Trio of Genome-Sequencing Studies Offers a Broader View of Lung Cancer
By Dr. Matthew Watson
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October 7th, 2012
"Junk" DNA Holds Clues to Common Diseases
By Dr. Matthew Watson
When the draft of the human genome was published in 2000, researchers thought that they had obtained the secret decoder ring for the human body. Armed with the code of 3 billion basepairs of As, Ts, Cs and Gs and the 21,000 protein-coding genes, they hoped to be able to find the genetic scaffolds of life --both in sickness and in health. [More]
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October 7th, 2012
Are Phage Viruses the Forgotten Cure for Superbugs? [Excerpt]
By Dr. Matthew Watson
Excerpted from The Forgotten Cure: The Past and Future of Phage Therapy , by Anna Kuchment . (Copernicus Books, 2011. Reprinted by permission of Springer Science+Business Media)
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October 7th, 2012
Researcher Alert: California Stem Cell Agency Tightening Budget Oversight on Grants
By Dr. Matthew Watson
Some of California's top stem cell
researchers are going to have to sharpen their spreadsheets if they
want to win money from the state's $3 billion stem cell agency.
scrutiny of the high-profile, big-ticket grant applications
that it will consider during the next several years. The effort may well extend to all grant programs. The move also makes
it clear to researchers that the CIRM staff is in the driver's seat
when it comes to budgeting on research projects.
president for research and development. She said,
“Increasing the importance of
budgetary review will encourage applicants to propose rigorous,
realistic and vetted budgets, and will further our mission to be good
stewards of taxpayer dollars. These additions will not significantly
increase the workload burden on GWG members (grant reviewers) and
explicitly acknowledge that program goals, scientific plans, accurate budgeting and prudent spending are inextricably linked.”
directors' Science Subcommittee next Monday and would alter the
closed-door grant review process in the following manner, according
to Feigal's memo.
• “To assist GWG review,
appropriate expertise on budget and financial matters (e.g., this
could be in the form of a specialist reviewer, or can also be
assigned to a GWG reviewer with the appropriate background and
expertise), will review applications for sound budgeting and provide
comments or questions to the GWG for consideration by the reviewers
before the reviewer’s final scores are entered.
• “If the financial/budgetary
matter potentially directly impacts on the design or feasibility of
conducting the project, the GWG may consider this issue in the
scoring; otherwise, budgetary and financial issues and questions will
not contribute to the scientific score.
• “As appropriate, review summaries
sent to the ICOC (the CIRM governing board) will identify scientific
as well as budget or other issues. To the extent endorsed by the
GWG, the review summaries will also identify potential resolution
should the ICOC approve a given award with budget issues.
• “CIRM officers should be provided
explicit discretion to consider the budget comments, as well as
budget or other issues. To the extent endorsed by the GWG, the
review summaries will also identify potential resolution should the
ICOC approve a given award with budget issues.”
CIRM staff has experienced push-back from recalcitrant researchers
when efforts have been made to bring costs under control. She noted that
the agency's staff examines a research project's budget during the
“prefunding” review that follows board approval. However, Feigal
said, at that stage, “It is often challenging to make substantive
changes to the budget, based on appropriateness of study activities
and costs, given the ICOC approval at a given budget amount.”
budgets prior to board approval. One grant review in a $200
million-plus round this summer, for example, declared that costs to
prepare regulation packages had “overlap” and were “excessive,”
along with costs dealing with manufacturing and per patient expenses.
That was for a high-scoring application by Antoni Ribas of UCLA, and
he was not alone.
of budgetary shortcomings in recent applications:,
• “Budget does not align with the
program deliverables and milestones. For example, the budget
includes activities not relevant to project objective(s) or that are
out of scope.
•”Budget does not contain adequate
expenses for known costs. For example, an applicant may budget
$100,000 for a GMP manufacturing run of a biologic in which it is
generally accepted knowledge that the actual expenses are typically
much greater.
•“Budget item significantly exceeds
a known cost or seems excessive without adequate justification. For
example, an applicant may propose a surgical expense of $100,000 per
patient for a procedure with Medicare reimbursement set at $15,000.
