Category Archives: Stem Cell Research

BioProtein Technology, a company that manufactures therapeutic proteins in the form of growth factors, has announced an alliance with Stem Longevity Research, a company partnered by Dr. Joseph Purita and CNC Reid Eckert.

(PRWEB) October 15, 2012

Stem Longevity Research has expertise in the medical applications of stem cells. Dr. Purita and Eckert will offer their high level of credibility to increase the exposure of BioProtein Technology's products on the part of physicians across the United States.

We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Purita and Reid Eckert to our team, as they are among the world's most respected stem cell researchers, said Paul Morave, National Sales Director for BioProtein Technology. With their endorsement of our products, we immediately gain a tremendous level of credibility in the eyes of doctors and medical professionals. Were very excited to begin our work with Stem Longevity Research and are looking forward to leveraging the knowledge they bring to our company.

Dr. Joseph Purita is one of the pioneers of PRP and stem cell injection research. His passion for stem cell research has helped him create the Institute of Regenerative and Molecular Orthopedics, where the standard is set for orthopedic stem cell treatments. Doctors from all over the world train in the use of PRP and stem cell treatment with Dr. Purita at the Institute.

Eckert specializes in the treatment of diseases and disorders for people of all ages. He is a certified nutritional counselor who is dedicated to bringing nutritional education and quality of life to those suffering from health challenges. Eckert also currently serves as a medical advisor for InHealth Media, a media and marketing firm that works with brands in the nutraceutical and sports nutrition industries.

BioProtein Technology offers a family of natural treatment therapies that combine the effective concepts of traditional medicine with modern technological breakthroughs. The company differentiates itself by dedicating unparalleled time and energy into a single raw material, giving its team complete top-down control of the manufacturing process.

The BioProtein Technology product line includes Velvet Antler Extract, which promotes anti-aging and naturally supports healthy cell regeneration and repair. This product balances hormones, modulates endocrine and immune systems and improves memory and cognition, among many other benefits. Other products include natural hormone and immune modulator Sub-L Tropin, topical anti-inflammatory solution Derma-T Tropin and Derma-T Tropin, an anti-aging skin care solution.

Its an honor to join the team of BioProtein Technology, a company that is doing groundbreaking work in creating top-quality alternative treatment products, said Eckert. Our goal is to significantly increase physicians awareness of this brand and the numerous benefits these products offer to individuals. Were very pleased to take part in what BioProtein Technology is doing for both doctors and their patients.

Stem Longevity Researchs work with BioProtein Technology will begin effective immediately. For more information, visit http://www.bioproteintech.com.

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Stem Longevity Research Links with BioProtein Technology - Renowned Partnership to Elevate Brand’s Innovative ...

ScienceDaily (Oct. 15, 2012) A new method of using adult stem cells as a model for the hereditary condition Gaucher disease could help accelerate the discovery of new, more effective therapies for this and other conditions such as Parkinson's, according to new research from the University of Maryland School of Medicine.

Scientists at the University of Maryland School of Medicine reprogrammed stem cells to develop into cells that are genetically similar to and react to drugs in a similar way as cells from patients with Gaucher disease. The stem cells will allow the scientists to test potential new therapies in a dish, accelerating the process toward drug discovery, according to the paper published online in the journal the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) on Oct. 15.

"We have created a model for all three types of Gaucher disease, and used stem cell-based tests to evaluate the effectiveness of therapies," says senior author Ricardo Feldman, Ph.D., associate professor of microbiology and immunology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, and a research scientist at the University of Maryland Center for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine. "We are confident that this will allow us to test more drugs faster, more accurately and more safely, bringing us closer to new treatments for patients suffering from Gaucher disease. Our findings have potential to help patients with other neurodegenerative diseases as well. For example, about 10 percent of Parkinson's disease patients carry mutations in the recessive gene for Gaucher disease, making our research possibly significant for Parkinson's disease as well."

