Category Archives: Stem Cells

Stem cells taken from ALS patients may have the same capacity to develop into mature neuron-like cells as those collected from healthy donors, according to a new study released this month in STEM CELLS Translational Medicine. These findings could open doors to a possible new treatment option while also reducing the chance for rejection and other side effects often seen when someone other than the patient is the cell donor.

Durham, NC (PRWEB) February 08, 2013

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrigs Disease, is a rapidly deteriorating neurological condition affecting five out of every 100,000 people worldwide, mainly after the age of 50. The average survival time is only three years.

While no effective treatment exists, preliminary studies suggest that the quality of life and even life expectancy itself could be improved in patients who receive stem cell infusions. However, questions remain about the capacity of these cells to take hold and turn into neurons.

The study involved stem cells that bear the surface antigen CD133+, which have been shown to have a very low association with creating cancers. These cells can be isolated from a wide range of sources including bone marrow, peripheral blood and umbilical cord. A group of researchers from the Tecnolgico de Monterrey School of Medicine, in Monterrey, Mexico, led by Hector Martinez, M.D., Ph.D., Maria Teresa Gonzlez-Garza, Ph.D., and Jorge Moreno Cuevas, M.D., Ph.D., recently reported on the effects of CD133+ stem cells taken from peripheral blood of affected patients and transplanted into their own brains.

In this earlier trial, we provide evidence of a positive clinical response in ALS patients treated with auto-transplantation of CD133+ cells into the frontal motor cortex. However, there was an important question remaining to be answered: Were CD133+ cells obtained from ALS patients capable of transforming into neural cells? The present study demonstrated in a convincing manner the promise of CD133+ cells obtained from affected individual with ALS to transform into cells with neural potential, Dr. Martinez said.

The team collected CD133+ cells from 13 patients diagnosed with ALS and then grew the cells in the lab for a period lasting up to 48 hours. At the end of the two days, they saw an increase in neuronal proteins. This suggested that the stem cells were in the early stages of becoming neurons. Furthermore, the expression of some specific genes within the same time period indicated that the fate towards motor neurons, the neurons being destroyed in Lou Gehrigs patients, was underway.

No correlation was found between age, sex or ALS functional scale and the CD133+ stem cells response to the neuro-induction medium, Dr. Gonzlez-Garza said. Therefore, we concluded that CD133+ stem cells from ALS patients are capable of differentiating into pre-neuron cells, as well as the stem cells from healthy subjects.

These new findings provide the scientific basis for the positive clinical observations in patients with ALS treated by autotransplantation with CD133+ cells in the frontal cortex. But more importantly, they also give credence to the field of stem cell transplantation in other potentially fatal neurodegenerative conditions, Dr. Cuevas added.

This study may help explain the positive clinical outcomes obtained by stem cell transplantation in ALS patients and suggest the potential of stem cell therapy for conditions such as stroke and Parkinsons disease, said Anthony Atala, M.D., Editor of STEM CELLS Translational Medicine and director of the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine.

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ALS Patients’ Own Stem Cells Show Promise as a Future Treatment Option

8 February 2013

The use of bone stem cells combined with a degradable rigid material that inserts into broken bones and encourages real bone to re-grow has been developed at the Universities of Edinburgh and Southampton.

Researchers are said to have developed the material with a honeycomb scaffold structure that allows blood to flow through it, enabling stem cells from the patients bone marrow to attach to the material and grow new bone. Over time, the plastic slowly degrades as the implant is replaced by newly grown bone.

According to a statement, scientists developed the material by blending three types of plastics. They used a technique to blend and test hundreds of combinations of plastics, to identify a blend that was robust, lightweight, and able to support bone stem cells. Successful results have been shown in the lab and in animal testing with the focus now moving towards human clinical evaluation.

The study, published in Advanced Functional Materials, was funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council.

This new discovery is the result of a seven-year partnership between the two universities.

Richard Oreffo, Professor of Musculoskeletal Science at the University of Southampton, said, Fractures and bone loss due to trauma or disease are a significant clinical and socioeconomic problem.