•“Cost allocations are not done
properly. For example, an applicant is developing the same
therapeutic candidate for 3 indications, and is applying for CIRM
funding for 1 of the 3, but is charging CIRM for the cost of the
entire manufacturing run.”
be used in disease team, early translational, strategic partnership
rounds, and any new rounds “as deemed appropriate.” Feigal said,
however, that “all applications for CIRM awards should be
carefully examined for budgetary appropriateness.”
well-advised move, albeit one that is not likely to find favor with
researchers accustomed to loose oversight. It moves budgetary review
to an earlier stage and gives the CIRM directors a chance to weigh in
on those matters prior to approval of grants, instead of creating a
sense of entitlement on the part of recipients that may pop up
following board approval of their applications. Indeed, the plan
makes such good sense that it raises the question why it was not in
place years ago.
excellent example of the type of information that clarifies issues
and helps CIRM directors make the best possible decisions. It
provides some history, good evidence for a change and an explanation
of benefits. Additionally, the memo is timely, having been posted on
the CIRM website sufficiently in advance of next week's meeting to give affected parties and others time to comment
and make constructive suggestions. The memo is also far superior to
the Power Point presentations that are often submitted to the board
minus any nuanced, written discussion of the issue at hand.
San Francisco but also has teleconference locations in Irvine (2), La
Jolla, Stanford, Pleasanton, Oakland and Los Angeles where the public
and researchers can participate. The specific addresses can be found on the agenda.
Source:Stem Cell Therapy
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October 7th, 2012
UCD’s Knoepfler’s ‘Somewhat Provocative Paper’ on iPS
By Dr. Matthew Watson
UC Davis researcher Paul Knoepfler is
the rare stem cell scientist who blogs about his work as well as
writing about issues in the field.
what he described as a “somewhat provocative paper” published by his lab in
“Stem Cells and Development.” He said the paper argued
that iPS cells “are very similar in some ways to cancer cells.”
technical details and background of the research. But at the end of
this item, Knoepfler wrote,
“So what does this mean in the big
picture?
“I believe that iPS cells and cancer
cells are, while not the same, close enough to be called siblings. As
such, the clinical use of iPS cells should wait for a lot more study.
Even if scientists do not use iPS cells themselves for transplants,
but instead use differentiated derivatives of iPS cells, the risk of
patients getting malignant cancers cannot be ignored.
“At the same time, the studies
suggest possible ways to make iPS cells safer and support the notion
of reprogramming cancer cells as an innovative new cancer therapy.
“Stay tuned in the next few days for
part 2 where I will discuss what this paper went through in terms of
review, etc. to get published. It wasn’t a popular story for some
folks.”
research, which was financed by the California stem cell agency and the NIH, was picked up by several online sites, including Redorbit,
Medicalexpress and geekosystem.
Source:Stem Cell Therapy
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October 7th, 2012
California initiative to test appetite for ‘genetically engineered’ food – CTV News
By Dr. Matthew Watson
 MiamiHerald.com | California initiative to test appetite for 'genetically engineered' food CTV News How about "produced with genetic engineering?" California voters will soon decide whether to require certain raw and processed foods to carry such a label. In a closely watched test of consumers' appetite for genetically modified foods, the special ... Genetically modified food debate muted in generally accepting science communityContra Costa Times Prop 37: California Soil Scientist Says Label Up!Huffington Post Proposition 37: In some circles, GMO stands for "God Moves Over"San Jose Mercury News ForUm -AllAfrica.com all 263 news articles » |
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October 7th, 2012
Healthy Mice Created From Skin Stem Cells In Lab
By raymumme
October 5, 2012
Lee Rannals for redOrbit.com Your Universe Online
Japanese scientists reported in the journal Science that they have created life using stem cells made from skin.
The skin cells were used to create eggs which were then fertilized to produce baby mice, who later had their own babies.
The technique has implications that may possibly help infertile couples have children, and maybe could even allow women to overcome menopause.
About one in 10 women of childbearing age face trouble becoming a parent, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Last year, the scientists at Kyoto University were able to make viable sperm from stem cells. In the more recent study, the team was able to perform a similar accomplishment with eggs.
