Category Archives: Arizona Stem Cells

Researchadmin2014-07-31T15:58:00+00:00

The Arizona Pain Stem Cell Institute is conducting multiple research studies assessing the efficacy of certain treatments and subsidizing the costs of treatments for patients. These research studies include:

Patients suffering from moderate to severe (5 out of 10) chronic low back pain for at least three months caused by degeneration of facet joint tissues will receive a single injection of AmnioGenic Flow TherapyTM. Patients pain, daily functioning, and medication usage will be assessed before treatment, during and after treatment.

Patients suffering from moderate to severe (5 out of 10) chronic pain of an upper extremity joint (e.g., shoulder) or lower extremity joint (e.g., knee) for at least three months caused by degeneration of SI or facet joint tissues will receive a single injection of AmnioGenic Flow TherapyTM. Patients pain, daily functioning, and medication usage will be assessed before treatment, during and after treatment.

Patients suffering from moderate to severe (5 out of 10) chronic pain of the lower back (SI or facet), upper extremities, or lower extremities for at least three months caused by degeneration will receive a single injection of autologous stem cells derived from bone marrow concentrate. Patients pain, daily functioning, and medication usage will be assessed before treatment, during and after treatment.

There are different causes of low back pain, but for some patients the cause is the degeneration of one or more discs of the spine in the lower back, known as degenerative disc disease. Intervertebral discs separate each of the bones (i.e., vertebrae) of the spine. When they become degenerated, the result is chronic pain and decreased function. The bodys ability to heal discs on its own is very limited and this type of pain can be difficult to treat. Many doctors are hopeful that injections of stem cells into degenerated discs have the potential to heal the discs and thus alleviate low back pain and restore function.

We are proud to be one of 15 sites taking part in a groundbreaking clinical trial testing injections of mesenchymal stem cell injections for degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine. The sponsor of this trial, Mesoblast, obtains stem cells from the bone marrow of healthy adult donors. One hundred patients were recruited in this trial and received either an injection of stem cells or a control injection. Changes in their pain and disc structure continue to be monitored for three years after their injection. Recruitment for this phase II study has closed, but Mesoblast is planning a subsequent phase III trial also testing stem cell injections for degenerative disc disease.

See the original post:
Research | Arizona Pain Stem Cell Institute - Scottsdale ...

Cerebral palsy (CP) is an encompassing group of non-progressive non-contagious motor conditions that cause physical disability in human development, mainly in the various areas of body movement.

Cerebral palsys nature as an umbrella term means it is defined mostly via several different subtypes, especiallyspastic, and also mixtures of those subtypes.

Cerebral palsy is caused by damage to the motor control centers of the developing brain and can occur duringpregnancy, duringchildbirthor after birth up to about age three.Resulting limits in movement and posture cause activity limitation and are often accompanied by disturbances of sensation,depth perceptionand other sight-based perceptual problems, communication ability, impairments can also be found incognition; andepilepsyis found in 1/3. CP, no matter what the type, is often accompanied by secondary musculoskeletal problems that arise as a result of the underlying etiology.

Of the many types and subtypes of CP, none of them has a knowncure. Usually, medical intervention is limited to the treatment and prevention of complications arising from CPs effects.

Cerebral Palsy is divided into four major classifications to describe different movement impairments.

1. Spastic cerebral palsy is the most common type of overall cerebral palsy, occurring in 70% to 80% of all cases. People with this type of CP are hypertonic and have what is essentially a neuromuscular mobility impairment (rather than hypotonia or paralysis) stemming from an upper motor neuron lesion in the brain as well as the corticospinal tract or the motor cortex, this damage impairs the ability of some nerve receptors in the spine to properly receive gamma amino butyric acid, leading to hypertonia in the muscles signaled by those damaged nerves.

2. Ataxic type: These forms are less common types of cerebral palsy, occurring in less than 10% of all cases. Motor skills such as writing, typing, or using scissors might be affected, as well as balance, especially while walking. It is common for individuals to have difficulty with visual and/or auditory processing.

