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NEW YORK, Oct. 8, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- NeoStem, Inc. (NYSE MKT:NBS), an emerging leader in the fast growing cell therapy market, announced today that data from its collaborative studies with the University of Michigan School of Dentistry further expands the therapeutic potential of its proprietary regenerative cell therapy product, "VSELSTM" (very small embryonic-like stem cells), by demonstrating bone regeneration capabilities in a study published online ahead of print1 in the journal Stem Cells and Development (DOI: 10.1089/scd.2012.0327). The paper highlights that human VSEL stem cells form human bone when implanted in the bone tissue of SCID mice.

VSELs are a population of stem cells found in adult bone marrow with potential regenerative properties similar to those of embryonic stem cells. NeoStem has shown that these cells can be mobilized into the peripheral blood, enabling a minimally invasive means for collecting what NeoStem believes to be a population of stem cells that have the potential to achieve the positive benefits associated with embryonic stem cells without the ethical or moral dilemmas or the potential negative effects known to be associated with embryonic stem cells.

This published controlled study, funded by NIH and led by Dr. Russell Taichman, Major Ash Collegiate Professor and Co-Director of the Scholars Program in Dental Leadership Department of Periodontics & Oral Medicine, University of Michigan and Dr. Aaron Havens, Department of Orthodontics and Pediatric Dentistry at University of Michigan, involved isolating G-CSF mobilized VSEL stem cells from the blood of healthy donors and transplanting them into burr holes made in the cranial bones of SCID mice. After three months, it was observed that the implanted VSEL stem cells had differentiated into human bone tissue in the crania of the mice. Dr. Taichman stated, "I believe this work represents a true partnership between Industry and Academic Institutions. Our findings that VSEL cells can generate human bone in animals would not have been feasible without the help and vision that Dr. Denis Rodgerson and his team at NeoStem brought to the table. It was my privilege to have been a part of this collaborative effort, and I see the resulting data as a significant milestone in stem cell therapy development. It is truly inspiring."

Dr. Robin Smith, Chairman and CEO of NeoStem, added, "This is very exciting data that we believe will be the foundation for future VSEL stem cell studies of bone regeneration in humans. We look forward to moving the development work from the laboratory into the clinic to develop a therapeutic stem cell product to enhance bone formation in humans."

About NeoStem, Inc.

NeoStem, Inc. continues to develop and build on its core capabilities in cell therapy, capitalizing on the paradigm shift that we see occurring in medicine. In particular, we anticipate that cell therapy will have a significant role in the fight against chronic disease and in lessening the economic burden that these diseases pose to modern society. We are emerging as a technology and market leading company in this fast developing cell therapy market. Our multi-faceted business strategy combines a state-of-the-art contract development and manufacturing subsidiary, Progenitor Cell Therapy, LLC ("PCT"), with a medically important cell therapy product development program, enabling near and long-term revenue growth opportunities. We believe this expertise and existing research capabilities and collaborations will enable us to achieve our mission of becoming a premier cell therapy company.

Our contract development and manufacturing service business supports the development of proprietary cell therapy products. NeoStem's most clinically advanced therapeutic, AMR-001, is being developed at Amorcyte, LLC ("Amorcyte"), which we acquired in October 2011. Amorcyte is developing a cell therapy for the treatment of cardiovascular disease and is enrolling patients in a Phase 2 trial to investigate AMR-001's efficacy in preserving heart function after a heart attack. Athelos Corporation ("Athelos"), which is approximately 80%-owned by our subsidiary, PCT, is collaborating with Becton-Dickinson in the early clinical exploration of a T-cell therapy for autoimmune conditions. In addition, pre-clinical assets include our VSELTM Technology platform as well as our mesenchymal stem cell product candidate for regenerative medicine. Our service business and pipeline of proprietary cell therapy products work in concert, giving us a competitive advantage that we believe is unique to the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries. Supported by an experienced scientific and business management team and a substantial intellectual property estate, we believe we are well positioned to succeed.

Forward-Looking Statements for NeoStem, Inc.