Gaucher disease is the most frequent lipid-storage disease. It affects 1 in 50,000 people in the general population. It is most common in Ashkenazi Jews, affecting 1 in 1,000 among that specific population. The disease occurs in three subtypes -- Type 1 is the mildest and most common form of the disease, causing symptoms such as enlarged livers and spleens, anemia and bone disease. Type 2 causes very serious brain abnormalities and is usually fatal before the age of two, while Type 3 affects children and adolescents.

The condition is a recessive genetic disorder, meaning that both parents must be carriers for a child to suffer from Gaucher. However, said Dr. Feldman, studies have found that people with only one copy of a mutated Gaucher gene -- those known as carriers -- are at an increased risk of developing Parkinson's disease.

"This science is a reflection of the mission of the University of Maryland School of Medicine -- to take new treatments from bench to bedside, from the laboratory to patients, as quickly as possible," says E. Albert Reece, M.D., Ph.D., M.B.A., vice president for medical affairs at the University of Maryland and John Z. and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor and dean of the University of Maryland School of Medicine. "We are excited to see where this research goes next, bringing new hope to Gaucher patients and their families."

Dr. Feldman and his colleagues used the new reprogramming technology developed by Shinja Yamanaka in Japan, who was recognized with this year's Nobel Prize for Medicine or Physiology. Scientists engineered cells taken from the skin of Gaucher patients, creating human induced pluripotent stem cells, known as hiPSC -- stem cells that are theoretically capable of forming any type of cell in the body. Scientists differentiated the cells to form white blood cells known as macrophages and neuronal cells.

A key function of macrophages in the body is to ingest and eliminate damaged or aged red blood cells. In Gaucher disease, the macrophages are unable to do so -- they can't digest a lipid present in the red blood cell membrane. The macrophages become engorged with lipid and cannot completely clear the ingested red blood cells. This results in blockage of membrane transport pathways in the macrophages lodged in the bone marrow, spleen and liver. The macrophages that the scientists created from the reprogrammed stem cells exhibited this characteristic hallmark of the macrophages taken from Gaucher patients.

To further test the stem cells, the scientists administered a recombinant enzyme that is effective in treating Gaucher patients with Type 1 disease. When the cells were treated with the enzyme, the function of the macrophages was restored -- they completely cleared the red blood cells.

"The creation of these stem cell lines is a lovely piece of stem cell research," said Curt Civin, M.D., professor of pediatrics and physiology, associate dean for research and founding director of the Center for Stem Cell Biology & Regenerative Medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. "Dr. Feldman is already using these Gaucher patient-derived macrophages to better understand the disease fundamentals and to find novel medicines for Gaucher disease treatment. A major goal of our Center for Stem Cell Biology & Regenerative Medicine is to translate our fundamental discoveries into innovative and practical clinical applications that will enhance the understanding, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of many human diseases. Clinical applications include not only transplantation of stem cells, but also the use of stem cells for drug discovery as Dr. Feldman's studies so beautifully illustrate."

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Stem cell model for hereditary disease developed

Madison - The Nobel Prize in medicine last week went for research offering a possible alternative to embryonic stem cells, but voters attuned to questions of medical research and morality can still consider their alternatives in candidates.

President Barack Obama and U.S. Senate candidate Tammy Baldwin support federal funding for the full range of stem cell research going on in labs like those at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney hasn't directly said, while a spokeswoman for U.S. Senate candidate Tommy Thompson, the Republican challenging Baldwin, said he supports federal funding for research on some embryonic stem cell lines but not others.

The issue has gotten less attention nationally this election season but is still important in Wisconsin, the birthplace of human embryonic stem cell research and a leader in the study of how the tissues in our bodies grow. Embryonic stem cell research holds great promise to cure many diseases but is controversial because stem cell lines require the destruction of embryos already discarded by fertility clinics.

Conservative groups are confident that both Romney and Thompson would at least roll back Obama's expansion of federal funding for embryonic stem cells.

"The way we read (a Romney campaign) statement is he's not going to outlaw embryonic stem cells research, but he believes federal money should be put into the moral alternatives," said Barbara Lyons, executive director of Wisconsin Right to Life.