3. Athetoid or dyskinetic cerebral palsy is mixed muscle tone. People with athetoid CP have trouble holding themselves in an upright, steady position for sitting, standing or walking, and often show involuntary motions. It occurs in 10% to 20% of all cases

4. Hypotonia / hypotonic CP, people with hypotonic CP have musculature that is limp, and can move only minimally or not at all. It is the least common type of cerebral palsy.

See more here:
Stem Cells Cerebral Palsy

Welcome to the webpage for The Arizona Stem Cell Center.

We are the first and original facility offering autologous stem cell transplants derived from adipose tissue in Arizona.

Our unique and innovative process allows us to extract several million stem cells from a single fat biopsy. Our extraction technique involves minimal handling of the cells and same day transplantation. Using a patient's own tissue as the source for cells minimizes rejection of the transplanted tissues, potentially maximizing the effectiveness of the transplant.

Here at Total Wellness/AZ Stem Cell Center, we have been using the technique of PRP (Platelet Rich Plasma) for the past decade for musculoskeletal injuries, autoimmune conditions like Lupus and Multiple Sclerosis, degenerative conditions like osteoarthritis, Parkinson's Syndrome and ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) and chronic viral conditions (including Epstein-Barr, Cytomegalovirus and Herpes viruses). This is an incredibly versatile therapy that has its roots in the eclectic European medical armamentarium of the 1930's.

Platelet rich plasma can be employed as a matrix graft, often referred to as an autologous tissue graft. This platelet-rich plasma (PRP) matrix is defined as a "tissue graft incorporating autologous growth factors and/or autologous undifferentiated cells in a cellular matrix where design depends on the receptor site and tissue of regeneration." (Crane D, Everts PAM. Practical Pain Management. 2008; January/February: 12- 26) 2008). We enrich the autologous tissue graft with hyaluronic acid for stem cell transplants.

The hypothesized reason why PRP with hyaluronic acid is so useful in autologous tissue grafts with stem cells is that platelets, a normal blood cell that aids in clotting, contain multiple growth factors that stimulate tissue growth. In particular, PRP stimulates the growth of collagen; the main component of connective tissue such as tendons and cartilage. These growth factors include transforming growth factor-? (TGF-B), fibroblast growth factor, platelet-derived growth factor, epidermal growth factor, connective tissue growth factor, and vascular endothelial growth factor.

These growth factors normally recruit undifferentiated stem cells to the site of injury and stimulate new tissue growth. Another constituent of platelets, stromal cell derived factor I alpha allows the newly recruited cells to adhere to the area. Hyaluronic acid is a nutritionally supportive polysaccharide substrate for stem cells that is found abundantly in embryonic tissue. When stem cells are harvested from the patient's own tissues, PRP helps to activate the stem cells to actively become a desired tissue line and Hyaluronic Acid helps support.

In addition, when used with stem cells harvested from the patient's own tissue, PRP messages the stem cells to multiply quickly. This inflammatory response is a major driver of appropriate healing response.

An important consideration is that PRP needs to be prepared in a way to ensure a maximal amount of platelets along with a high concentration of growth factors. Obviously, the more growth factors that can be delivered to the site of injury, the more likely tissue healing takes place. We have found that creating a matrix of Hyaluronic acid (a base connective tissue material) with the PRP and the addition of other growth factors can tremendously expedite the healing process. We are the only clinic in the world to integrate stem cell transplantation with PRP.

Neither Statements, nor products on this site, have been evaluated nor approved by the FDA. Total Wellness offers autologous stem cell treatments. These are not approved treatments, drugs, new drugs, or investigational drugs. We do not manufacture products. If you have concern with a treatment or product that we perform or produce, and think we may be violating any USA law, please contact us immediately, so that our legal team can investigate the matter or concern. All statements, opinions, and advice provided by this website, via wire, or by educational seminars, is provided for educational information only. We do not diagnose nor treat via this website or phone. We offer the above therapies via a doctor/patient established relationship which requires direct contact with the physician. Again, visitors should be aware that we are not claiming that any applications, or potential applications using these autologous treatments, are approved by the FDA, or are even effective. We do not claim that these treatments work for any listed nor unlisted condition, intended or implied.

