Category Archives: Indiana Stem Cells

Data shows that 64 percent of high school e-cigarette users now use mint or menthol flavors and this number is growing all the time," said Matthew Myers, president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. However others said Juul's decision to halt sales of flavors like manjo, crme, fruit and cucumber would hurt adult smokers. Meanwhile, the cases of the vaping-related lung illness continue to climb.

The New York Times:Juul Suspends Online Sales Of Flavored E-CigarettesJuul Labs announced on Thursday that it would temporarily halt online sales of flavored e-cigarettes like mango, products the company had already stopped distributing to retail stores as public outrage mounted over the soaring rate of teenage vaping. Facing multiple federal and state investigations into its marketing practices, Juul said it decided to discontinue the sales for now until the Food and Drug Administration had reviewed the device and flavor cartridges. But the suspension, which also includes crme, fruit and cucumber, does not extend to menthol or mint. (Kaplan, 10/17)

The Washington Post:E-Cigarette Giant Juul Suspends Online Sales Of Mango And Three Other FlavorsThe flavors mango, crme, fruit and cucumber, which have helped fuel Juuls popularity, have been available only on its website to people 21 and older since late last year. Three other flavors mint, menthol and tobacco will continue to be sold online and in retail outlets. The company said it is reviewing whether to suspend sales of mint and menthol flavors. The action comes ahead of expected action by the Trump administration against flavored e-cigarettes. Last month, President Trump announced the Food and Drug Administration would ban all flavored e-cigarettes except tobacco-flavored ones in an effort to stem the increase in youth vaping. The plan has not been issued yet. (McGinley, 10/17)

The Wall Street Journal:Juul Halts Online Sales Of Some Flavored E-CigarettesThe FDA, which regulates tobacco, has given e-cigarette manufacturers until May 2020 to submit for review any products they want to keep on the market after that date. If the agency implements its proposed ban on most vaping flavors, manufacturers can seek the FDAs authorization to renew selling sweet and menthol-flavored products. But first they must demonstrate that the products provide a net benefit to public health. (Maloney, 10/17)

ABC News:Juul Suspends Sale Of Sweet Flavors Amid Mysterious Vaping Deaths, Criticism Over Teen UseIn a statement, Juul's new CEO, K.C. Crosthwaite, said that the company's products are intended for adult consumers. "We must reset the vapor category by earning the trust of society and working cooperatively with regulators, policymakers, and stakeholders to combat underage use while providing an alternative to adult smokers," the statement said. (Schumaker, 10/17)

Bloomberg:Juul Suspends Sale Of Most E-Cigarette Flavors In U.S.Juul said the new sales restriction comes out of a review led by the new chief executive officer, K.C. Crosthwaite, who joined last month from tobacco giant Altria Group Inc. As part of that review, Juul said last month it would stop all U.S. advertising, refrain from supporting a proposition to voters in San Francisco that would reverse an e-cigarette ban and stop lobbying the government about legislation related to flavors. Michael Bloomberg, the founder and majority owner of Bloomberg LP, funds anti-vaping advocacy initiatives, including one to defeat the San Francisco ballot measure. (Huet and Armstrong, 10/17)

USA Today:Juul Suspends All US Sales Of Flavored E-CigarettesVaping watchdog Robert Jackler, a professor at Stanford University, said the latest move is "a step in the right direction." But, he added, the November 2018 discontinuation of Juul's flavored e-cigarette sales at stores led American teens to migrate to Juul's mint- and menthol-flavored nicotine pods. "If JUUL leadership is serious about containing the viral youth use of its product, it should be sold only in unsweetened tobacco flavor," Jackler said in an email. (Bomey, 10/17)

The Associated Press:Juul Halts Sales Of Fruit, Dessert Flavors For E-CigarettesStill, the company's latest step is unlikely to satisfy its critics. The flavors affected by Thursday's announcement mango, crme, fruit and cucumber account for less than 10% of Juul's sales. The flavors had only been sold through Juul's website, after the company pulled them from stores last November. (Perrone, 10/17)

NPR:Juul To Stop Selling Most Vape Flavors, Except Tobacco And MentholAt a time when 25% of high school seniors surveyed in the U.S. say they've vaped within the last 30 days, the company is also under pressure to limit marketing and advertising to youth. (Aubrey, 10/17)

