a beneficial impact on left ventricle ejection fraction, a measurement of how powerfully the heart is pumping oxygenated blood back into the aorta and the rest of the body with each beat. The objective of this study was to find out how beneficial the stem cellstimulating therapy would be if administered early during standard treatment. Early prescription of G-CSF happens to strengthen its effect immediately and after follow up.

"Previous studies have shown that giving G-CSF to unselected heart attack patients failed to satisfactorily improve their condition, but G-CSF may potentially be beneficial if given earlier than 37 hours following myocardial infarction and coronary intervention," remarked Takuji Toyama, MD, the study's principal researcher from the division of cardiology at Gunma Prefectural Cardiovascular Center in Maebashi, Japan. "This study shows that the first intravenous drip infusion of G-CSF during treatment just after hospitalization was able to rescue our patients. I am confident that with additional data from a forthcoming clinical trial, this protocol can be adopted as a standard of practice."

For this study, 40 consecutive patients with acute myocardial infarction were given either G-CSF therapy or saline intravenously for a total of five days beginning during a selected minimally invasive treatment, otherwise known as percutaneous cardiac intervention. Results of one year's worth of SPECT stress tests nailed how earlier start of G-CSF therapy in heart attack patients improves blood flow, access to essential energy and overall cardiac function.

Coronary heart disease caused one out of every six fatalities in the U.S. in 2010, according to 2014 statistics from the American Heart Association. An estimated 620,000 Americans suffered a first heart attack, and 295,000 had a recurrent episode. Collectively, heart attacks occur about once every 34 seconds. Coronary events cause about 379,559 deaths each year.

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Scientific Paper 239: Takuji Toyama, Hiroshi Hoshizaki, Hakuken Kan, Ren Kawaguchi, Hitoshi Adachi, Shigeru Ohsima, Division of Cardiology, Gunma Prefectural Cardiovascular Center, Maebashi, Japan; Masahiko Kurabayashi, Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Gunma University School of Medicine, Maebashi, Japan, "Is the granulocyte colony-stimulating factor therapy in the earliest phase effective to rescue patients with acute myocardial infarction?" SNMMI's 61th Annual Meeting, June 7, 2014, St. Louis, Missouri.

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Stem cell-stimulating therapy saves heart attack patients

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Robert Waddell says he's glad the stem cells that healed him came from "a guy who was 50 years old" and not a human embryo.

As a Catholic, Waddell opposes the destruction of embryos and didn't want to rely on embryonic stem cells to cure his kidney disease. But he avoided this moral dilemma by getting bone marrow stem cells from a friend who donated a kidney as part of a University of Louisville study.

"It has nothing to do with embryonic stem cells," said Waddell, a 47-year-old father of four. "That made it a lot easier."

Recent strides in stem-cell research show adult stem cells to be ever-more-promising, many scientists say, quelling the controversy steeped in faith and science that has long surrounded embryonic stem cells.

In fact, University of Louisville researcher Scott Whittemore said the debate is almost moot.

"Realistically, (many scientists don't use) the types of stem cells that are so problematic anymore," he said, adding that adult stem cells can now be reprogrammed to behave like embryonic stem cells. "The field has moved so fast."

In addition to these genetically reprogrammed adult cells - known as induced pluripotent stem cells or iPS cells - scientists are on the cusp of being able to turn one type of cell into another in the body without using stem cells at all. They shared some of the latest research last week at the annual International Society for Stem Cell Research in Vancouver.

"IPS cells overcame the main ethical issues," namely the use of embryos some Americans consider sacred human life, said Brett Spear, a professor of microbiology, immunology and molecular genetics at the University of Kentucky who uses iPS cells to model liver disease.

But other scientists argue that embryonic stem cell research remains important.

Dr. George Daley, director of the stem cell transplant program at Boston Children's Hospital and past president of the research society, said embryonic cells are a tool in the search for cures.

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Stem-cell advances may quell ethics debate

The Board of Directors of Asterias is honored that Pedro elected to join Asterias as CEO and is very pleased that he also chose to make a significant financial commitment to the company, said Alfred D. Kingsley, Chairman of the Asterias Board of Directors. With Pedro at the helm, Asterias is focused on its efforts to develop and commercialize therapies that have the potential to treat patients with serious unmet medical needs. In particular, Pedro will lead Asterias through the process of advancing its lead clinical-stage programs, AST-OPC1 for the treatment of spinal cord injury and the AST-VAC2 allogeneic dendritic cell cancer immunotherapy platform.

I believe in Asterias technology, its therapeutic programs, and its talented employees and am committed to making the company a success, remarked Mr. Lichtinger. My efforts as the companys CEO will focus on developing innovative therapies for critically ill and chronically ill patients, and creating significant value over time for Asterias shareholders.