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements reflect management's current expectations, as of the date of this press release, and involve certain risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements include statements herein with respect to the successful execution of the Company's business strategy, including with respect to the Company's or its partners' successful development of AMR-001 and other cell therapeutics, the size of the market for such products, its competitive position in such markets, the Company's ability to successfully penetrate such markets and the market for its CDMO business, and the efficacy of protection from its patent portfolio, as well as the future of the cell therapeutics industry in general, including the rate at which such industry may grow. Forward looking statements also include statements with respect to satisfying all conditions to closing the disposition of Erye, including receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals in the PRC. The Company's actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward- looking statements as a result of various factors, including but not limited to (i) the Company's ability to manage its business despite operating losses and cash outflows, (ii) its ability to obtain sufficient capital or strategic business arrangement to fund its operations, including the clinical trials for AMR-001, (iii) successful results of the Company's clinical trials of AMR-001 and other cellular therapeutic products that may be pursued, (iv) demand for and market acceptance of AMR-001 or other cell therapies if clinical trials are successful and the Company is permitted to market such products, (v) establishment of a large global market for cellular-based products, (vi) the impact of competitive products and pricing, (vii) the impact of future scientific and medical developments, (viii) the Company's ability to obtain appropriate governmental licenses and approvals and, in general, future actions of regulatory bodies, including the FDA and foreign counterparts, (ix) reimbursement and rebate policies of government agencies and private payers, (x) the Company's ability to protect its intellectual property, (xi) the company's ability to successfully divest its interest in Erye, and (xii) matters described under the "Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 20, 2012 and in the Company's other periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, all of which are available on its website. The Company does not undertake to update its forward-looking statements. The Company's further development is highly dependent on future medical and research developments and market acceptance, which is outside its control.

(1) Human Very Small Embryonic-Like Cells Generate Skeletal Structures, In Vivo. Havens A., et al., Stem Cells and Development.

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NeoStem Announces Very Small Embryonic-Like Cells (VSEL(TM)) Publication in Stem Cells and Development

1 of 7. Kyoto University Professor Shinya Yamanaka (L) and John Gurdon of the Gurdon Institute in Cambridge are seen at a symposium on induced pluripotent stem cell in Tokyo, in this photo taken by Kyodo on April 2008.

Credit: Reuters/Kyodo

By Anna Ringstrom

STOCKHOLM | Mon Oct 8, 2012 11:27am EDT

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Scientists from Britain and Japan shared a Nobel Prize on Monday for the discovery that adult cells can be transformed back into embryo-like stem cells that may one day regrow tissue in damaged brains, hearts or other organs.

John Gurdon, 79, of the Gurdon Institute in Cambridge, Britain and Shinya Yamanaka, 50, of Kyoto University in Japan, discovered ways to create tissue that would act like embryonic cells, without the need to collect the cells from embryos.

They share the $1.2 million Nobel Prize for Medicine, for work Gurdon began 50 years ago and Yamanaka capped with a 2006 experiment that transformed the field of "regenerative medicine" - the search for ways to cure disease by growing healthy tissue.

"These groundbreaking discoveries have completely changed our view of the development and specialization of cells," the Nobel Assembly at Stockholm's Karolinska Institute said.

All of the body starts as stem cells, before developing into tissue like skin, blood, nerves, muscle and bone. The big hope is that stem cells can grow to replace damaged tissue in cases from spinal cord injuries to Parkinson's disease.

Scientists once thought it was impossible to turn adult tissue back into stem cells. That meant new stem cells could only be created by taking them from embryos, which raised ethical objections that led to research bans in some countries.

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UK, Japan scientists win Nobel for adult stem cell discovery

Two scientists who discovered the developmental clock could be turned back in mature cells, transforming them into immature cells with the ability to become any tissue in the body pluripotent stem cells are being honored with the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

The Nobel Prize honoring Sir John B. Gurdon and Shinya Yamanaka was announced today (Oct. 8) by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

Th duo's work revealed what scientists had thought impossible. Just after conception, an embryo contains immature cells that can give rise to any cell type such as nerve, muscle and liver cells in the adult organism; these are called pluripotent stem cells, and scientists believed once these stem cells become specialized to carry out a specific body task there was no turning back.

Gurdon, now at the Gurdon Institute in Cambridge, England, found this wasn't the case when in 1962 he replaced the nucleus of a frog's egg cell with the nucleus taken from a mature intestinal cell from a tadpole. And voila, the altered frog egg developed into a tadpole, suggesting the mature nucleus held the instructions needed to become all cells in the frog, as if it were a young unspecialized cell. In fact, later experiments using nuclear transfer have produced cloned mammals. [5 Amazing Stem Cell Discoveries]

Then in 2006, Yamanaka, who was born in 1962 when Gurdon reported his discovery and is now at Kyoto University, genetically reprogrammed mature skin cells in mice to become immature cells able to become any cell in the adult mice, which he named induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS). Scientists can now derive such induced pluripotent stem cells from adult nerve, heart and liver cells, allowing new ways to study diseases.

When Yamanaka received the call from Stockholm about his award, he was doing housework, according to an interview with the Nobel Prize website. "It is a tremendous honor to me," Yamanaka said during that interview.

As for his hopes for mankind with regard to stem cells, he said, "My goal, all my life, is to bring this technology, stem cell technology, to the bedside, to patients, to clinics." He added that the first clinical trials of iPS cells will begin next year.