Reuters:U.S. Ramps Up Testing In Search Vaping Illness Cause As Cases Near 1,500U.S. health officials on Thursday reported another 180 cases of vaping-related lung illnesses and announced plans to start testing aerosols produced by e-cigarettes and vaping products as they search for the source of the nationwide outbreak that has so far killed at least 33 people in 24 states. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also said it plans to start testing lung cells collected from people who became sick in the outbreak. (Steenhuysen, 10/17)

The Hill:Number Of Vaping-Related Lung Illnesses Nears 1,500The 33 deaths have occurred in 24 states, including three fatalities each in California, Indiana and Minnesota. (Hellmann, 10/17)

The Washington Post:Vaping-Linked Deaths, Illnesses Rise As Officials Expand Lab Testing, CDC SaysAnnouncing the latest increase in illnesses, the CDC reiterated its conclusion that products containing THC, the psychoactive component of marijuana, are a main culprit and should be avoided. About 78 percent of patients say they used vaping products containing THC, according to the CDC, and nearly a third of patients reported using only THC products. Ten percent said they vaped only nicotine, although doctors caution that people may be reluctant to admit to using marijuana. (Knowles, 10/17)

The Wall Street Journal:Vaping-Related Injury Cases Near 1,500, With 33 DeathsMany of the people who had vaped THC obtained their products from unregulated sources, leading some investigators to suspect that contaminants in illicit THC products are driving the illnesses. In its search for a cause, CDC said it is now testing lung-tissue samples from patients. The agency said it is figuring out how best to test blood, urine and other fluid samples that it has started to receive. (Abbott, 10/17)

Politico:E-Cig Industry Fractures Over Looming Laws As Big Tobacco Plays The Long GameThe Trump administrations effort to ban flavored e-cigarettes and place other restrictions on the industry threatens to put thousands of small vaping concerns out of business nationwide while the biggest tobacco companies in the world which already control the lions share of the vaping market could only grow bigger. The high bar anticipated in forthcoming FDA requirements for e-cigarettes to stay on the market, combined with the Trump White Houses push to ban flavors in the meantime, threaten to whittle the e-cigarette industry down to just a few big players. (Owermohle, 10/17)

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Juul Temporarily Halts Online Sales Of Flavored E-Cigarettes, But Critics Say That's Far From Enough - Kaiser Health News

INDIANAPOLIS--Getting a diagnosis of leukemia or sickle cell disease can mean months or years of treatment, and that doesn't necessarily work. Sometimes a bone marrow or stem cell transplant is the answer and can be a cure. But, sometimes donors are hard to find.

"In any given family each child has about a 30 percent chance of having a match within their family, especially if they have siblings. The likelihood of a match becomes higher, the more siblings you have," said Dr. Jodi Skiles, who is director of the pediatric stem cell program at Riley Children's Health.

But, when the siblings aren't a match, families have to turn to the world-wide stem cell donor registry.

"There's a stem cell registry. It's called 'Be the Match', and it really is a mechanism for volunteers to sign up to be a donor," said Skiles.

LINK: Be The Match website

Brittany Pittman's daughter was nine years old when she needed a donor.

"I got the phone call when I was at work on Valentine's Day 2017, saying that she tested positive for leukemia," she said. Pittman, of Greenwood, took her daughter to Riley the next day.

"I just remember coming home. Everybody's crying. I just asked 'em like what was wrong. They didn't answer," said Alayna Pittman, 12.

"She did some rounds of IV chemo. We were eventually told that her leukemia wasn't going away with just the IV chemo, that she needed a stem cell transplant," said Pittman. "All of our family members were tested and we were not a match for Alayna."

That's when they turned to the registry. After two weeks a match was found and testing on both the donor and Alayna began. Within a month she was ready for the transplant. Alayna was in the hospital for six weeks and had to have oral chemotherapy for two years. She is considered cured, an outcome Skiles said is typical for people who get stem cell transplants.

She said leukemia, lymphoma and Sickle Cell disease are some of the most common of 40 to 50 illnesses that can be treated with stem cell transplants.

"It's a really simple process. You just have to swab the inside of your cheek and give us your information so that when we have a patient that is in need, we can search the registry to see if you happen to be a match to that patient," said Skiles.

