Category Archives: Iowa Stem Cells

The average American loses up to 100 hairs every day, and its perfectly normal. But imagine if that number increased into uncontrollably high volumes of rapid hair loss to the point of partial or complete baldness? Researchers from Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute believe theyve just taken a giant step toward a solution to the inevitability of balding for certain genetically susceptible people. They published their findings, which provide hope for the newly balding,in the journal PLOS ONE.

"We have developed a method using human pluripotent stem cells to create new cells capable of initiating human hair growth," said the studys lead author Dr. Alexey Terskikh, an associate professor in the Development, Aging, and Regeneration Program at Sanford-Burnham, in a press release. The method is a marked improvement over current methods that rely on transplanting existing hair follicles from one part of the head to another. Our stem cell method provides an unlimited source of cells from the patient for transplantation and isn't limited by the availability of existing hair follicles."

Human dermal papillae cells grown from stem cells. Photo courtesy of Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute

The promise of a successful human stem cell hair growth trial could one day lead to the benefit of the 50 million men and 30 million women who are affected by hair loss in the United States. This could be a game changer for those who are completely bald and dont have the option of conventional hair transplant surgeries that other partially bald people can benefit from. If the treatment's success goes beyong the petri dishes, it could even open doors for those suffering from the auto-immune disease alopecia areata, which occurs when the immune system mistakenly attacks hair follicles, causing baldness.

"In adults, dermal papilla cells cannot be readily amplified outside of the body and they quickly lose their hair-inducing properties," Terskikh said. "We developed a protocol to drive human pluripotent stem cells to differentiate into dermal papilla cells and confirmed their ability to induce hair growth when transplanted into mice."

The technique uses pluripotent stem cells, which can be turned into almost any type of cell in the body. Terskikh and his team of researchers were able to transform them into dermal papilla cells, which are responsible for regulation hair growth in humans. Once they injected the mice with the stem cells and saw hair grow, they knew they were on the path to success.

"Our next step is to transplant human dermal papilla cells derived from human pluripotent stem cells back into human subjects," Terskikh said. "We are currently seeking partnerships to implement this final step."

Source: Terskikh A V, Gnedeva K, Vorotelyak E, Cimadamore F, Cattarossi G, and Giusto E, et al. Derivation of Hair-Inducing Cell from human Pluripotent Stem Cells. PLOS ONE. 2015.

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From the perspective of conventional cancer treatment a diagnosis of multi-drug resistant cancer is equivalent to a death sentence. By the time such a diagnosis occurs, the patient's body has been irreversibly damaged by chemotherapy and radiation, and an even more aggressive cancer has emerged to take the place of the original one.

Tragically, these treatments do not simply fail, but make the cancers more malignant. This fact is effectively concealed by the name multidrug resistant cancer which makes it seem as if the cancer was so exceptionally resistant and malignant that the normally effective drugs used to treat it just couldn't do the job.

But wouldn't it be more accurate to call this multi-drug failed cancer, putting the responsibility back on the medical establishment, as it should be, in recognition of the impotence, or worse, cancer-promoting nature of its treatment choices?

In other words, instead of blaming the treatment failure on the patient's body or a set of virulent gene mutations within their cancer it is time we look more closely at why conventional chemotherapy and radiation-based treatments breed multidrug resistance within the cancer of patients, who ultimately succumb to the effects of the treatment and not the cancer they were originally diagnosed with.

Multidrug resistant cancer is the byproduct of cancer doctors (oncologists) throwing the chemical and radiological kitchen sink at the patient and not only failing to improve their condition, but significantly worsening it. How so? In order to understand how conventional treatment drives the cancer into greater malignancy, we must first understand what cancer is....