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Stem Cell Discoveries Snag Nobel Prize in Medicine

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Scientists from Britain and Japan shared the Nobel Prize in Medicine on Monday for the discovery that adult cells can be reprogrammed back into stem cells which can turn into any kind of tissue and may one day repair damaged organs.

John Gurdon, 79, of the Gurdon Institute in Cambridge, Britain and Shinya Yamanaka, 50, of Kyoto University in Japan, discovered ways to create tissue that would act like embryonic cells, without the need to harvest embryos. They share the $1.2 million prize equally.

"These groundbreaking discoveries have completely changed our view of the development and specialisation of cells," the Nobel Assembly at Stockholm's Karolinska Institute said in a statement.

The big hope for stem cells is that they can be used to replace damaged tissues in everything from spinal cord injuries to Parkinson's disease.

All of the tissue in the body starts as stem cells, before developing into mature skin, blood, nerves, muscle and bone.

Scientists once thought it was impossible to turn adult tissue back into stem cells, which meant that new stem cells could only be created by harvesting embryos. But Yamanaka and Gurdon showed that development can be reversed, turning adult cells back into cells that behave like embryos.

With "induced pluripotency stem cells", or iPS cells, ordinary skin or blood cells from adults are transformed back into stem cells which doctors hope will be able to repair damaged organs without being rejected by the immune system.

There are concerns, however, that iPS cells could grow out of control and develop into tumours.

"The eventual aim is to provide replacement cells of all kinds," Gurdon's Institute explains on its website.

"We would like to be able to find a way of obtaining spare heart or brain cells from skin or blood cells. The important point is that the replacement cells need to be from the same individual, to avoid problems of rejection and hence of the need for immunosuppression."

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UK, Japan scientists win Nobel for stem cell breakthroughs

LONDON (Reuters) - The Nobel Prize-winning discovery of how to reprogram ordinary cells to behave like embryonic stem cells offers a way to skirt around ethical problems with human embryos, but safety concerns make their future use in treating disease uncertain.

While researchers have already applied the scientific breakthroughs of Britain's John Gurdon and Japan's Shinya Yamanaka to study how diseases develop, making such cells into new treatments will involve a lot more checks.

Stem cells act as the body's master cells, providing the source material for all other cells. They could transform medicine by regenerating tissue for diseases ranging from blindness to Parkinson's disease.

Creating embryo-like stem cells without destroying embryos gets round a key controversy by avoiding the need to process embryos left over at fertility clinics - a system that has led to political objections in the United States and elsewhere.

Reprogrammed cells - known as induced pluripotent stem cells, or iPS cells - offer an ethically neutral alternative. They have been a source of intense research since Yamanaka discovered their potential in 2006, building on work that Gurdon did in frogs and tadpoles 40 years earlier.

SAFETY CONCERNS

Recently, however, different research groups have noticed problems with iPS cells, suggesting they may not be as good as embryonic ones. In one study, iPS cells died more quickly and another found multiple genetic mutations, raising concerns that they could cause tumors.

Despite this, Japanese researchers hope to test iPS cells in clinical trials for a form of blindness as early as next year - catching up with recent successful eye trials using embryonic stem cells.

Researchers in the West are generally more wary.

"There is a bit of a divergence between Japan and the rest of the world on this," Chris Mason, professor of regenerative medicine at University College London, told Reuters.

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Analysis: Reprogrammed cells open new medical window

Experiments which turned mice stem cells into viable eggs used to create offspring via in vitro fertilisation would be fraught with scientific and ethical hurdles in humans, Australian researchers say.

The findings, by Japanese researchers and published in the journal Science Express, showed eggs created from the mice stem cells could be fertilised and transplanted into female mice who gave birth to newborn pups.

But Australian researchers warned that although the findings showed it might be possible to create eggs from human stem cells in the same way, this was not an option at present.

"The study suggests that it may be possible one day to create functioning useable human eggs, called oocytes, but this is not feasible or viable at this time," said Bryce Vissel from the Garvan Institute of Medical Research in Sydney.

Dr Vissel said creating human eggs would remain fraught with scientific challenges and hurdles, including major questions relating to viability, reliability and safety.

He said the real importance of the study was that it could allow more investigation into how human female eggs developed.

Reproductive professor at the University of Adelaide, Robert Norman, said the research offered hope to infertile couples who wanted their own children, but application in humans was still a long way off.

"For many infertile couples, finding they have no sperm or eggs is a devastating blow for which there is no solution other than to not have children, or to use donor gametes," he said.

Using donors was a complex emotional and social issue, Prof Norman said.

"If a person with no gametes could use their own cells to create a child, all the problems would disappear."

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Eggs created from mice stem cells

Published: Oct. 7, 2012 at 1:05 AM

NEW YORK, Oct. 7 (UPI) -- An experimental treatment using skin cells to improve the vision of blind mice may help those with macular degeneration, U.S. researchers say.