Of Thompson, Lyons said, "Tommy Thompson is opposed to federal funding of research that harms or destroys human embryos."

Human embryonic stem cells, first isolated by James Thomson of UW in 1998, drew attention for their ability to turn into any tissue in the human body but also for the controversy over how embryonic stem cell lines are created. Then in 2007, both Thomson and last week's Nobel Prize winner, Shinya Yamanaka, wowed the science world with their separate work on induced pluripotent stem cells, which behave similarly to embryonic stem cells but don't require the destruction of embryos.

The Romney campaign didn't directly answer a question from the Journal Sentinel on whether as president he would pull back federal funding for embryonic stem cells.

"He believes that, instead, federal funding should be limited to research involving adult stem cells or alternate methods that do not require embryo farming or cloning," the Romney campaign said in a statement that did not spell out the "alternate methods."

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How Thompson, Baldwin differ on stem cell research

AUSTIN, Texas, Oct. 12th, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Prominent stem cell scientists, physicians, and advocates from leading medical facilities and research institutions across Texas and California will highlight the 3rd Annual Stem Cell Research Symposium: Spotlight on Texas, on October 19, 2012, at the Texas State Capitol.

This free, public symposium, produced and co-hosted by the Austin-based nonprofit Texas Cures Education Foundation (Texas Cures), is designed to educate the public about the exciting stem cell research andclinical trials currently under way in Texas.The event will also include a discussion of recent Texas laws affecting stem cell research, the potential economic impact of stem cell research and highlight the current progress in one of the most promising areas of medicine.

This year, more than a dozen local and national advocacy groups, institutions and foundations showed their support for the efforts of the hosting organizations Texas Cures and Texans for Stem Cell Research including the Genetics Policy Institute, Alliance for Regenerative Medicine and Texans for Advancement of Medical Research.

The symposium begins at 8:30 a.m. in the Capitol Extension Auditorium (E1.004), located at the Texas State Capitol Building. Admission is free and open to the public.Registration is recommended.

This program unites the diverse stem cell research and regenerative medicine community to provide a unified voice for promising science that holds unmatched potential to benefit patients. Leading speakers at the event will include:

For additional details about the program and presentation topics, please visit TexasCures.org.

The 3rd Annual Stem Cell Research Symposium: Spotlight on Texas is an official World Stem Cell Awareness Day Event. Follow @TexasCures and #stemcellday for live Twitter updates and announcements.

Texas Cures Education Foundation (Texas Cures) TexasCures.orgis a non-partisan, nonprofit 501(c)3] organization based in Austin, Texas. It was founded for the purpose of advancing knowledge of the life-saving work that doctors and researchers perform every day on behalf of patients and their families. Texas Cures facilitates stem cell public education for the betterment of healthcare and the growth of companies, research hospitals, and institutions, charities, and volunteer patient group organizations that include a broad range of regenerative medicine stakeholders. Texas Cures advocates for responsible public policy and encourages legislative and regulatory proposals that expand access to stem cell clinical applications.

SOURCE Texas Cures Education Foundation

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Leading Researchers to Unite at Texas State Capitol for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research

Public release date: 12-Oct-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Marguerite Beck marbeck@wakehealth.edu 336-716-2415 Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. Oct. 12, 2012 Scientists at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center have taken the first steps to create neural-like stem cells from muscle tissue in animals. Details of the work are published in two complementary studies published in the September online issues of the journals Experimental Cell Research and Stem Cell Research.

"Reversing brain degeneration and trauma lesions will depend on cell therapy, but we can't harvest neural stem cells from the brain or spinal cord without harming the donor," said Osvaldo Delbono, M.D., Ph.D., professor of internal medicine at Wake Forest Baptist and lead author of the studies.