The researchers used two sources, including those collected from an embryo and skin-like cells, that were reprogrammed into becoming stem cells.
After turning the stem cells into early versions of eggs, they rebuilt an ovary by surrounding the early eggs with other types of supporting cells normally found in an ovary.
They used IVF techniques to collect the eggs, fertilize them with sperm from a male mouse and implant the fertilized egg into a surrogate mother.
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October 6th, 2012
Walkthrough With Neuralstem
By Sykes24Tracey
10/5/2012 6:38 AM ET (RTTNews) - Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that attacks nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, leading to complete paralysis, and eventually, death. Also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, or ALS, is said to affect as many as 30,000 Americans, with 5,600 new cases being diagnosed each year.
Currently, there are two FDA-approved drugs to treat ALS namely, Sanofi-Aventis' (SNY:Quote) Riluzole, which prolongs life by 2-3 months, and Avanir Pharmaceuticals Inc.'s (AVNR:Quote) Nuedexta, which treats emotional instability that accompanies this disease.
Developing a neural stem cell therapy for ALS is Rockville, Maryland-based biotechnology company Neuralstem Inc. (CUR:Quote).
For readers who are new to Neuralstem, here's a brief overview of the company's pipeline and the upcoming events to watch out for...
The company is testing its cell product - NSI-566 human spinal cord stem cells, via transplantation technique, in the treatment of ALS symptoms. The phase I NSI-566 study was completed as recently as August of this year. This groundbreaking trial, the first to be approved by the FDA to test neural stem cells in patients with ALS, began in January 2010.
The trial was designed to enroll up to 18 patients, the last of which was treated in August of this year. The entire trial concludes six months after the final surgery.
The interim data on the NSI-566 ALS trial will be updated on October 8, 2012, according to the company.
NSI-566 will also be evaluated in treating motor deficits due to ischemic stroke. The company has received approval to commence a combined phase I/II ischemic stroke trial with NSI-566 in China, and it is expected to begin early next year.
The trial is designed to test up to 118 patients who have suffered an ischemic stroke with chronic residual motor disorder with NSI-566 cell line, 4-24 months post-stroke. The duration of the combined trial, including patient monitoring and data collection, is approximately two years.
Ischemic strokes, the most common type of stroke, occur as a result of an obstruction within a blood vessel supplying blood to the brain. After a stroke, many patients suffer from paralysis in arms and legs, which can be permanent.
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Walkthrough With Neuralstem
Stem Cell Transplant May Spur Heart Disease Risk: Study
By daniellenierenberg
WEDNESDAY, Oct. 3 (HealthDay News) -- People who undergo the transplantation of stem cells taken from bone marrow, circulating blood or umbilical cord blood are more likely to develop risk factors for heart disease, such as high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol, a new study contends.
Researchers from the American Society of Hematology noted that patients who were treated with chemotherapy or radiation before such a transplant -- called a "hematopoietic cell transplant," or HCT -- had a significantly higher risk for heart disease later in life.
"While we know that heart disease is a real concern for long-term HCT survivors, small sample sizes and a lack of long-term follow-up in previous studies have only allowed us to look at a small piece of the puzzle of how this chronic condition develops in these patients," the study's first author, Dr. Saro Armenian, medical director of the Pediatric Survivorship Clinic in the Childhood Cancer Survivorship Program at City of Hope in Duarte, Calif., said in a society news release.
"Our study sought to better determine the specific factors before and after transplant that can lead to heart disease in a large group of transplant recipients," Armenian explained.
In conducting the study, the researchers examined the medical records of nearly 1,900 hematopoietic cell transplant recipients to identify factors that could affect their development of risk factors for heart disease. The transplants occurred between 1995 and 2004, and the patients survived for at least one year after the treatment.
The investigators considered the patients' exposure to chemotherapy or radiation before the transplant, the type of hematopoietic cell transplant and whether they were treated for a serious transplant complication known as graft-versus-host disease.
Using the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, the researchers also projected heart disease risk factor rates for the general population.
The study found that high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol were more common among long-term survivors of the blood-forming stem cell transplants.