Though it's generally tougher for minorities to find a match, when you donate, it may not necessarily be to someone in Indiana.

"The match program is a national and global program. Signing up as a potential donor in Indiana means you could be donating cells for somebody anywhere in the world."

She said http://www.BetheMatch.org is the portal to find out about donating.

PHOTOS: Chris Davis/Emmis

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When You Need Stem Cells, You May Appreciate the Donor Registry - 93.1 WIBC Indianapolis

Medications that mitigate inflammation caused by a variety of diseases including rheumatic arthritis may also compromise a persons immune system, but a new approach points to a possible solution to this problem.

Researchers have discovered a mechanism that might alleviate inflammation by suppressing the migration of a type of white blood cells called neutrophils. The cells migrate within tissues in order to kill pathogens but may also cause excessive inflammation, resulting in tissue injury and other adverse effects.

The scientists identified a genetic molecule calledmiR-199, a type of microRNA, which reduces the migration of neutrophils, therefore potentially relieving inflammation without compromising the immune system.

This is important because various challenges lie in the balance of dampening detrimental inflammation while preserving immunity, said Qing Deng, an assistant professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Purdue University.

The researchers used a genetic-screening method to identify eight microRNAs that suppress neutrophilic migration, including miR-199. They found that miR-199 directly suppresses the action of an enzyme called cyclin-dependent kinase 2, or CDK2, in turn dampening the migration of neutrophils.

Although CDK2 is well known for its role in regulating a cells life cycle the process of a cell replicating its DNA and dividing to generate two cellsits link to neutrophil migration was previously unknown.

This work suggests miR-199 and CDK2 as new targets for treating inflammatory ailments and introduces an avenue of the function for CDK2 outside the cell cycle regulation, Deng said.

Findings are detailed in a paper appeared online this week in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Alan Y. Hsu, a doctoral student in Purdues Department of Biological Sciences, was the papers lead author. A complete listing of co-authors is available in the abstract.

Recently, microRNAs have been used in clinical trials to treat cancer and infection. They also are used as screening tools to identify the underlying mechanisms of diseases and cell behavior. However, the role of microRNAs in regulating neutrophil migration is largely unknown.

The absence of this knowledge potentially leads to missed opportunities in harnessing microRNAs and their targets in restraining neutrophilic inflammation, Deng said. Our research results expand the current understanding of neutrophil migration and suggest a novel strategy to manage neutrophilic inflammation.

The research was performed in zebrafish and also in human neutrophil-like cells.

Our results reveal previously unknown functions of miR-199 and CDK2 in regulating neutrophil migration and provide a new direction in alleviating systemic inflammation, Deng said.

The research has implications for diseases including rheumatic arthritis, diabetes, neurodegenerative diseases and cancer.

Findings showed miR-199 hinders neutrophil motility and directly targets CDK2. Although no previous studies have investigated the role of miR-199 in neutrophils, its role in suppressing inflammation and cell migration has been reported in cancer cells.

Here, we provide evidence that miR-199 is a suppressor of cell migration in white blood cells, expanding its role beyond cancer biology, Deng said.

Surprisingly, she said, miR-199 predominantly regulates the cell cycle-dependent kinase CDK2 in terminally differentiated neutrophils.

When we say a cell is terminally differentiated that means the cell will not divide anymore, she said. The cell cycle is active in stem cells and cancer cells. But when cells change their gene expression to become neutrophils with immune-defense functions, they fight infections and die. So, it is unexpected that genes promoting cell cycle and cell division, such as CDK2, would regulate neutrophil function.

The work is ongoing, and the next step is to understand the detailed molecular mechanisms for how CDK2 suppresses neutrophil migration and lethal inflammation.

The work aligns withPurdues Giant Leapscelebration, acknowledging the universitys global advancements made in health, longevity and quality of life as part of Purdues 150th anniversary. This is one of the four themes of the yearlong celebrationsIdeas Festival, designed to showcase Purdue as an intellectual center solving real-world issues.