"Skeletal muscle tissue, which makes up 50 percent of the body, is easily accessible and biopsies of muscle are relatively harmless to the donor, so we think it may be an alternative source of neural-like cells that potentially could be used to treat brain or spinal cord injury, neurodegenerative disorders, brain tumors and other diseases, although more studies are needed."

In an earlier study, the Wake Forest Baptist team isolated neural precursor cells derived from skeletal muscle of adult transgenic mice (PLOS One, Feb.3, 2011).

In the current research, the team isolated neural precursor cells from in vitro adult skeletal muscle of various species including non-human primates and aging mice, and showed that these cells not only survived in the brain, but also migrated to the area of the brain where neural stem cells originate.

Another issue the researchers investigated was whether these neural-like cells would form tumors, a characteristic of many types of stem cells. To test this, the team injected the cells below the skin and in the brains of mice, and after one month, no tumors were found.

"Right now, patients with glioblastomas or other brain tumors have very poor outcomes and relatively few treatment options," said Alexander Birbrair, a doctoral student in Delbono's lab and first author of these studies. "Because our cells survived and migrated in the brain, we may be able to use them as drug-delivery vehicles in the future, not only for brain tumors but also for other central nervous system diseases."

In addition, the Wake Forest Baptist team is now conducting research to determine if these neural-like cells also have the capability to become functioning neurons in the central nervous system.

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Stem cells from muscle tissue may hold key to cell therapies for neurodegenerative diseases

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Bay Area stem cell researchers are reporting early, encouraging results from two clinical trials. The first, involves patients, paralyzed with spinal cord injuries and a treatment that could offer new hope for their future.

Nearly 20 years after the football injury that left him paralyzed, Roman Reed still holds onto the hope that he will someday walk again.

"One hundred percent, without a doubt. I've been wrong about the date, but not the fact I will walk again," said Reed.

Reed now runs a foundation to promote stem cell research and has been closely watching a clinical trial being conducted by Bay Area based Stem Cells Inc. Its goal is to use stem cell therapy to restore motor function in patients with spinal cord injuries.

"We're on the road on to being able to cure paralysis, it's so important, and stem cells are the way to do it," said Reed.

Stephen Huhn, M.D., Ph.D., from Stem Cells Inc., says the test procedure began a two hour surgery to clear a path to the spinal cord. Researchers then injected the cells directly into the damaged area.

"So the first three patients in the trial were designed to enroll patients who had the worst of the worst injuries. In other words, complete loss of sensory function and complete loss of motor function below the level of injury," said Huhn.

The phase one trials are all about establishing safety, but six months out, the researchers began measuring some intriguing improvements in two of those three patients. Both reported feeling in areas below the areas of their injuries.

The company cautions that the data is very preliminary, but they say researchers were able to measure the improved sensory response using several testing methods, including electrical stimulation, and response to heat -- which are considered more accurate than the patient's own self-reporting.

"You can't fake that. When we saw that data, that's when we became very excited," said Martin McGlynn, the CEO of Stems Cells Inc.

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Bay Area stem cell researchers see encouraging results

NOKOMIS, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

The awarding of the Nobel Prize this week to two scientists who have revolutionized stem cell research could lead to an influx of investment capital into the industry, said Rainbow Coral Corp. (RBCC) CEO Patrick Brown on Wednesday.

Japans Shinya Yamanaka and Britain's John Gurdon were jointly awarded the medicine prize for proving that adult cells can be regressed back into stem cells, creating cells known as induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS) that allow for stem-cell research that doesnt necessitate the destruction of a fetus.

The tremendous recognition of this groundbreaking research that the Nobel Prize brings could spark a host of medical breakthroughs, investment interest and business developments in the stem cell field, Brown said. Its a very exciting time to be part of a young company striving to grow alongside this explosive industry.

Wire service AFP reported this week that Yamanaka will likely get up to 30 billion yen ($383 million) for his stem cell research over the next decade. RBCC is currently working to help speed up the research of Yamanaka and others into potential cures for deadly diseases by commercializing the use of a groundbreaking new technology in select markets around the world. The company has engaged Regenetech in discussions regarding the potential acquisition of a license to perform cell expansion using that companys Rotary Cell Culture SystemTM.