This collaboration between chemistry and medicine has identified unique candidate materials that support human bone stem cell growth and allow bone formation. Our collaborative strategy offers significant therapeutic implications.

Prof Mark Bradley, of Edinburgh Universitys School of Chemistry, added, We were able to make and look at a hundreds of candidate materials and rapidly whittle these down to one which is strong enough to replace bone and is also a suitable surface upon which to grow new bone.

We are confident that this material could soon be helping to improve the quality of life for patients with severe bone injuries, and will help maintain the health of an ageing population.

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Stem cells and plastics combined to heal bones

A multidisciplinary team has developed a technique for rebuilding broken bones by inserting a degradable material and stem cells into them.

In 2012 a Glaswegian team developed a polymer implant that used stem cells to graft on to the marrow inside the bone and make for a more streamlined fix. This was, however, a method for lengthening the time an implant -- such as joints in a hip replacement -- can do its job properly. One year on, and the Department of Musculoskeletal Science at the University of Southampton and the University of Edinburgh's School of Chemistry have published their proposal for effective bone regrowth around an implant.

The degradable material was generated using solvent blending, an automatic process that sees hundreds of natural and synthetic polymers mixed and tested to get the right combination of strength and flexibility.

"Several of the blend materials were found to be excellent supports for human bone marrow-derived skeletal cells and foetal skeletal cells, with the optimised blend exhibiting in vivo osteogenic potential," state the authors, "suggesting that these polymer blends could act as suitable matrices for bioengineering of hard tissues".

The material, made from three different plastics, was then built into a 3D honeycomb pattern to act as scaffolding for the bone stem cells (generated using marrow cells). Tiny holes in the material permit blood flow, feeding the stem cells which can attach themselves all around the structure to form new bones.

"Fractures and bone loss due to trauma or disease are a significant clinical and socioeconomic problem," said Richard Oreffo of the University of Southampton in a statement. "This collaboration between chemistry and medicine has identified unique candidate materials that support human bone stem cell growth and allow bone formation."

It's not the first time a solution like this has been proposed. In 2010 Paul Wooley of the Centre of Innovation for Biomaterials in Orthopaedic Research claimed to have regrown bone inside a mammal's leg using a porous composite material akin to the honeycomb now being used. According to Wooley, bone and blood vessels grew around and through the material in six weeks. It could, he claimed, mean the prevention of countless amputations.

The Southampton-Edinburgh research is novel in its use of solvent blending to get the right materials for the job. Wooley had wanted to use aviation composites, whereas in the latest piece of research every effort has been made to engineer a material effective enough to do the job, with no chance of rejection, but supple enough that it can degrade over time leaving a fully-grown piece of bone intact.

The findings have been published in the Advanced Functional Materials.

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Stem cells and degradable implants encourage bone regrowth

The state of the art Laboratory and clinic at World Stem Cells Clinic announces its latest in Stem Cell Treatments and procedures to rejuvenate the face, body, organs and increase the feeling of well being.

Lutz, Florida (PRWEB) February 07, 2013

The Stem Cell Treatment at World Stem Cells Clinic takes 5 days to complete as the treatments are comprehensive and designed to maximize the benefits and safety a patient derive from the process.

World Stem Cells, LLC worldstemcells.com will provide patient management service assisting the patient on their flight, hotel, provide transportation to and from the airport, transportation to and from your hotel to World Stem Cells Clinic, provide 24/7 communication and be the patients ombudsmen.

FACTS ABOUT AGING

The science shows each minute, our body is dying, this is a fact. Each minute that passes by our body has lost 300,000,000 cells. That means the cells that die in our body equals the population of the United States, each and every single minute. As we age less and less of those cells are replace and we slowly decay. Doctors have see people over a 100 that if cut nothing happens as there are no cells to close the wound.

Thus Aging is a result of progressive depletion of stem cells, so the introduction of new stem cells and adjunctive treatments has the potential of slowing down or reversing this process. Stem cells possess a unique anti-aging effect by regenerating and repairing organs, improving immune function, repair damaged by stress, and various toxins we are exposed to in our daily life.