Tumors are actually highly organized assemblages of cells, which are surprisingly well-coordinated for cells that are supposedto be the result of strictly random mutation. They are capable of building their own blood supply (angiogenesis), are able to defend themselves by silencing cancer-suppression genes, secreting corrosive enzymes to move freely throughout the body, alter their metabolism to live in low oxygen and acidic environments, and know how to remove their own surface-receptor proteins to escape detection by white blood cells. In a previous article titled "Is Cancer An Ancient Survival Program Unmasked?" we delved deeper into this emerging view of cancer as an evolutionary throw-back and not a byproduct of strictly random mutation.

Because tumors are not simply the result of one or more mutated cells "going rogue" and producing exact clones of itself (multi-mutational and clonal hypotheses), but are a diverse group of cells having radically different phenotypal characteristics, chemotherapy and radiation will affect each cell type differently.

Tumors are composed of a wide range of cells, many of which are entirely benign.

The most deadly cell type within a tumor or blood cancer, known as cancer stem cells (CSCs), has the ability to give rise to all the cell types found within that cancer.

They are capable of dividing by mitosis to form either two stem cells (increasing the size of the stem population), or one daughter cell that goes on to differentiate into a variety of cell types, and one daughter cell that retains stem-cell properties.

This means CSCs are tumorigenic (tumor-forming) and should be the primary target of cancer treatment because they are capable of both initiating and sustaining cancer. They are also increasingly recognized to be the cause of relapse and metastasis following conventional treatment.

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Are Cancer Stem Cells the Key to Discovering a Cure ...

Information about Stem Cell Research

A young patient with Dr. Fred Goldman of the University of Iowa Stem Cell Group

The Pediatric Bone Marrow Transplant program at the Children's Hospital of Iowa performs stem cell transplants to treat malignant diseases such as leukemia.

Certain congenital disorders caused by a single gene mutation can be treated using stem cell gene therapy. Successful gene therapy has been done for several diseases affecting the immune system, including severe combined immune deficiency.

Researchers at the University of Iowa are investigating the possibility of undertaking this approach for a rare congenital bone marrow failure disorder called Dyskeratosis congenita.

Cardiomyocyte precursors derived from embryonic stem cells

Embryonic stem cells are pluripotent i.e. give rise to all the differentiated cell types in the body. They therefore can form multiple cell lineages and repair damaged tissues under appropriate conditions.

This property provides hope that one day they successfully could be manipulated to produce cells capable of curing currently untreatable diseases, such as diabetes, Parkinsons disease or heart disease.

Epidermal stem cells becoming neuronal cells

Epidermal Stem Cells are multipotent cells located in the basal epithelial layer of the skin. they have been shown to repopulate the epidermis after damage, and to have the potential to regenerate other tissue types. We have shown that the age of the keratinocyte stem cell has little effect on its multipotent capabilites, and thus could be used in translational or clinical cell-based therapies.

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University of Iowa Stem Cell Group

Source: Wikimedia Commons and Ghanson Elizabeth Hofheinz, M.P.H., M.Ed. Wed, March 6th, 2013 Print this article

Mesenchymal Stem Cells + HA for Knee Repair

What do you get when you mix hyaluronic acid (HA) with a certain type of stem cell? A solution that might potentiate the benefits of microfracture, says Brian Cole M.D., a sports medicine and cartilage restoration orthopedic surgeon at Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush in Chicago. He tells OTW, We have enrolled our first patient in a trial that utilizes lyophilized hyaluronic acid and adult mesenchymal stem cells from umbilical cord donors to augment microfracture in the treatment of a localized cartilage defect of the knee. Our team, which includes Andreas Gomoll, M.D. of Brigham and Women's Hospital, is assessing the safety and efficacy of stem cells from umbilical cord bloodmixed with hyaluronic acidas an adjunct to microfracture surgery. This is a two-year, Phase I/IIa study that should pave the way for a pivotal study in approximately two years. Although our goal is to enroll a total of 12 participants (18 years and older), like in any cartilage trial, the number of patients with isolated defects is relatively small; they cant have any significant comorbidities such as apposing surface arthritis, malalignment or meniscal deficiency. Specifically, this treatment is meant for individuals who have localized cartilage damage and will not include patients who have been told they should have knee replacement surgery or who have bone on bone arthritis.