The risk for developing diabetes was 1.5 times higher for hematopoietic cell transplant survivors who underwent total body radiation. Their risk for high cholesterol was 1.4 times higher. The researchers noted this was true regardless of the type of blood-forming stem cell transplant the patient received.
Although it's unclear why total body radiation increased these patients' risk for diabetes and high cholesterol, previous studies have shown that abdominal radiation may contribute to insulin resistance and an increase in belly fat among cancer patients.
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October 5th, 2012
Skin cells may mend a broken heart: Research
By JoanneRUSSELL25
Scientists have for the first time succeeded in taking skin cells from patients with heart failure and transforming them into healthy, beating heart tissue that could one day be used to treat the condition. The researchers said there were still many years of testing and refining ahead. But the results meant they might eventually be able to reprogram patients cells to repair their own damaged hearts. We have shown that its possible to take skin cells from an elderly patient with advanced heart failure and end up with his own beating cells in a laboratory dish that are healthy and young the equivalent to the stage of his heart cells when he was just born, said Lior Gepstein from the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, who led the work. The researchers, whose study was published in the European Heart Journal on Wednesday, said clinical trials of the technique could begin within 10 years. Heart failure is a debilitating condition in which the heart is unable to pump enough blood around the body. It has become more prevalent in recent decades as advances medical science mean many more people survive heart attacks. At the moment, people with severe heart failure have to rely on mechanical devices or hope for a transplant. Researchers have been studying stem cells from various sources for more than a decade, hoping to capitalise on their ability to transform into a wide variety of other kinds of cell to treat a range of health conditions. There are two main forms of stem cells - embryonic stem cells, which are harvested from embryos, and reprogrammed human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), often originally from skin or blood. Gepsteins team took skin cells from two men with heart failure - aged 51 and 61 - and transformed them by adding three genes and then a small molecule called valproic acid to the cell nucleus. They found that the resulting hiPSCs were able to differentiate to become heart muscle cells, or cardiomyocytes, just as effectively as hiPSCs that had been developed from healthy, young volunteers who acted as controls for the study. The team was then able to make the cardiomyocytes develop into heart muscle tissue, which they grew in a laboratory dish together with existing cardiac tissue. Within 24 to 48 hours the two types of tissue were beating together, they said. In a final step of the study, the new tissue was transplanted into healthy rat hearts and the researchers found it began to establish connections with cells in the host tissue. We hope that hiPSCs derived cardiomyocytes will not be rejected following transplantation into the same patients from which they were derived, Gepstein said. Whether this will be the case or not is the focus of active investigation. Experts in stem cell and cardiac medicine who were not involved in Gepsteins work praised it but also said there was a lot to do before it had a chance of becoming an effective treatment. This is an interesting paper, but very early and its really important for patients that the promise of such a technique is not over-sold, said John Martin a professor of cardiovascular medicine at University College London. The chances of translation are slim and if it does work it would take around 15 years to come to clinic. Nicholas Mills, a consultant cardiologist at Edinburgh University said the technology needs to be refined before it could be used for patients with heart failure, but added: These findings are encouraging and take us a step closer to ... identifying an effective means of repairing the heart.
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Skin cells may mend a broken heart: Research
Stem cells: of mice and women?
By daniellenierenberg
And rightly so: stem-cell scientists have derived many types of cells from stem-cell precursors, but have in the past struggled with sex cells. The research by a team at Kyoto University provides a powerful model into mammalian development and infertility, but it is still a long way off from being used in human therapy.
Despite this fact, it did not stop the headlines in some of today's press screaming that infertile women could one day become pregnant by creating eggs from stem cells.
Evelyn Telfer, a reproductive biologist at the University of Edinburgh, told me this study has no clinical application to humans whatsoever because the tissue used in this study were all foetal and not adult cells.
Mitinori Saitou led a team using foetal mouse tissue from embryos or skin cells to create stem cells. Those stem cells were then genetically reprogrammed to become germ cells egg precursor cells.
These were then given a cocktail of "factors" to support their growth into mature eggs. The eggs were fertilised by IVF in the lab and then implanted into surrogate mice. Three baby mice were born and grew into fertile adults.