The paper was co-authored by researchers affiliated with the Institute of Infection and Inflammation, Medical College of China Three Gorges University; Department of Medical and Molecular Genetics and Center for Computational Biology and Bioinformatics, Indiana University School of Medicine; Collaborative Core for Cancer Bioinformatics, Indiana University Simon Cancer Center; Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology and Department of Pediatrics, University of WisconsinMadison; and Purdues Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, Institute for Inflammation, Immunology, and Infectious Disease, and Center for Cancer Research.

The research was funded by the National Institutes of Health (Grant R35GM119787 to Q.D., Grant R35GM118027 to A.H., Grant R01HD073156 to D.M.U., and Grant P30CA023168 to the Purdue Center for Cancer Research) for shared resources. Bioinformatics analysis was conducted by the Collaborative Core for Cancer Bioinformatics, shared by the Indiana University Simon Cancer Center (Grant P30CA082709) and the Purdue University Center for Cancer Research, with support from the Walther Cancer Foundation. Hsu is supported by the Purdue Research Foundation.

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Research suggests new approach for treating inflammation - ScienceBlog.com

As Biotechnology businesses, Assembly Biosciences Inc. (NASDAQ:ASMB) and Neuralstem Inc. (NASDAQ:CUR), are affected by contrast. This especially applies to their dividends, analyst recommendations, profitability, risk, institutional ownership, earnings and valuation.

Valuation & Earnings

Table 1 demonstrates Assembly Biosciences Inc. and Neuralstem Inc.s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

Profitability

Table 2 shows us the return on assets, net margins and return on equity of both businesses.

Risk & Volatility

Assembly Biosciences Inc. is 41.00% more volatile than Standard & Poors 500 because the stock has a beta of 1.41. Neuralstem Inc. on the other hand, has 1.94 beta which makes it 94.00% more volatile compared to Standard & Poors 500.

Liquidity

The Current Ratio and Quick Ratio of Assembly Biosciences Inc. are 8 and 8 respectively. Its competitor Neuralstem Inc.s Current Ratio is 3.8 and its Quick Ratio is 3.8. Assembly Biosciences Inc. can pay off short and long-term obligations better than Neuralstem Inc.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

Institutional investors held 89% of Assembly Biosciences Inc. shares and 4.9% of Neuralstem Inc. shares. About 6.3% of Assembly Biosciences Inc.s share are held by insiders. Competitively, insiders own roughly 1% of Neuralstem Inc.s shares.

Performance

Here are the Weekly, Monthly, Quarterly, Half Yearly, Yearly and YTD Performance of both pretenders.

For the past year Assembly Biosciences Inc.s stock price has smaller decline than Neuralstem Inc.

Summary

Assembly Biosciences Inc. beats Neuralstem Inc. on 6 of the 7 factors.

Assembly Biosciences, Inc., a clinical stage biotechnology company, develops oral therapeutics for the treatment of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and novel class of oral synthetic live biotherapeutics to restore health to a dysbiotic microbiome in the United States. It is involved in developing core protein allosteric modulators that modulate the HBV core protein at various points in the viral lifecycle. The company also develops microbiome program, a platform that includes the identification and selection process to strain isolation and growth under current good manufacturing practice conditions; and a patent pending delivery system, GEMICEL, which allows for targeted oral delivery of live biologic and conventional therapies to the lower gastrointestinal tract. Its lead product candidate from the platform is AB-M101 that has been completed Phase Ia clinical trial to treat clostridium difficile infections. The company was formerly known as Ventrus Biosciences, Inc. and changed its name to Assembly Biosciences, Inc. in June 2014. Assembly Biosciences, Inc. was founded in 2005 and is headquartered in Carmel, Indiana.

Neuralstem, Inc., a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the research and development of nervous system therapies based on its proprietary human neuronal stem cells and small molecule compounds. The companys stem cell based technology enables the isolation and expansion of human neural stem cells from various areas of the developing human brain and spinal cord enabling the generation of physiologically relevant human neurons of various types. It is developing products include NSI-189, a chemical entity, which is in Phase II clinical trial for the treatment of major depressive disorder, as well as is in preclinical programs for the MCAO stroke, type 1 and 2 diabetes related neuropathy, irradiation-induced cognition, long-term potentiation enhancement, and angelman syndrome. The company is also developing NSI-566, which has completed Phase II clinical trial for treating amyotrophic lateral sclerosis disease, as well as is in Phase I clinical trials for the treatment of chronic spinal cord injury and motor deficits due to ischemic stroke. Neuralstem, Inc. was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Germantown, Maryland.