RBCC plans to offer the new technology to help kickstart billions of dollars worth of research in an industry currently dominated by Amgen, Inc. (AMGN), Celgene Corporation (CELG), Genzyme Corp. (NASDAQ:GENZ) and Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD).

For more information on Rainbow BioSciences, please visit http://www.rainbowbiosciences.com/investors.html.

About Rainbow BioSciences

Rainbow BioSciences, LLC, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Rainbow Coral Corp. (OTCBB:RBCC). The company continually seeks out new partnerships with biotechnology developers to deliver profitable new medical technologies and innovations. For more information on our growth-oriented business initiatives, please visit our website at [http://www.RainbowBioSciences.com]. For investment information and performance data on the company, please visit http://www.RainbowBioSciences.com/investors.html.

Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

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RBCC: Nobel Prize Could Bring Big Investments in Stem Cell Research

Public release date: 11-Oct-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: David McKeon dmckeon@nyscf.org 212-365-7440 New York Stem Cell Foundation

NEW YORK, NY (October 11, 2012) For the second day, The New York Stem Cell Foundation (NYSCF) Seventh Annual Translational Stem Cell Research Conference hosts the world's most preeminent stem cell scientists to present their findings on how advances in stem cell science lead to better treatments and cures for disease and injury. The conference is held at The Rockefeller University in Manhattan on October 10-11.

Today, in disease-specific sessions, scientists will share their latest finds in moving stem cell research to treatments in the following areas: cancer and blood disease; diabetes and autoimmunity; heart and muscles; neurodegeneration and spinal cord injury.

In Cancer and Blood Disease, Elaine Fuchs, PhD, The Rockefeller University, will share findings on identification of skin cancer stem cells, which have implications in understanding other cancers as well as stem cells. Joanne Kurtzberg, MD, Duke University, will discuss her work developing therapies for disease with autologous cord blood transplants. Ravi Majeti, PhD, Stanford University, will describe his recent insights into acute myeloid leukemia and how stem cell technologies can lead to new cancer treatments.

Dieter Egli, PhD, The New York Stem Cell Foundation (NYSCF), will open the session on Diabetes and Autoimmunity by detailing his group's development of stem cell-derived models of pancreatic beta cells for the study of diabetes. Yuval Dor, PhD, Hebrew University, Israel, will discuss experiments with pancreatic beta cells with the goal to understand the regenerative potential of these cells. Matthias von Herrath, MD, Novo Nordisk, will delve into another aspect of Type 1 diabetes, the problem of autoimmunity. He will close the session by sharing insights into the need for an immune modulated therapy to diabetes.

Before the afternoon sessions, Shahin Rafii, MD, Weill Medical College of Cornell University will deliver the first of two keynote addresses of the conference. He will describe his recent successes in deriving vascular cells from amniotic cells.

In the afternoon session on Heart and Muscle Diseases, Amy Wagers, PhD, Harvard University, will focus on advances in treatments and explain how studies into the mechanisms of tissue stem cell renewal may have relevant therapeutic implications. Gordon Keller, PhD, McEwen Centre for Regenerative Medicine, Canada, will describe modeling cardiac cell development from human pluripotent cells for use in toxicology and electrophysiology studies. Helen Blau, PhD, Stanford University, will describe her research to improve stem cell culture in the direction of stem cell fate and for drug screens.

In Neurodegeneration and Spinal Cord Injury, Paola Arlotta, PhD, Harvard University and a NYSCF-Robertson Stem Cell Investigator, will address the application of stem cells to understanding and possibly treating these debilitating diseases and conditions, and will describe investigations to direct reprogramming of neurons into different neuronal lineages. Lorenz Studer, MD, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, will discuss the potential stem cell technology holds in the treatment of Parkinson's disease. Despite past failures in the replacement of lost dopamine neurons, Dr. Studer will describe his novel protocols for the generation of these neurons for eventual use in clinical trials.