The fact that artificially manufactured eggs have gone on to produce healthy mice which are fertile is absolutely astounding and a great step forward for science. The results are published in the journal, Science.
But there are huge differences between human and mouse cells, not to mention the medical and ethical issues surrounding human ovarian tissue to culture cells.
Further clinical trials would be necessary using adult mouse cells first before we can start projecting that we can manufacture babies, and scientists need to learn so much more about how women form eggs.
So while this is major contribution to the field of reproductive biology, the study is not a ready-made cure for women with fertility problems.
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Stem cells: of mice and women?
Life created for first time from eggs made from skin cells
By LizaAVILA
London, October 5 (ANI): Using stem cells made from skin, a Japanese team has created healthy eggs that, once fertilised, grow into normal baby mice.
These babies later had their own babies, the BBC reported.
The team at Kyoto University used stem cells from two sources: those collected from an embryo and skin-like cells, which were reprogrammed, into becoming stem cells.
The first step was to turn the stem cells into early versions of eggs.
A "reconstituted ovary" was then built by surrounding the early eggs with other types of supporting cells that are normally found in an ovary. This was transplanted into female mice. Surrounding the eggs in this environment helped them to mature.
IVF techniques were used to collect the eggs, fertilise them with sperm from a male mouse and implant the fertilised egg into a surrogate mother.
"They develop to be healthy and fertile offspring," Dr Katsuhiko Hayashi, from Kyoto University, told the BBC.
Those babies then had babies of their own, whose "grandmother" was a cell in a laboratory dish.
If the same methods could be used in people then, it could help infertile couples have children and even allow women to overcome the menopause.
But experts say many scientific and ethical hurdles must be overcome before the technique could be adapted for people.
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October 5th, 2012
NeuroGeneration Recruits Top Scientist To Direct New Division of Biotherapeutics and Drug Discovery In La Jolla, CA
By Sykes24Tracey
LOS ANGELES and LA JOLLA, Calif., Oct. 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- A senior research neuroscientist from The Salk Institute,Mohamedi Kagalwala PhD, has been recruited to head NeuroGeneration's new laboratories in La Jolla, California. Dr. Kagalwala, an expert on neural stem cells, will become director of the new Division of Biotherapeutics and Drug Discovery.
"I am extremely pleased to lead NeuroGeneration's new Division and expand its technology of adult neural stem cells for Parkinson's disease. It will allow us to develop personalized iPS cell therapies for degenerative brain disorders," said Dr. Kagalwala. "In addition, by investigating intrinsic neurogenesis and brain repair mechanisms, our team will be able to modify discrete molecular mechanisms during aging and neurodegenerative changes. We will then be in a better position to influence the environment, either with drugs or cellular therapies, to prevent the progression of disease and facilitate brain repair."
This new Division will complement the neural stem cell therapy studies for Parkinson's disease and other Atypical Parkinsonism led by Dr. Michel Levesque, NeuroGeneration's scientific founder.
Within the new facility providing core state of the art technologies, NeuroGeneration will expand its bioinformatic platforms to include personalized neurogenomic, analysis for drug target discovery for aging, Parkinson's disease, Stroke, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease, Multiple Sclerosis, Epilepsy, Depression and Schizophrenia.
ABOUT NEUROGENERATION:
NeuroGeneration is a life science company designing new cellular therapies and biological modulators for the prevention and treatment of neurodegenerative disorders. The company has completed a Phase I clinical trial for Parkinson's disease using adult-derived autologous neural stem cells. It intends to complete a Phase II study for the treatment of Parkinson's disease as soon as it receives final approval from the FDA. NeuroGeneration's Division of Biotherapeutics and Drug Discovery offers molecular products using its drug discovery platforms to target neuroprotective and endogenous repair mechanisms.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
NeuroGeneration Laboratories Division of Biotherapeutics and Drug Discovery 3210 Merryfield Row San Diego, CA92121
Patricia Eastman NeuroGeneration,Inc 8670 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 201 Los Angeles, CA 90211 USA Tel.:1-310-659-3880 Email: info@neurogeneration.com http://www.neurogeneration.com
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NeuroGeneration Recruits Top Scientist To Direct New Division of Biotherapeutics and Drug Discovery In La Jolla, CA
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October 5th, 2012
Multiple miRNA Markers Associated with Angiogenesis and Tissue Injury Repair Expressed in Cytori’s Cell Therapy
By Dr. Matthew Watson
SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Cytori Therapeutics (CYTX) announced that three oral presentations related to its cell therapy are being presented today at the 10th annual International Federation for Adipose Therapeutics and Sciences meeting. The findings provide insights into the mechanisms-of-action for Cytoris cell therapy. One study identified high levels of micro-RNA (miRNA) markers in human tissue thought to play a role in the repair of tissue injury resulting from ischemia, or lack of blood flow. Two additional characterization and comparative analysis studies on human tissue reaffirmed cellular characteristics of Cytoris cell therapy and distinguished the safety, viability and cell make-up as compared to cell outputs derived from alternate approaches.