About Asterias

Asterias Biotherapeutics is a biotechnology company focused on the emerging field of regenerative medicine. Our core technologies center on stem cells capable of becoming all of the cell types in the human body, a property called pluripotency. We plan to develop therapies based on pluripotent stem cells to treat diseases or injuries in a variety of medical fields, with an initial focus on the therapeutic applications of oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (AST-OPC1) and antigen-presenting dendritic cells (AST-VAC1 and AST-VAC2) for the fields of neurology and oncology respectively. AST-OPC1 was tested for treatment of spinal cord injury in the worlds first Phase 1 clinical trial using human embryonic stem cell-derived cells. We plan to seek FDA clearance to reinitiate clinical testing of AST-OPC1 in spinal cord injury this year, and are also evaluating its function in nonclinical models of multiple sclerosis and stroke. AST-VAC1 and AST-VAC2 are dendritic cell-based vaccines designed to immunize cancer patients against telomerase, a protein abnormally expressed in over 95% of human cancer types. AST-VAC2 differs from AST-VAC1 in that the dendritic cells presenting telomerase to the immune system are produced from human embryonic stem cells instead of being derived from human blood.

In October of 2013, Asterias acquired the cell therapy assets of Geron Corporation. These assets included INDs for the clinical stage AST-OPC1 and AST-VAC1 programs, banks of cGMP-manufactured AST-OPC1 drug product, cGMP master and working cell banks of human embryonic stem cells, over 400 patents and patent applications filed worldwide including broad issued claims to fundamental platform technologies for the scalable growth of pluripotent stem cells and compositions of matter for several hESC-derived therapeutic cell types, research cell banks, customized reagents and equipment, and various assets relating to the AST-VAC2 program and preclinical programs in cardiology and orthopedics.

Asterias is a member of the BioTime family of companies.

Additional information about Asterias can be found at http://www.asteriasbiotherapeutics.com.

About BioTime

BioTime is a biotechnology company engaged in research and product development in the field of regenerative medicine. Regenerative medicine refers to therapies based on stem cell technology that are designed to rebuild cell and tissue function lost due to degenerative disease or injury. BioTimes focus is on pluripotent stem cell technology based on human embryonic stem (hES) cells and induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. hES and iPS cells provide a means of manufacturing every cell type in the human body and therefore show considerable promise for the development of a number of new therapeutic products. BioTimes therapeutic and research products include a wide array of proprietary PureStem progenitors, HyStem hydrogels, culture media, and differentiation kits. BioTime is developing Renevia (a HyStem product) as a biocompatible, implantable hyaluronan and collagen-based matrix for cell delivery in human clinical applications, and is planning to initiate a pivotal clinical trial around Renevia, in 2014. In addition, BioTime has developed Hextend, a blood plasma volume expander for use in surgery, emergency trauma treatment and other applications. Hextend is manufactured and distributed in the U.S. by Hospira, Inc. and in South Korea by CJ HealthCare Corporation, under exclusive licensing agreements.

BioTime is also developing stem cell and other products for research, therapeutic, and diagnostic use through its subsidiaries:

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BioTime Subsidiary Asterias Biotherapeutics Announces Investment by CEO

LONDON (CNN) Some birth defects in newborns could one day be a thing of the past due to new robotics technologies being developed to perform surgery on babies in the womb.

Spina bifida is one such disease, affecting approximately 1 in 2,500 newborns worldwide, where a lesion on the back leaves the spinal cord exposed in the womb, leading to severe disabilities, learning difficulties, and sometimes death.

The best option is to perform surgery to correct the problem before the baby is born but the complexities of such a procedure mean this currently only takes place in five countries worldwide. Most countries instead perform surgery after a child is born, but when the majority of damage has been done.

To reduce the risk involved in fetal surgery, scientists at University College London (UCL), and KU Leuven in Belgium are developing a miniscule robotic arm to enter the womb with minimum disruption to mother and baby. The robotics are targeting spina bifida but also lesser known conditions such as twin-twin transfusion syndrome, where blood passes unequally between twins who share a placenta, and fetal lower urinary tract obstruction, where babies are unable to urinate in the womb and their bladders become large and distended.

Surgery on fetuses has been effective in treating some conditions to date, but for spina bifida, the risks to mother and baby mean surgery is currently only performed in a handful of countries, where specialist teams exist.

Most birth defects can be prevented if we can intervene earlier, says Professor Sebastien Ourselin, from the UCL Center for Medical Image Computing, who is leading the new research project. But currently, surgical delivery systems are not available and operating on babies in the womb is reserved for just a handful of the most severe defects as risks are too high.

Ourselins team plans to develop a small three-armed robot, no more than 2 cm wide, to allow more surgeries to take place, as part of a $17 million project funded by the Wellcome Trust and Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.

The device will consist of a photoacoustic camera that provides 3D imaging of the fetus in real time, which will help guide two flexible arms to deliver gels or patches to seal the gap in the spine of babies with spina bifida. If successful, the arms will be developed with more dexterity and degrees of freedom to perform surgery themselves and treat further conditions such as congenital heart disease. They may even deliver stem cells as stem cell therapies progress. Once entry into the womb becomes safe, the potential is huge.

In countries where fetal surgery is currently performed, surgeons cut into the mothers womb before 26 weeks of pregnancy, but there are health risks, side effects to mothers and risks of pre-term labor.

Where surgery is available in Europe, people are reluctant and fearful of the side-effects, explains Dr. Jan Duprest, who is leading the work at KU Leuvin and has patients declining surgery quite regularly. Robotic surgery is becoming popular these days and we need to take advantage of that and improve not only the number of patients choosing surgery but also improve the freedom with which we can operate using these flexible probes.

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Researchers developing tiny robotic arm that could fix birth defects in the womb