Here is the original post:
Main Navigation

PRESS RELEASE;April 1, 2015ST. PAUL, MN, and WASHINGTON, DC, andTUCSON, AZ

Press release available atPR Web: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2015/04/prweb12627399.htm.

For expectant parents, there are thousands of decisions to make in a short amount of time, including clothes, cribs, names, birthing methods, medical procedures, and more. It can be overwhelming, especially given the short-time frame involved. In addition to these decisions, there is an often overlooked decision: what to do with the extremely valuable stem and progenitor cells contained within the umbilical cord of the expected newborn? There are three options, which are to publicly donate, to privately store, or to discard the umbilical cord as medical waste. Two of those decisions require research and action on behalf of the parents, while the third is what happens when sufficient awareness and education has not been provided to allow parents to make an informed, educated decision. Continue reading Save the Cord Foundation and BioInformant Join Forces in Global Effort to Increase Cord Blood Banking Awareness

WideCells is a new and innovative stem cell technology and regenerative medicine company. It was founded by the CEO Joo Andrade and the CFO Lopes Gil. Dr Peter Hollands later joined as CSO bringing experience from other UK and international stem cell banks, clinical transplantation, teaching and research.

The first operations for WideCells were in Portugal, following on to the acquisition of the Spanish company Nacersalud to begin operations in Spain.

The continued success of operations in Portugal and Spain have led to the development of Continue reading WideCells Stem Cell Biotechnology and Regenerative Medicine in the 21st Century

Stem cellsare ushering in an age of regenerative medicine.

Theyare all over the news, becausetheywill transform the next 50 years of medicine in ways that are now inconceivable.

In coming decades, stem cellswill be reversing diseases ranging from Alzheimers to autism, re-growing organs and tissues, and potentially allowing the first humans to reach the age of 200.

Already in 2015, here are three science fictions that have become science facts Continue reading The 8 Best Stem Cell Quotes of 2015

Read the rest here:
BIOINFORMANT, Your Global Leader in Stem Cell Market Data

In-Depth

We understand how overwhelming it can be to learn that your child needs a stem cell transplant. Right now, you probably have a lot of questions. What is it? What do we do next?

Weve tried to provide some answers to those questions in the following pages, and our experts can explain your childs options fully when you meet with us.

What is bone marrow?

Bone marrow is a soft, spongy tissue found inside the bones. The bone marrow in the hips, breastbone, spine, ribs, and skull contain cells that produce about 95 percent of the body's blood cells.

The three main types of blood cells produced in the bone marrow are:

What are stem cells?

Stem cells are immature cells that are able to produce other blood cells that mature and function as needed. Every type of blood cell in the bone marrow begins as a stem cell.

Stem cells are the most important cells in a bone marrow transplant. Once transplanted, they move into your childs bones and begin to produce the blood cells that are needed by her body.

Hematopoietic stem cells can form any type of blood cell including red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets. They are different from pluripotent stem cells, which can form any type of cell. Stem cell, or bone marrow, transplantation uses hematopoietic stem cells to treat cancers and certain genetic disorders.

View original post here:
Pediatric Stem Cell Transplantation | Boston Children's ...

The numbness entered Kathleen Jaynes' body 19 years ago, and during the intervening years the multiple sclerosis symptom has spread from her toes to her chest. Nothing really changes the numbness, or helps. Which is why, despite her sister's misgivings and her own lingering questions, Jaynes paid $20,000 to receive an experimental stem cell procedure in India through Regenetek, a company led by a now-discredited Winnipeg researcher who fudged his credentials and misled patients.

It's not like there are many other sources of hope out there for patients such as Jaynes, 59, who lives in southeast Arizona.

"You're a no-option patient," Jaynes said. "You have no other options. I justified it in every way that I could, despite my family saying this guy is not for real. Unless you're in my numb body, you can't know how desperate you feel to not feel that way."

In exchange for that money, Jaynes and roughly 70 other patients received what one of Canada's top MS researchers calls an "impossible" promise.