BMP: Not a Cancer Risk?

Now and five years from now we will most likely still be using BMP (bone morphogenic protein), says one spine surgeon. Why? Because we need it. Andrew Hecht, M.D. is Chief of Spine Surgery and an assistant professor of orthopedics and assistant professor of neurosurgery at Mount Sinai; he also sits on the NFL brain and spine committee. Even in the setting of MI techniques BMP is an important tool for spine surgeons. There remains a lot of concern about the right dose and carrier for various surgeries, but I think we will get better at delivering BMP and thus will be able to use it in more parts of the spine. We use it sparingly in challenging cases, such as when someone is at risk for nonunion. I know that my colleagues around the country continue to weigh the pro and cons of BMP, but I have found it to be very effective. We have had minimal complications, likely because we have been judicious in its use and take steps to reduce risks of complications such as the use of steroids when using it in the cervical spine.

Last year our team at Mt. Sinai presented a paper at the North American Spine Society meeting about the risk of cancer from BMP. In our researcha meta analysiswe found no cases where BMP took normal cells and transformed them into cancer cells. Additionally, Dr. Paul Anderson did a review of a national inpatient sample and did not find any evidence of increased cancer in patients who had received BMP. The problem is that we dont know its effect on existing cancers. BMP has suppressive effects on some types of cancer cells and others it may be more stimulatingand there are some concerns that when used in high doses BMP can stimulate the growth of cancer cells.

Fracture Repair: Dont Aim for Perfection?

Concerned that if you dont fix that fracture flawlessly you may leave the patient open for arthritis? Think again. Donald D. Anderson, Ph.D. is an associate professor in the department of orthopaedics and rehabilitation at the University of Iowa (UI). He tells OTW about his work in the UI Orthopaedic Biomechanics Laboratory: Most surgeons believe that when you fix an articular fracture that you must do it perfectly. This is because research over the years has shown that irregularity in the joint surface leads to elevated joint contact stress, which in turn leads to arthritis. So surgeons are taking this approach to restore function. While this elevated joint contact stress is a risk factor for arthritis, there has not been a sound way of assessing it. There is some indication in the literature and in clinical experience that you dont have to get it perfect, but in the absence of any way to tell what to do surgeons are a bit lost.

This uncertainty leads to wider exposures, which leaves patients more vulnerable to infection and other operative complications. Our research has shown how a CT scan after an ankle fracture repair can be used to create a computer model to predict the contact stress. By following a cohort of patients, we have shown that its basically a threshold effect with respect to elevated contact stress. If the CT scan shows exposure to contact stress below a certain level then it doesnt matterthe patient wont develop arthritis. We began with a small number of patients at Iowa, but we are extending that to 150 patients from a number of institutions across the country. Lets say this holds upthen we will have a good idea of the threshold above which people develop arthritis. This may mean that surgeons can decide intra-operatively if they have done a good enough job based on such computer modeling. Surgeons could use deduced fragment poses from fluoroscopic images, correlated with pre-operative CT models, to make contact stress assessments in the operating room.

Too Many Spine Surgeons Rely on Outdated Data

Its time for more clarity when it comes to spinal fusion. Doctor A in Pittsburgh does one thing, Dr. B in Tallahassee does another. Dan Riew, M.D. is The Mildred B. Simon Distinguished Professor of Orthopedics and Professor of Neurosurgery at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. He reveals details about his latest research: We are working on how to diagnose fusion properly because there are no accepted standards for how to diagnose fusion with plain X-rays. Some doctors use flexion or extension, some look for less than 2 mm of motion, while others look for less than 1 mm. Some physicians arent even bothering to get any kind of flexion extension views. We know, however, that if you want to have results that are highly sensitive and accurate you should look for less than 1 mm of motionand you must have greater than 4 mm at an unfused level. That way you are sure that the patient flexed and extended adequately.