Results from all three studies have important implications for how the cells repair injured tissue and on the safety and viability of cell-based treatments derived from adipose tissue, said John Fraser, Ph.D., Chief Scientist of Cytori Therapeutics. Mechanisms identified in our miRNA analysis are consistent with our prior clinical and preclinical data, which suggest these mechanisms include angiogenesis, immune-modulation, and remodeling and wound repair. The miRNA study provides baseline data, which we can apply to our U.S. ATHENA clinical trial in refractory heart failure patients and other activities including our recently announced contract with BARDA for thermal burns.
In one study, miRNA profiles were assessed in adipose-derived stem and regenerative cells (ADRCs) derived from human tissue samples. The purpose was to determine which miRNA markers are expressed, miRNA variability from patient to patient, cellular functions of miRNA, and to establish a baseline miRNA population on healthy patients to compare against patients with a specific disease. Specifically, miRNA markers associated with angiogenesis, tissue remodeling and wound repair, and modulation of the immune response were found to be highly represented in ADRCs.
Our two additional characterization and comparative analysis studies evaluated alternate processing techniques and reaffirmed our proprietary enzyme-based process using Celution is the clear gold standard, added Dr. Fraser. If the composition of a cell population extracted from adipose tissue by an alternative process is not equivalent to Cytoris ADRC population, one cannot claim equivalence to ADRCs in terms of safety or efficacy in preclinical or clinical outcomes.
The characterization and comparative analysis studies reaffirmed the high cell yield and viability as well as the heterogeneity in Cytoris cell therapy approach. Cytoris cells are derived with a proprietary formulation of clinical grade enzymes which break up the connective tissue and which are removed at the end of the process. Cytoris cell mixture includes adipose-derived stem cells, based on the measure of colony forming units, and a high yield of CD34+ cells. By contrast, data in these studies showed that alternate approaches such as ultrasound or emulsification, contained little to no adipose-derived stem cells, a high concentration of red and white blood cells, and did not meet the key criteria for safe clinical use.
About Cytori
Cytori Therapeutics, Inc. is developing cell therapies based on autologous adipose-derived regenerative cells (ADRCs) to treat cardiovascular disease and repair soft tissue defects. Our scientific data suggest ADRCs improve blood flow, moderate the immune response and keep tissue at risk of dying alive. As a result, we believe these cells can be applied across multiple "ischemic" conditions. These therapies are made available to the physician and patient at the point-of-care by Cytori's proprietary technologies and products, including the Celution system product family. http://www.cytori.com
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes forward-looking statements regarding events, trends and business prospects, which may affect our future operating results and financial position. Such statements including our ability to apply this data to our ATHENA study and other projects are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results and financial position to differ materially. Some of these risks and uncertainties include our history of operating losses, the need for further financing, inherent risk and uncertainty in the protection of intellectual property rights, regulatory uncertainties regarding the collection and results of, clinical data, dependence on third party performance, and other risks and uncertainties described under the "Risk Factors" in Cytori's Securities and Exchange Commission Filings, including its annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2011. Cytori assumes no responsibility to update or revise any forward-looking statements contained in this press release to reflect events, trends or circumstances after the date of this press release.