In December, Dr. Mark Freedman looked over Regenetek's study protocols, after a reporter drew his attention to the company's claims. Freedman, who is the director of Ottawa Hospital's MS research unit, has plenty of experience with stem cell treatments for the disease: In 2000, he and bone marrow transplant physician Dr. Harold Atkins launched a study to examine whether transplanting stem cells from a patient's own bone marrow could halt the disease.

The study was closely watched, the results tremendously encouraging. The 24 patients in the study -- all of whom had a rapidly advancing form of MS -- showed improvement. Freedman and Atkins also treated about a dozen more patients outside of the study, who have shown the same positive results. The researchers have submitted the study's results for publication in a scientific journal, and are preparing to announce new research sites later this month.

But the procedure Regenetek owner Doug Broeska was touting wasn't anything like the technique that showed such promise in Freedman and Atkins' study.

For instance, Jaynes and other Regenetek patients the Free Press spoke to described having stem cells extracted, expanded and implanted within days of their arrival in Pune, India.

But the premise that patients could receive benefits from stem cells taken from bone marrow extracted just four days earlier -- and which had to make a 300-kilometre round-trip journey between Pune and a lab in Mumbai at that time -- is "impossible," Freedman said.

Culturing and expanding enough of those kind of stem cells is a process that takes "weeks," Freedman said, adding bluntly: "They're not getting anything."

View post:
The 'impossible' dream: City firm's MS claims not medically possible, says top researcher

TUCSON Dr. Zain Khalpey stands next to a ghostly white lung pumping rhythmically on the table next to him. Thats pretty damn good, actually, Khalpey says as he gazes at the data recorded by the lungs ventilator.

The ventilator indicates that the pig lung is inflating and deflating like a normal lung. Experiments such as this bring research a step closer to the operating room.

Khalpey, an associate professor of surgery at the University of Arizona, focuses his research on making more organs available to patients who need a transplant. Every day, 18 people on organ transplant lists die, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

In Arizona patients have to wait two to three years for a lung transplant, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine. This waiting period is emotionally and financially draining for patients.

Khalpey is trying to shrink the wait time. He is taking damaged organs and refurbishing them so they end up in a needy patients body. Other organs too damaged to be refurbished are stripped of their cells and used to grow new organs with the patients stem cells.

In the future, donor organs may not even be needed. Khalpey is working on hybrid organs that are 3-D printed and then seeded with the patients stem cells.

From London

to Tucson

Khalpeys passion for transplant surgery started on a rainy day in 1990s London. A 16-year-old boy lay on the operating table about to undergo a heart-and-lung transplant. Cystic fibrosis caused his lungs to become a breeding ground for infection that whittled away his ability to breathe.

A team of surgeons replaced the boys lungs as well as his heart because he was more likely to survive with donor organs. The medical team rushed the boys viable heart to a second operating room, where it gave new life to another patient.

Read more from the original source:
Research looks to build organ stockpiles

History

During pregnancy, a fetus is surrounded a fluid, known as amniotic fluid, that serves to both protect the fetus and aid in its growth. Amniotic fluid has been used in medical treatments as far back as the 1930s.1

Doctors discovered that amniotic fluid was beneficial in treatments such as the healing of wounds. Over time, this treatment has been developed thanks to advancements in the ability to screen donors and amniotic fluid for safety, as well as the ability to safely preserve these tissues at very low temperatures until they are ready for use.

FlGraftTM Therapy is an Applied BiologicsTM tissue product obtained from healthy donors during planned caesarian births. Donors are carefully screened on the basis of medical history, blood tests and tests of communicable diseases. Amniotic tissues are then collected at birth without harm to the mother or baby. These tissues are screened for safety and preserved in a tissue bank until they are needed for treatment. Patients receiving FLOW TherapyTM undergo an injection derived from amniotic fluid into the body part being treated.

We are offering FlGraftTM Therapy at a subsidized rate through research studies. One study will assess the efficacy of this treatment in alleviating the pain caused by degeneration of joints in the lower back. Another study will measure the efficacy of FlGraftTM Therapy for treating degeneration of joints of the upper and lower extremities (e.g., shoulders, elbows, hips, knees). Patients qualifying for one of these studies will receive a substantial reduction in the treatment price, as Applied Biologics and the Arizona Pain Stem Cell Institute are subsidizing the price for the purpose of the study. Patients pain scores, activities of daily living, and medication usage will be assessed both before treatment and over the six months after treatment.