Stem Cells often thought of as futuristic, controversial and unknown, are now providing the latest anti-Aging, rejuvenation and beauty secret.

THE SIGNS OF AGING

The signs of aging generally start at 40, earlier for those who have burned the candle at both ends , smokers, have been under stress or in contact with toxic sustenances and generally later for those who have had less stress, non smokers, exercised and eat properly but in the end we all will age. Some of the signs of aging are:

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Living to 100 with Anti-Aging and Rejuvenation Stem Cells Therapy

Thediscovery of until now elusive taste stem cells on the tongue will help researchers and industry better understand the complexities of human taste, say researchers.

The breakthrough, byresearchers at the Monell Chemical Sciences Center, USA, will help to develop new techniques to grow and manipulate fully functional taste cells for use in research and clinical treatments, say thescientists behind the finding.

Writing in the journal Stem Cells,the Monell team explains that for decades taste scientists have attempted to identify the stem - or progenitor - cells that spawn the different taste receptor cells. This elusive challenge also sought to establish whether one, or several, progenitors were involved, and where they were located, they said.

Led by senior author Dr Peihua Jiang, the research team said that the identification of the location and certain genetic characteristics of taste stem cells on the tongue will kick-start research that better understands the make-up of human taste, and could someday help treat clinical taste dysfunctions.

"This is just the tip of the iceberg," said Jiang. "Identification of these cells opens up a whole new area for studying taste cell renewal, and contributes to stem cell biology in general."

"Cancer patients who have taste loss following radiation to the head and neck and elderly individuals with diminished taste function are just two populations who could benefit from the ability to activate adult taste stem cells," explained Dr Robert Margolskee, who also worked on the study.

Tasty findings

The team explained that taste cells are located in clusters called taste buds, which in turn are found in papillae, the raised bumps visible on the tongue's surface. In these structures, there are two types of taste cells that contain the chemical receptors that initiate perception of sweet, bitter, umami, salty, and sour taste qualities while a third type appears to serve as a supporting cell.

A remarkable characteristic of these sensory cells is that they regularly regenerate, said the researchers. All three taste cell types undergo frequent turnover, with an average lifespan of 10-16 days. As such, new taste cells must constantly be regenerated to replace cells that have died.

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Monell scientists identify taste stem cells on the tongue

Can stem cells provide an answer to the perplexing question of how to ensure long-term survival of transplanted kidneys? The results of a new Phase 1 clinical trial say maybe so. Details of the trial, conducted by researchers at Leiden University Medical Center, The Netherlands, are published in the current issue of STEM CELLS Translational Medicine.

Durham, NC (PRWEB) February 07, 2013

The LUMC team, led by Marlies E.J. Reinders, M.D, Ph.D., and Ton J. Rabelink, M.D., Ph.D., decided to test whether stem cells might keep fibrosis in check. They focused on mesenchymal stromal cells, a type of stem cell found throughout the body, including in bone marrow.

Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) are an interesting candidate due to their immunosuppressive and regenerative properties, Dr. Reinders explained. Of importance, no clinical studies have investigated their effects on rejection and fibrosis in organ transplantation.

The team performed a safety and feasibility study in kidney transplant patients who, at four weeks or six months after transplant, were showing signs of rejection and/or an increase in fibrosis and wasting away of the kidneys tubes (a condition called interstitial fibrosis/tubular atrophy. . In all, six patients received two intravenous MSC infusions of 1 million cells, collected from the patients own bone marrow and given one week apart. None of the patients had any sign of adverse, treatment-related side effects from the MSCs, although three developed infections associated with immune suppression.

Five of the patients had a specific decrease in immunity against the transplanted organ. In agreement, prior to the infusions, two of the patients had tubulitis lesions that are a warning sign of organ rejection which disappeared after the MSC treatment.