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Multiple miRNA Markers Associated with Angiogenesis and Tissue Injury Repair Expressed in Cytori’s Cell Therapy
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October 5th, 2012
Fertility hope in stem cell eggs
By daniellenierenberg
Hopes of a cure for infertility in humans were raised Friday after Japanese stem cell researchers announced they had created viable eggs using normal cells from adult mice.
The breakthrough raises the possibility that women who are unable to produce eggs naturally could have them created in a test tube from their own cells and then planted back into their body.
A team at Kyoto University harvested stem cells from mice and altered a number of genes to create cells very similar to the primordial germ cells that generate sperm in men and oocytes -- or eggs -- in women.
They then nurtured these with cells that would become ovaries and transplanted the mixture into living mice, where the cells matured into fully-grown oocytes.
They extracted the matured oocytes, fertilised them in vitro -- in a test tube -- and implanted them into surrogate mother mice.
The resulting mice pups were born healthy and were even able to reproduce once they matured.
Writing in the US journal Science, which published the findings, research leader professor Michinori Saito said the work provided a promising basis for hope in reproductive medicine.
"Our system serves as a robust foundation to investigate and further reconstitute female germline development in vitro, not only in mice, but also in other mammals, including humans," he said.
Saito cautioned that this was not a ready-made cure for people with fertility problems, adding that a lot of work remained.
"This achievement is expected to help us understand further the egg-producing mechanism and contribute to clarifying the causes of infertility," he told reporters.
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October 5th, 2012
Japan team offers fertility hope with stem cell eggs
By raymumme
Japanese stem cell scientists raised hopes of a cure for infertility in humans Friday when they announced they had created viable eggs using normal cells from adult mice.
The breakthrough raises the possibility that women who are unable to produce eggs naturally could have them created in a test tube from their own cells and then implanted in their body.
A team at Kyoto University harvested stem cells from mice and altered a number of genes to create cells very similar to the primordial germ cells that generate sperm in men and oocytes -- or eggs -- in women.
They then nurtured these with cells that would become ovaries and transplanted the mixture into living mice, where the cells matured into fully-grown oocytes.
They extracted the matured oocytes, fertilised them in vitro -- in a test tube -- and implanted them into surrogate mother mice.
The resulting mice pups were born healthy and were even able to reproduce once they matured.
Researchers said the findings, published in the US journal Science, provided a promising basis for hope in reproductive medicine.
"This achievement is expected to help us understand further the egg-producing mechanism and contribute to clarifying the causes of infertility," professor Michinori Saito told reporters ahead of publication.
"We intend to continue this research with monkeys and humans," he said.
But Saito cautioned that this was not a ready-made cure for people with fertility problems, adding that a lot of work remained.
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October 5th, 2012
Robin Roberts says her prayers have been answered as she recovers from bone marrow transplant
By LizaAVILA
By Daily Mail Reporter
PUBLISHED: 14:58 EST, 4 October 2012 | UPDATED: 16:07 EST, 4 October 2012
Good Morning America co-anchor Robin Roberts has revealed that her bone marrow transplant, which she underwent two weeks ago, appears to have been successful.
The procedure, which saw donor stem cells from her sister Sally Ann injected into her body, took just five minutes, and according to the 51-year-old, who wrote fans an update from her hospital in New York City this morning, her sister's cells 'feel right at home' in her body.
'My blood counts are GREAT,' she wrote on herGMA blog, after being hospitalized or 25 days now. 'It's an answer to so many prayers'.
Scroll down for video
Pulling through: Robin Roberts, 51, said her friends near and far (pictured here with Sam and Josh yesterday) have been lifting her spirits, she says
Ms Roberts, who was diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndrome, or MDS, earlier this year - a disease which attacks blood cells and bone - added: 'My doctors and rock star nurses are very pleased with my progress and I could not be more thankful for the excellent care I am receiving.
'I have had some extremely painful days and its still difficult for me to eat because of all the chemo. [But] I continue to learn so much on this journey, especially when it comes to true friendship and love.
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Robin Roberts says her prayers have been answered as she recovers from bone marrow transplant
Bone Marrow Stem Cells
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October 5th, 2012
Eggs created from stem cells in fertility breakthrough
By JoanneRUSSELL25
Professor Robert Norman, Professor of Reproductive Medicine at the University of Adelaide in Australia, said: "While this is a major contribution to knowledge, application to humans is still a long way off but for the first time the goal appears to be in sight.