FlGraftTM Therapy uses tissues that have been thoroughly tested according to standards that exceed those required by regulatory agencies to insure their safety. Additionally, the immune privileged nature of amniotic fluid makes these tissues safe for injection. However, like any injection therapy, there are risks associated with the injection, including irritation or pain at the injection site or possibly infection. Discuss these with your health care provider prior to getting this procedure.

Because many patients painful conditions are adequately addressed by conservative treatments, we recommend that patients pursue this treatment only if they continue to experience moderate to extreme pain after trying conservative treatments such as rest, physical therapy and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (e.g., ibuprofen).

Doctors have had success with FlGraftTM Therapy in closing chronic wounds and healing damage to tissues such as muscles, tendons and joints. After receiving FlGraftTM Therapy, healing will take between several weeks and a few months to notice the results. Many patients get healing and pain relief after a single injection. However, based on an individual patients condition and symptoms and their doctors assessment, additional injections may be advised. Further, as with any treatment for pain, not every patient will have success with this treatment.

1. Shimberg M. The use of amniotic fluid concentrate in orthopaedic conditions. J Bone Joint Surg Am 1938;20:167-177.

2. Aagaard-Tillery KM, Silver R, Dalton J. Immunology of normal pregnancy. Semin Fetal Neonatal Med 2006 Oct;11(5):279-95.

View original post here:
FlGraft Therapy | Arizona Pain Stem Cell Institute

Dec 10, 2014 When study authors Bryce Carey (left) and Lydia Finley (right) exposed mouse embryonic stem cells to an important metabolite, those cells became more likely to renew themselves, appearing as pink colonies on the screen. That metabolite, alpha-ketoglutarate, is also known to be involved in regulating so-called epigenetic marks that control the expression of genes. This is one of the first demonstrations that a metabolite can influence the fate of stem cells. Credit: Zach Veilleux / The Rockefeller University

Stem cells in early embryos have unlimited potential; they can become any type of cell, and researchers hope to one day harness this rejuvenating power to heal disease and injury. To do so, they must, among other things, figure out how to reliably arrest stem cells in a Peter Pan-like state of indefinite youth and potential. It's clear the right environment can help accomplish this, acting as a sort of Neverland for stem cells. Only now are scientists beginning to understand how.

New collaborative research between scientists at Rockefeller University and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center offers an explanation: Stem cells can rewire their metabolism to enhance an erasure mechanism that helps them avoid committing to a specific fate; in turn, this improves stem cells' ability to renew themselves.

Experiments described today (December 10) in Nature link metabolism, chemical reactions that turn food into energy and cellular building materials, with changes to how genes are packaged, and, as a result, read. It turns out that by skewing their metabolism to favor a particular product, stem cells can keep their entire genome accessible and so maintain their ability to differentiate into any adult cell.

"All of the principal enzymes charged with modifying DNA as well as DNA-histone protein complexes called chromatin use the products of cellular metabolism to do so. But how specific alterations in metabolic pathways can impact gene expression programs during development and differentiation has remained a mystery," says lead researcher C. David Allis, Joy and Jack Fishman Professor and head of the Laboratory of Chromatin Biology and Epigenetics. "This collaborative effort with Craig Thompson's lab at Memorial Sloan Kettering reveals that the nutrients a stem cell uses, and how it uses them, can contribute to a cell's fate by changing the chromatin landscape and, as a result, influencing gene expression."

These changes are epigenetic, meaning they do not affect genes themselves, instead they alter how DNA is packaged, making it more or less accessible for expression. In this case, researchers were interested in a specific type of epigenetic change: chemical groups, known as methyl groups, that attach to chromatin. Generally, the addition of these methyl groups compacts and silences regions of the genome. To maintain their ability to give rise to any type of cell in the body, stem cells need all of their genome available, and so they must keep methylation in check.