When we compared CT Scans with intraoperative exploration plus plain X-rays we found that plain X-rays can be nearly as good as CT Scans. But to get that good you must have criteria of less than 1 mm of motion on a magnified plain X-ray. The clinical implications are such that when patients complain about pain after surgery they are sometimes told, There is nothing wrong with you. The fusion looks solid. But the fact is that a lot of those patients can be helped by a repair of the nonunion. Also, a lot of studies purport to have a 100% fusion rate based on the use of outdated criteria. Unfortunately, I think that some of my colleagues still think these criteria are valid.

Christopher Wahl, M.D. New Chief at UC San Diego

The new head of sports medicine at the University of California, San Diego Health System, Dr. Christopher Wahl, is known for treating complex, high-energy traumatic sports injuries. Dr. Wahl, who served as associate professor and team physician for the University of Washington in Seattle, was the orthopedic surgeon for the Huskies athletic teams, including football, mens basketball, volleyball, softball, gymnastics and tennis.

Dr. Wahl, who attended medical school and completed his residency training at Yale University, plans to focus his practice on cartilage restoration and transplanta
tion, repair of the knee and shoulder, rotator cuff pathology, shoulder stabilization and treatment of fractures. Dr. Wahl completed a sports medicine and shoulder surgery fellowship at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York. He continued his professional education studying trauma surgery in Germany and Switzerland before starting his clinical practice. In 2011, Wahl was awarded the American Orthopedic Society Traveling Sports Medicine Fellowship and traveled throughout the countries of South America to visit sports medicine clinics, hospitals and institutes.

Dr. Wahl has lectured and published extensively on sports medicine and surgery, including: the anatomic factors predisposing to anterior cruciate ligament tears, the treatment of recurrent shoulder dislocations associated with bone loss and the diagnosis and management of knee dislocations and multiple-ligament knee injuries. In addition, he has developed several innovative surgical techniques for the treatment of cartilage repair, shoulder instability and revision surgery for failed procedures.

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NEW YORK, June 9, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- About Stem Cell Banking Stem cells are the building blocks of the human body. They originate in the earliest stage of human development and can be found in the various stages of growth from birth till adulthood. When these undifferentiated biological cells divide, they can differentiate into specialized cells. A stem cell bank is a facility that stores stem cells for future use. Stem cell banking, one of the most promising markets in the field of life sciences, is the process of preserving stem cells at temperatures much below the freezing point. This technique is termed as cryopreservation. These cells can be used in the treatment of Parkinson's disease, diabetes, cancer, heart diseases, and others. Technavio's analysts forecast the stem cell banking market in India to grow at a CAGR of 37.85% over the period 2014-2019.

Covered in this Report This report covers the present scenario and the growth prospects of the stem cell banking market in India for the period 2015-2019. To calculate the market size, the report considers revenue generated by stem cell banking service providers. It presents the vendor landscape and corresponding detailed analysis of the top six vendors in the market. The report provides the segmentation of the market based on type of products, applications, and type of banks. Technavio's report, Stem Cell Banking Market in India 2015-2019, has been prepared based on an in-depth market analysis with inputs from industry experts. The report covers the market landscape and its growth prospects in the coming years.

Key Vendors - CordLife Sciences India - Cryobanks International India - LifeCell International - Reliance Life Sciences - Stempeutics Research - Tran-Scell Biologics

Other Prominent Vendors - CordCare - Cryo Save India - Cryo Stemcell - International Stem Cell - Jeevan Blood Bank Research Centre - NovaCord - Reelabs - RMS Regrow - Stemade Biotech - StemCyte India Therapeutics - StemOne Biologicals - StemRx BioScience Solutions Key

Market Driver - Growing Potential for Umbilical Cord Cell Banks - For a full, detailed list, view our report Key

Market Challenge - Lack of Awareness - For a full, detailed list, view our report Key

Market Trend - Introduction of New Marketing Concepts - For a full, detailed list, view our report

Key Questions Answered in this Report - What will the market size be in 2019 and what will the growth rate be? - What are the key market trends? - What is driving this market? - What are the challenges to market growth? - Who are the key vendors in this market space? - What are the market opportunities and threats faced by the key vendors? - What are the strengths and weaknesses of the key vendors?