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Reviewing Assembly Biosciences Inc. (ASMB)'s and Neuralstem Inc. (NASDAQ:CUR)'s results - CryptoCoinsTribune

Public health organizations around the world have been fighting for global eradication of polio since 1988. Through massive vaccination efforts, the incidence of polio has gone down 99% since then, with the virus eradicated from most of the countries on Earth.

But there have been many setbacks.

One particularly serious threat has surfaced over the last 15 years. Among poorly vaccinated populations, an increasing number of polio cases are due to strains of the virus that originate from one version of the vaccine itself. The Sabin vaccine, which is taken orally, is composed of live but weakened viruses that wont sicken recipients but will still create lasting immunity against polio.

However, through genetic changes, the weakened vaccine virus can reacquire the ability to cause paralytic polio. How this happens and how to prevent it are under active research. A new vaccine deliberately constructed to prevent the poliovirus from regaining virulence may be the answer.

Virus in Vaccines, Attenuated or Killed

The virus that causes polio infects the cells of the throat and intestine. People usually catch it by ingesting food or water contaminated with fecal matter from an infected person.

Most people infected with the polio virus have no symptoms at all; about a quarter of infections result in flu-like symptoms. However, in about 1 out of every 200 cases, the virus invades the cells of the central nervous system, causing paralysis.

Poliovirus is a very simple virus. It is composed of a shell, or capsule, made of protein. Inside the capsule is a single strand of ribonucleic acid, or RNA, that encodes the genetic information to make new virus particles. There are three poliovirus strains PV1, PV2 and PV3. Immunity to one strain does not confer immunity to the other two, so both the original Salk and Sabin vaccines included all three.

The Salk vaccine, which is injected, is composed of killed viruses; the Sabin vaccine, taken orally, contains live but weakened viruses. Such weakened vaccine viruses are known as attenuated. The oral vaccine is both more effective and easier to administer than the injected vaccine, and so it has been the primary weapon for worldwide eradication of polio.

Once a child is immunized with the oral polio vaccine, the weakened virus lives in their intestine for several weeks, allowing the child to develop immunity by building up antibodies. During this time, recipients shed live viruses in their feces. The weakened viruses in the vaccine itself do not cause polio, and this shedding can help to immunize unvaccinated people that come into close contact with recently vaccinated individuals.

But shortly after the oral vaccine became widely used in the early 1960s, researchers discovered that some shed viruses had reacquired the ability to cause paralysis.

As the viruses multiply in the intestine, they undergo genetic changes, some of which can reverse or circumvent the original genetic changes that had made them less virulent. These vaccine-derived virulent viruses very rarely cause their vaccinated host to get polio, but, when they circulate in the population, they put unvaccinated individuals at grave risk.

Because of this risk, most developed countries, including the United States, have stopped using the oral Sabin vaccine, relying instead on several injections of the Salk vaccine. However, oral polio vaccine is still the most available, and reliable, vaccine in developing countries.

One of the polio strains type 2 polio, or PV2 was declared eradicated worldwide in 2015. The challenge then became preventing new cases of type 2 polio that could stem from virus shed by newly vaccinated people.

To prevent these new cases of vaccine-derived type 2 polio, the World Health Organization campaigned to replace the standard oral polio vaccine with one consisting of only PV1 and PV3. This switch was completed in 2016.

Unfortunately, the vaccine-derived type 2 poliovirus continues to circulate and cause paralytic polio. Globally, 104 polio cases due to this virus occurred in 2018, which was three times the number of cases due to wild viruses not derived from the vaccine. As the number of children who have no immunity to type 2 poliovirus increases, this number may rise.

Health officials are campaigning to eliminate all oral vaccines and rely on injected vaccines containing killed virus. However, this plan imposes logistic and financial burdens on developing countries. Meanwhile, oral type 2 vaccines are needed to stop any outbreaks of type 2 polio. And health officials have not yet figured out how to make sure unvaccinated children dont get polio from mutated viruses shed by vaccinated people.

Ensuring Virulence Cant Be Restored

But what if researchers created a vaccine from a weakened live virus thats unlikely revert to virulence? Thats one of the strategies that several research groups are working on now.