Some epigenetic marks, such as methyl groups, are themselves products of metabolism - metabolites. What's more some other metabolites participate in the reactions that remove methylations, making genes available for expression. After joining the Allis Lab, postdoc Bryce Carey presented an idea that tied these concepts together: "What if in stem cells the changes to chromatin reflect a unique metabolism that helps to drive reactions that help to keep chromatin accessible? This connection would explain how embryonic stem cells are so uniquely poised to activate so much of their genomes," Carey says.

Mouse embryonic stem cells grown in a medium known as 2i are much better at renewing themselves than those grown in the traditional medium containing bovine serum, although researchers don't fully understand why. Carey and co-first author Lydia Finley, a postdoc in Thompson's metabolism-focused lab, compared the metabolism of cells grown in both media.

Carey and Finley first noticed that the 2i cells did not require glutamine, an amino acid most cells need to make the metabolite alpha-ketoglutarate, an important player in a series of metabolic reactions known as the citric acid cycle and a metabolite that had also been previously implicated in regulation of methylations on chromatin. Even without glutamine, however, the 2i cells managed to produce significant amounts of alpha-ketoglutarate.

To their surprise, 2i cells had rewired their metabolism to reduce the breakdown of alpha-ketoglutarate in the citric acid cycle, where an enzyme normally converts alpha-ketoglutarate to succinate to fuel cell growth. This resulted in increased alpha-ketoglutarate to fuel the reactions that erase methyl groups from chromatin.

Original post:
Discovery links shift in metabolism to stem cell renewal

This article was originally distributed via PRWeb. PRWeb, WorldNow and this Site make no warranties or representations in connection therewith.

SOURCE:

R3 Stem Cell is proud to welcome Dr. George Graf as a Featured Regenerative Medicine Doctor in the Los Angeles and Beverly Hills area. Dr. Graf is a first rate pain management doctor, who offers several types of stem cell procedures and platelet rich plasma therapy for all types of spinal conditions such as neck and back pain, arthritis, disc degeneration and more.

Beverly Hills, CA (PRWEB) December 11, 2014

R3 Stem Cell is proud to welcome Dr. George Graf as a Featured Regenerative Medicine Doctor in the Los Angeles and Beverly Hills area. Dr. Graf is a first rate pain management doctor, who offers several types of stem cell procedures and platelet rich plasma therapy for all types of spinal conditions such as neck and back pain, arthritis, disc degeneration and more. Those interested should call (844) GET-STEM for more information and scheduling.

R3 Stem Cell is a nationwide provider of regenerative medicine products and education for both doctors and patients. The company only works with the top doctors and practices in the field of stem cell therapy. Dr. Graf is Double Board Certified and is very highly regarded by his peers and patients.

The conditions Dr. Graf treats include degenerative disc disease, spinal arthritis, scoliosis, neuropathy, failed back surgery syndrome and more. Regenerative medicine offers the potential to not only bring pain relief, but also help repair and regenerate damaged tissue.

Along with Dr. Graf being a regenerative medicine expert in the LA and Beverly Hills area, R3 also works with Dr. Raj. Dr. Raj is a Double Board Certified orthopedic specialist, who offers regenerative medicine procedures for rotator cuffs, hip and knee arthritis, sports injuries and much more. Between Dr. Graf and Dr. Raj, the whole body is covered for treatments.

All of the treatment options are outpatient and very low risk. Platelet Rich Plasma Therapy involves a person's own blood, which is immediately processed and injected into the problem area. Bone marrow derived stem cell therapy involves an aspiration from one's iliac crest, with the material being processed to concentrate stem cells and then inject into the problem area. Additionally, amniotic stem cells are offered, with the fluid being obtained from a consenting donor undergoing a scheduled C-section. The fluid is processed at an FDA regulated lab and no fetal tissue is involved whatsoever.

To date, several small studies have shown excellent benefit with regenerative medicine procedures. This has been extremely encouraging, and allowed stem cell therapy to exponentially increase in popularity nationwide. R3 Stem Cell is at the forefront in regenerative medicine, teaming with the top doctors such as Drs. Raj and Graf to help patients achieve pain relief and avoid surgery.

Read the original here:
R3 Stem Cell Welcomes Beverly Hills Pain Specialists Dr ...