Dr. Stephen Tsang of the Columbia University Medical Center in New York and colleagues said the findings suggest induced pluripotent stem cells -- derived from adult human skin cells but with embryonic properties -- could soon be used to restore vision in people with macular degeneration.

"With eye diseases, I think we're getting close to a scenario where a patient's own skin cells are used to replace retina cells destroyed by disease or degeneration," Tsang said in a statement. "It's often said that induced pluripotent stem cells transplantation will be important in the practice of medicine in some distant future, but our paper suggests the future is almost here."

Like embryonic stem cells, induced pluripotent stem cells can develop into any type of cell.

None of these cells has been transplanted into people, but many ophthalmologists said the eye is the ideal testing ground.

"The eye is a transparent and accessible part of the central nervous system, and that's a big advantage," Tsang said. "We can put cells into the eye and monitor them every day with routine non-invasive clinical exams and in the event of serious complications, removing the eye is not a life-threatening event."

The study was published online in advance the print edition of Molecular Medicine

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Skin stem cells may help avoid blindness

Published: Oct. 5, 2012 at 3:23 PM

KYOTO, Japan, Oct. 5 (UPI) -- Mouse stem cells have been used to create eggs and sperm producing healthy offspring, a result that may aid human fertility, Japanese scientists say.

If the procedure can be repeated in humans the technique could make it easier for women in their 30s or 40s to have children and could help men and women whose reproductive organs have been damaged by cancer treatments or other causes.

"These studies provide that next level of evidence that in the future fertility could be managed with stem cell intervention," Teresa Woodruff, chief of fertility preservation at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine, told the Los Angeles Times.

Using stem cells to grow new eggs is particularly important since women are born with a set number and don't make more once they are gone.

The stem cell technique would in effect allow them to turn back their biological clocks, Stanford stem cell researcher Renee A. Reijo Pera said.

"This is a get-them-back strategy," she said.

About 10 percent of American women of childbearing age have trouble becoming or staying pregnant, and more than one-third of infertile couples are dealing with a medical problem in the prospective father, the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta said.

Dr. Mitinori Saitou and colleagues at Kyoto University detailed how they generated the functional mouse eggs in the journal Science and the same researchers reported doing the same thing with mouse sperm last year.

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Eggs produced from stem cells

October 5, 2012

Lee Rannals for redOrbit.com Your Universe Online

Japanese scientists reported in the journal Science that they have created life using stem cells made from skin.

The skin cells were used to create eggs which were then fertilized to produce baby mice, who later had their own babies.

The technique has implications that may possibly help infertile couples have children, and maybe could even allow women to overcome menopause.

About one in 10 women of childbearing age face trouble becoming a parent, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Last year, the scientists at Kyoto University were able to make viable sperm from stem cells. In the more recent study, the team was able to perform a similar accomplishment with eggs.

The researchers used two sources, including those collected from an embryo and skin-like cells, that were reprogrammed into becoming stem cells.

After turning the stem cells into early versions of eggs, they rebuilt an ovary by surrounding the early eggs with other types of supporting cells normally found in an ovary.

They used IVF techniques to collect the eggs, fertilize them with sperm from a male mouse and implant the fertilized egg into a surrogate mother.

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Healthy Mice Created From Skin Stem Cells In Lab

Research performed on mice to create sperm and eggs from stem cells raises possibilities for humans, with big implications for same-sex couples.

A breakthrough in fertility research lays open the possibility that gay and lesbian couples could someday have children who are completely their own, genetically speaking.

Researchers at Kyoto University in Japan have created eggs from stem cells in mice and used them to produce healthy offspring, NPR reports. They first used embryonic stem cells, then repeated the results stem cells created from adult cells, such as blood or skin. The same team previously created sperm from stem cells. Stem cells can morph into any cell in the body, observed NPR reporter Rob Stein.

If the results from mice could be duplicated in humans a far-off possibility, granted, but scientists say mice are sufficiently similar to humans that it could happen same-sex couples could create their own sperm and eggs and join them to have a child.

There are lots of lesbian and gay couples who would be very excited about the possibility for the first time of being able to have children who are genetically their own, Hank Greely, a bioethicist at Stanford University, told Stein.

Such a breakthrough could also help women who have passed their childbearing years or who are infertile for medical reasons. It raises some questions, though, about the ethics of the procedure, scientists said. For instance, could prospective parents create a child with certain desired traits, and would it be morally acceptable for them to do so?

Its like any other technology, said Daniel Sulmasy, a professor of medicine and ethics at the University of Chicago. Whatever weve done in humankind whether its discovering fire or creating the wheel you can use these things to do lots of good and you can use them immoral ways.

The Kyoto University study was published in this weeks issue of the journal Science.

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Fertility Research Opens Possibilities for Gay and Lesbian Couples