As part of this effort, scientists have now mapped out in detail the steps that allow the PV2 vaccine strain to regain virulence.

Just three simple genetic mutations, each of which alone has a small effect, when combined, dramatically increase the virulence of the PV2 strain in mice in the lab. And, all three are found in the viruses shed by recent vaccine recipients.

Virulence can also be reestablished in the intestine if the genetic material of the PV2 strain recombines with that of another virus. The second virus can be the weakened PV1 or PV3 from the vaccine, or a related virus such as coxsackie, a common virus in children.

Designing the Virus for the Vaccine

Having discovered exactly how the type 2 vaccine virus regains virulence, scientists figured out ways that these specific genetic changes could be prevented. Using the tools of molecular biology, they made four important changes to the PV2 genome that should stop it from regaining virulence.

Part of the viruss RNA genome has to fold up into a lollipop-like shape in order for proteins to be made. This structure is disrupted in the weakened vaccine strain, but a single mutation in the virulent strain allows it to reassemble. So that cant happen, the scientists changed the genetic sequence of the RNA in a way that no single nucleotide change would let the RNA fold into the stable lollipop structure again.

Second, they changed the genetic sequence of the enzyme that copies the RNA to make it more accurate. That way fewer genetic mutations would occur in the vaccine recipients intestine.

Third, another change to the same enzyme reduced the chance that the virus could pick up genes by recombining with other viruses in the recipient.

And, fourth, they rearranged the viruss genes so that replacing certain regions of its own RNA with genetic information from a wild virus, such as coxsackie, would be lethal for it.

Researchers have produced two candidate PV2 viruses that grew well in experimental cells, were not virulent in a mouse model and were genetically stable. A phase 1 clinical trial of vaccines made from these viruses showed that they were well tolerated, produced an immune response and had reduced (but not zero) reversion to virulence compared to the original oral vaccine for PV2.

These and other new, rationally designed viruses have the potential to provide good protection from polio with a reduced risk of creating new outbreaks due to circulating vaccine-derived polio virus.

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Patricia L. Foster, Professor Emerita of Biology, Indiana University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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A New Vaccine Could Mean the End of Polio - The National Interest Online

What are Bone Marrow and Stem Cells?

Bone marrow is a sponge-like tissue found inside bones. Within bone marrow, stem cells grow and develop into the three main types of blood cells:

Stem cells also grow many other cell types of the immune system.

At IU Health, we offer many types of bone marrow transplant, including:

For this type of transplant, we use your own stem cells. We collect the stem cells and then place them back into your body.

We use this method to treat blood-related cancers like multiple myeloma, non-Hodgkin lymphomas and Hodgkin disease, as well as certain germ-cell cancers.

CAR T-cell therapy is an emerging form of cancer immunotherapy. This therapy involves supercharging a patients T cells, a subtype of white blood cell, to recognize and attack cancer cells.

IU Health is the first healthcare system in Indiana to offer CAR T-cell therapy to treat non-Hodgkin lymphoma and Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL).

For this type of transplant, the stem cells of another person are used. The donor can be a relative or a nonrelative whose blood cells are a close match.

The stem cells can come from peripheral (circulating) blood, bone marrow or umbilical cord blood (the blood in the cord connecting a fetus to a placenta).

This method is used to treat blood-related cancers like leukemias and some lymphomas or multiple myeloma. It is also used to treat bone marrow failure disorders like myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and aplastic anemia.

If you have an acute leukemia or lymphoma, IU Health Medical Center conducts haploidentical (half-matched) stem cell transplantation. This procedure also greatly expands the potential donor pool, making more patients eligible for the transplant.

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Bone Marrow & Blood Stem Cell Transplant | IU Health

BONE MARROW VS. FAT DERIVED STEM CELLS- IS THERE A CONTROVERSY?