In the new study, the scientists transformed skin cells into personalised stem cells, which were then fertilised via IVF and ultimately resulted in three fertile baby mice.
Safety concerns must be addressed, particularly into the long-term health of the resulting offspring, before researchers come any closer to determining whether the treatment could be viable in humans.
The researchers wrote in the latest online issue of the journal Science: "Our system serves as a robust foundation to investigate and further reconstitute female germ line development in vitro (in the laboratory), not only in mice, but also in other mammals, including humans."
Dr Allan Pacey, senior lecturer in reproduction and developmental medicine at the University of Sheffield, said: "What is remarkable about this work is the fact that, although the process is still quite inefficient, the offspring appeared healthy and were themselves fertile as adults.
"This is a great step forward, but I would urge caution as this is a laboratory study and we are still quite a long way from clinical trials taking place in humans."
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Eggs created from stem cells in fertility breakthrough
Skin Stem Cells
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October 5th, 2012
Lab-Made Mouse Eggs Raise Fertility Options
By JoanneRUSSELL25
Eggs capable of being fertilised and making babies can be created in the laboratory from skin cells, a study has shown.
Scientists successfully produced three fertile baby mice using the technique, which involves transforming ordinary skin cells into personalised stem cells.
The same Japanese team created viable mouse sperm from embryonic stem cells earlier this year.
Together both advances greatly increase the likelihood of radical and controversial future treatments for restoring fertility.
It could mean creating sperm for men whose fertility has been wiped out by cancer therapy, or reversing the menopause in women long after they have used up their natural supply of eggs.
However, many questions about safety and ethics will have to be answered first.
In August, scientists from Kyoto University in Japan announced that they had created sperm cells from mouse embryo stem cells.
Injected into mouse eggs, the sperm produced embryos which developed into healthy baby mice.
The same team, led by Dr Katsuhiko Hayashi, carried out the latest research which focused on eggs rather than sperm.
The scientists mirrored their earlier achievement by transforming stem cells from mouse embryos into eggs which could be fertilised to produce offspring.
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Lab-Made Mouse Eggs Raise Fertility Options
Eggs can be created from skin cells
By raymumme
Eggs capable of being fertilised and making babies can be created in the laboratory from skin cells, a study has shown.
Scientists successfully produced three fertile baby mice using the technique, which involves transforming ordinary skin cells into personalised stem cells.
The same Japanese team created viable mouse sperm from embryonic stem cells earlier this year.
Together, both advances greatly increase the likelihood of radical and controversial future treatments for restoring fertility. It could mean creating sperm for men whose fertility has been wiped out by cancer therapy or reversing the menopause in women long after they have used up their natural supply of eggs.
In August, scientists from Kyoto University in Japan announced that they had created sperm cells from mouse embryo stem cells. Injected into mouse eggs, the sperm produced embryos which developed into healthy baby mice.
The same team, led by Dr Katsuhiko Hayashi, carried out the latest research which focused on eggs rather than sperm. The scientists mirrored their earlier achievement by transforming stem cells from mouse embryos into eggs which could be fertilised to produce offspring. But they also took a further step by obtaining mouse pups from eggs derived from ordinary skin cells.
The researchers wrote in the latest online issue of the journal Science: "Our system serves as a robust foundation to investigate and further reconstitute female germline development in vitro (in the laboratory), not only in mice but also in other mammals, including humans."
The "germline" consists of genetic material carried in reproductive cells that can be passed onto future generations.
Dr Allan Pacey, senior lecturer in reproduction and developmental medicine at the University of Sheffield, said: "This is a very technical piece of work which pushes much further the science of how eggs are generated and how we might one day be able to routinely stimulate the new production of eggs for women who are infertile.
"What is remarkable about this work is the fact that, although the process is still quite inefficient, the offspring appeared healthy and were themselves fertile as adults. This is a great step forward but I would urge caution as this is a laboratory study and we are still quite a long way from clinical trials taking place in humans."
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Eggs can be created from skin cells