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Stem Cell Banking Market in India 2015-2019 - Sioux City ...

Sophie Dillman

Sophie Dillman graduated from Boston College in December 2010 with a Bachelor of Arts in English and international studies. For the past two years, she has been the corporate editorial assistant for Voice Media Group, the largest group of metropolitan newsweeklies in the U.S. She assists the executive editor and associate managing editor.

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How Do Stem Cells Help Cure Parkinson's Disease? | eHow

Insulin-producing cells, derived from human skin cells in a University of Iowa experiment.(Photo: Public Library of Science/PLOS ONE)

University of Iowa researchers say they've retrained human skin cells to produce insulin in mice, a discovery that they hope could someday help reverse the effects of diabetes in people.

The researchers are working toward a day when people with diabetes could avoid the need for insulin shots or pancreas transplants.

In a paper published online Wednesday by the Public Library of Science, the researchers explained that they took skin cells from adult humans and retrained them to act as if they were pancreas cells. The pancreas is the organ whose failure causes diabetes, a dangerous condition that leaves the body unable to process sugar.

The American Diabetes Association's top national expert called the Iowa research "a cutting-edge approach."

Dr. Nicholas Zavazava(Photo: Special to the Register)

In the experiment, the transplanted cells essentially grew into a new pancreas near each mouse's kidney, said Dr. Nicholas Zavazava, a UI internal medicine professor who helped lead the study.

Zavazava said it would be at least several years before the approach could be tried in humans. But he expressed optimism about the project, which began in 2005. "We are no longer in the wilderness, like we were 10 years ago," he said.

Zavazava said stem cells from human embryos can be used to do the same thing. That method is controversial, however, because it involves the question of whether it's ethical to use embryonic tissue to treat diseases.

The new UI approach took skin cells from adult humans and transformed them into a version of stem cells. The cells then were treated with special proteins that encouraged them to act like pancreas cells. Then they were transplanted near the kidneys of the mice, which had been previously treated to have diabetes, the paper said. The cells grew into what amounted to new pancreases. Over time, most of the mice with the transplanted cells processed sugar better than similar mice that didn't get the transplants.

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UI researchers tout diabetes development

October 18, 2014

The study (pdf) represents the first evidence for the long-term safety of the pioneering therapy, which restored some vision to more than half of the patients who took part in the trial.

There had been concerns that the cells could be rejected by the bodys immune system or become overactive and grow into tumours. But after following the patients for up to three years, researchers said the treatment appeared to be safe.

The trial focused on 18 patients with two different types of macular degeneration (9 with Stargardts, 9 with dry AMD ). The diseases have no effective treatments and are among the leading causes of blindness in adults and children in the developed world.

Effectiveness is yet to be proven.

For more info:

http://www.theguardian.com/science/2014/oct/15/stem-cell-success-in-treating-macular-degeneration

http://download.thelancet.com/flatcontentassets/pdfs/S0140673614613763.pdf

Leave a Comment | Uncategorized | Tagged: AMD, Stargardts, stem cell research | Permalink Posted by lvatug

Scientists at the University of Southampton have discovered stem cells in the human eye which can be transformed into light sensitive cells and potentially reverse blindness. Thereservoir of stem cells is in an area of the eye called the corneal limbus.It could offer a potential cure for the hundreds of thousands of people suffering macular degeneration or retinitis pigmentosa, which are both caused by the loss of photo-receptor cells in the eye. For more info: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/11133622/Hope-for-blind-as-scientists-find-stem-cell-reservoir-in-human-eye.html

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stem cell research | LVATUG blog