Whether your adult mesenchymal stem cells come from bone marrow or from fat probably does not make a difference in terms of clinical results. Although some centers claim that bone marrow derived cells are superior to fat derived cells, there is no evidence to substantiate that. The fact that there are many more studies on bone marrow cells does not prove clinical superiority but merely supports the obvious fact that fat derived cells are based on more recent discoveries and although evidence is accumulating, there are far fewer studies using these cells. It is important that one is not mislead by the word bone in bone marrow, possible implying that since this is an orthopedic source it might be better for treating orthopedic conditions such as cartilage regeneration. In fact, the bone marrow is part of the reticulo-endothelial system and just happens to be found in the center of bone. All of these types of cells are equally primitive and have the potential to differentiate into mature functional tissues. For many disease types such as cardiac pathology, adipose derived cells appear to be showing superiority to bone marrow derived cells. This may be related to the well documented qualitative and quantitative attrition in bone marrow stem cell counts related to age and chronic illness (chronic disease causes bone marrow suppression). Such changes in the number of cells over time and the quality of cells dependent on health have not been seen in fat derived stem cells. Fat derived cells are a natural choice for our investigational work considering their easy and rapid availability in extremely high numbers.

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Stem Cell Research Facilities - Indiana Stem Cell

What IBS Sufferers Should Know

IBS, or irritable bowel syndrome, is a painful, debilitating condition that affects 1.4 million Americans. In fact, 200,000 people in the US alone are diagnosed with IBS each year. This condition affects the intestines and can result in a wide range of painful symptoms that affect an individuals quality of life. Some patients are able to manage their symptoms through changes to their diet and lifestyle, while others may have to live with medications for the duration of their lives. However, stem cell therapy may offer hope for all IBS sufferers.

Irritable bowel syndrome affects the large intestine, and can lead to gas, pain, bloating, diarrhea, and other symptoms. This chronic condition has no cure, but there are treatment solutions that offer varying levels of effectives. The underlying cause of IBS is not yet known, although there are several underlying factors that play a role.

Intestinal muscle contractions that are longer and harder than usual can lead to IBS-related pain. Nervous system abnormalities are also factors in IBS, as is inflammation within the large intestine (an immune system response). Some people develop IBS after experiencing an infection, and others do so after changes to their gut flora (gut biome).

In most instances, symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome are triggered by foods and beverages. Patients who are able to manage their symptoms without the need for medications are often unable to eat or drink certain things, or they risk painful symptoms. In other patients, stress can be a major trigger of stomach discomfort, gas, and diarrhea. Finally, hormonal changes can also trigger IBS symptoms.

Irritable bowel syndrome sufferers may experience any of a wide range of symptoms. In addition, these symptoms may be more or less severe from one individual to another, and even one flare-up to another. Some of the more common symptoms of IBS include pain in the abdomen, as well as cramping and bloating. Gas and diarrhea are also common. However, constipation may also be a symptom of IBS for some patients, and the presence of mucus in the stool is also a symptom.

For the majority of patients, lifestyle and diet changes are needed to manage IBS. There is no cure. These patients will go their entire lives having to avoid certain foods and beverages, or even situations in which stress levels climb. Stress management techniques, and even behavioral therapy may be required. For other patients, though, the only way to mitigate the painful symptoms of their condition is to take prescription medications. However, stem cell therapy offers an effective alternative for all patients with irritable bowel syndrome.

Stem cell therapy has been shown to be particularly effective in treating conditions where inflammation is seen (including IBS). In addition, laboratory-based clinical studies into the use of stem cells to treat irritable bowel syndrome and other GI-related diseases is ongoing.

Researchers in Copenhagen recently reported success in treating IBS in mice by using stem cells to repair damage to the colon. Speaking of how stem cells work in this repair, Kim Jensen, M.D. and author of the study, explains,

The cells can initially serve as a patch covering ulcerated regions to allow the intestine to heal. This is, in principle, a bulk standard stem cell therapy approach, using immature cells for the transplantation.

Stem cells are the building blocks of the entire human body. They exist before any other cell type, and remain in our bodies from birth all the way through old age, although they decline in number as we grow older. Stem cells are also unique in that they can transform into any other type of cell, from lung tissue to heart tissue to colon lining tissue, depending on the needs of the body. As such, they form the crux of our healing and regeneration system.