Rudolf Jaenisch, MD, The Whitehead Institute, will deliver the second keynote address of the day. Building on Shinya Yamanaka's paradigm-changing work in induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell reprogramming, Dr. Jaenisch will discuss new methods to counter the generally low successful output of these cells. He will also summarize how targeted genome editing may help unleash the potential of iPS cells and embryonic stem cells for both the study of and therapy for disease.

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Scientists discuss stem cell discoveries at New York Stem Cell Foundation Conference

Japan's Nobel prize-winning Shinya Yamanaka will likely get up to 30 billion yen ($383 million) for his stem cell research over the next decade, an official said Wednesday.

The Japanese science and technology ministry is looking at giving at least 2.7 billion yen of extra money to support Yamanaka's work over the next fiscal year alone, a ministry official said.

"The government plans to continue this programme for the following 10 years, while Dr Yamanaka will also receive other subsidies as well," he said on condition of anonymity, adding the grant was already planned before his Nobel prize was announced.

The total subsidies likely to be given to the scientist are estimated to be worth up to 30 billion yen over the decade.

Yamanaka and Britain's John Gurdon were jointly honoured with the medicine prize for discovering that adult cells can be transformed back to an infant state called stem cells, the key ingredient in the vision of regenerative medicine.

The Japanese was singled out for his work in the field of so-called induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells.

So-called "nuclear reprogramming" uses a fully-developed adult cell to create an iPS cell -- a kind of blank slate that has the potential to become any other kind of cell in the body.

Scientists say in this way they can generate materials either to experiment on, or to use within the body -- perhaps as a means of repairing or even replacing damaged or diseased organs.

Yamanaka had previously called for more government support for his research, and had run a charity marathon to raise funds last year.

The news came as it was announced US chemists Robert Lefkowitz and Brian Kobilka had won the Nobel Prize for chemistry for identifying a class of cell receptor, yielding vital insights into how the body works at the molecular level.

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Japan stem cell Nobel laureate to get research boost

LA JOLLA, Calif., Oct. 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --New research directions are being explored to find therapies for hard to treat diseases. One exciting new approach is the use of autologous Adult Stem Cells. Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is one of the many notable diseasesadult stem cell therapycould potentially impact. Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a disorder in which an individual's own immune system attacks the 'myelin sheath'. The myelin sheath serves to protect the nerve cells within the body's central nervous system (CNS). The damage caused by MS may result in many types of symptoms including:

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20121010/LA89802-INFO)

Currently there is no cure for MS, but MS stem cell therapiesattempt to slow the disease's progression and limit symptoms. Since adult stem cells have the ability to differentiate into many different types of cells, such as those required for proper functioning and protection of nerve cells, the use of adult stem cells for MS therapy could be of substantial value. Adult stem cells can be isolated with relative ease from an individual's own 'adipose' (fat) tissue. As a result, adult stem cell therapy is not subject to the ethical or religious issues troubling embryonic methods.

Encouragingly for MS treatment potential, scientific researchers have been studying the properties of adipose-derived stem cells. Their results from canine and equine studies suggest anti-inflammatory and regenerative roles for these stem cells. Also, further research findings suggest these adipose-derived stem cells can have specific immune-regulating properties. Markedly, clinical-based work conducted overseas has indicated that individuals suffering from MS could respond well to adipose-derived stem cell treatment, with a substantially improved quality of life.

The US based company, StemGenex, is pioneering new methods for using adipose derived adult stem cells to help in diseases with limited treatment options like MS. StemGenex has been conducting research with physicians over the last 5 years to advance adult stem cell treatment protocols for alleviating MS symptoms. StemGenex's proprietary protocol includes the use of a double activation process, which increases both the viability and the quantity of stem cells that are received in a single application.

To find out more about stem cell treatments contact StemGenex either by phone at 800.609.7795 or email at Contact@StemGenex.com.

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StemGenex™ on Adult Stem Cell-Based Therapy for Multiple Sclerosis