There are currently two types of stem cells being used to investigate IBS treatment through stem cell therapy. These are autologous stem cells and allogeneic stem cells. Autologous stem cells are your own. Theyre harvested from your body, usually from fat tissue, and then grown and multiplied in a lab before being injected back into your body. That sounds ideal, but it actually has many problems. The most important issue here is that your stem cells are old theyre as old as your body. That means they have lost much of their original energetic nature. They have also accumulated toxins and genetic damage (mutations) over time, and that may trigger an immune response and/or rejection.

Allogeneic stem cells are different. These are harvested from donated umbilical cord blood and tissue. They are young, healthy and highly energetic. They also have no accumulated mutations and are immune-nave, meaning that the immune system does not see them, and will not react negatively to their presence. That means little chance of rejection or an autoimmune response.

Of the two options, allogeneic stem cells are the better choice for all forms of treatment, including stem cell therapy for IBS. They can be injected directly into the colon, or they can be infused through an IV drip. As it seems to be more and more evident, IV infusion is no less effective, much cheaper, much safer and much less invasive than colon injections. Your doctor should discuss which method is right for your specific condition and your goals.

In the end, stem cell therapy for irritable bowel syndrome offers the chance to reverse the condition in patients with mild, moderate and even severe symptoms. However, this is an experimental treatment, and is not FDA approved. It is also important to work with a physician experienced with the use of allogeneic stem cells to help patients achieve positive health outcomes.

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Stem Cell Therapy and Irritable Bowel Syndrome - Indiana ...

What Type Of Stem Cells Do We Use?

There are 3 types of stem cells. Embryonic, which come from developing embryos, Autologous Stem Cells, which come from us and are hard to cultivate, and Umbilical Stem Cells, which come from the the umbilical cord of newborn babies AFTER they are born. We only use the Umbilical Stem Cells.

Not all stem cells are created equal. Regen Med of Indiana utilizes umbilical cord-derived stem cells. Mesenchymal stem cells from the umbilical cord blood are known to have three very important properties: they help reduce inflammation; modulate the immune system; and secrete factors that helps tissue to regenerate.

Umbilical cord stem cells are less mature than other cells, so the bodys immune system is unable to recognize them as foreign and there has never been a single recorded instance of rejection. Umbilical cord stem cells also proliferate more efficiently than older cells, such as those found in the bone marrow and therefore, they are considered to be more potent.

In scientific terms, they are multipotent stromal (connective tissue) cells that stimulates your body to differentiate them into a variety of cell types, including neurons, cartilage, fat, blood (red, white or platelet blood cells), bone, and muscle. Multipotent means they can develop into multiple types of cells, but divide a limited number of times (a built in safety mechanism). They are messengers that signal your body to activate self-healing and regeneration. The MSCs themselves do not create new tissue or healing, they signal your body to activate a cascade of cellular functions. As we age, we have fewer mesenchymal stem cells, therefore getting a boost of day 0 MSCs may help many conditions. Umbilical Cord Stem Cells contain a small, but significant amount of mesenchymal stem cells that signal self-healing and regeneration.

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Learn more about Stem Cell Therapy in Fort Wayne Indiana ...

At the Indiana Stem Cell Treatment Center, we provide stem cell therapy care for people suffering from diseases that may be alleviated by access to adult stem cell based regenerative treatment. The Center utilizes a fat transfer surgical technology to isolate and implant the patients own stem cells from a small quantity of fat harvested by liposuction on the same day. Stem cell therapy patients are evaluated by a respective member of our multi-specialty expert panel of Board Certified physicians representing many medical fields. The Indiana Stem Cell Treatment Center emphasizes quality and is highly committed to clinical research and the advancement of regenerative medicine. When it comes to stem cell therapy centers we always put the patients needs first

Founded in 2010 for the investigational use of stem cells deployments for degenerative conditions, the source of the cells is actually stromal vascular fraction, which is a protein rich segment of processed adipose tissue. Stromal vascular fraction contains a mononuclear cell line (predominantly autologous mesenchymal stem cells), macrophage cells, endothelial cells, red blood cells, and important growth factors that turn on the stem cells and promote their activity. We have high numbers of viable cells and we are trying to learn which diseases respond best and which deployment methods are most effective. We are growing and continue to use our surgical methods to deploy SVF for various degenerative conditions. We employ a clinical research coordinator to protect our valuable data and our vision is to perfect our treatments and ultimately teach them to other physicians around the world.

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Stem Cell Treatment Center | IN