These first clinical observations support the potential of stem cells as a novel cell therapy to prevent allograft rejection and interstitial fibrosis/tubular atrophy, Dr. Rabelink noted, adding that long-term follow-up to better understand MSC-based treatment and to monitor unwanted side effects is needed, especially since transplant recipients are already at an increased risk for infection and malignancies.

While the study wasnt designed to test efficacy, these clinical observations are promising and suggestive of systemic immunosuppression, said Anthony Atala, M.D., Editor of STEM CELLS Translational Medicine and director of the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine.

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The full article, Autologous bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stromal cells for the treatment of allograft rejection after renal transplantation: results of a phase I study, can be accessed at http://stemcellstm.alphamedpress.org/content/early/2013/01/23/sctm.2012-0114.abstract.

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Stem Cells Show Promise in Extending Transplanted Kidneys’ Survival Time

London, February 5 : Scientists have identified the location and certain genetic characteristics of taste stem cells on the tongue.

The findings will facilitate techniques to grow and manipulate new functional taste cells for both clinical and research purposes.

"Cancer patients who have taste loss following radiation to the head and neck and elderly individuals with diminished taste function are just two populations who could benefit from the ability to activate adult taste stem cells," said Robert Margolskee, M.D., Ph.D., a molecular neurobiologist at the Monell Center who is one of the study's authors.

Taste cells are located in clusters called taste buds, which in turn are found in papillae, the raised bumps visible on the tongue's surface.

Two types of taste cells contain chemical receptors that initiate perception of sweet, bitter, umami, salty, and sour taste qualities. A third type appears to serve as a supporting cell.

A remarkable characteristic of these sensory cells is that they regularly regenerate. All three taste cell types undergo frequent turnover, with an average lifespan of 10-16 days. As such, new taste cells must constantly be regenerated to replace cells that have died.

For decades, taste scientists have attempted to identify the stem or progenitor cells that spawn the different taste receptor cells. The elusive challenge also sought to establish whether one or several progenitors are involved and where they are located, whether in or near the taste bud.

Drawing on the strong physiological relationship between oral taste cells and endocrine (hormone producing) cells in the intestine, the Monell team used a marker for intestinal stem cells to probe for stem cells in taste tissue on the tongue.

Stains for the stem cell marker, known as Lgr5 (leucine-rich repeat-containing G-protein-coupled receptor 5), showed two patterns of expression in taste tissue. The first was a strong signal underlying taste papillae at the back of the tongue and the second was a weaker signal immediately underneath taste buds in those papillae.

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Elusive taste stem cells offer new hope to cancer patients and elderly

A 3D printing technique that produces clusters of stem cells could speed up progress towards the creation of artificial organs, scientists claim.

In the more immediate future it could be used to generate biopsy-like tissue samples for drug testing.

The technique relies on an adjustable "microvalve" to build up layers of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs). Altering the nozzle diameter precisely controls the rate at which cells are dispensed.

Lead scientist Dr Will Shu, from Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, said: "We found that the valve-based printing is gentle enough to maintain high stem cell viability, accurate enough to produce spheroids of uniform size, and most importantly, the printed hESCs maintained their pluripotency - the ability to differentiate into any other cell type."

Embryonic stem cells, which originate from early stage embryos, are blank slates with the potential to become any type of tissue in the body.

The research is reported in the journal Biofabrication.

In the long-term, the new printing technique could pave the way for hESCs being incorporated into transplant-ready laboratory-made organs and tissues, said the researchers. The 3D structures will also enable scientists to create more accurate human tissue models for drug testing.

Cloning technology can produce embryonic stem cells, or cells with ESC properties, containing a patient's own genetic programming. Artificial tissue and organs made from such cells could be implanted into the patient from which they are derived without triggering a dangerous immune response.

Jason King, business development manager of stem cell biotech company Roslin Cellab, which took part in the research, said: "Normally laboratory grown cells grow in 2D but some cell types have been printed in 3D. However, up to now, human stem cell cultures have been too sensitive to manipulate in this way.

"This is a scientific development which we hope and believe will have immensely valuable long-term implications for reliable, animal-free, drug testing, and, in the longer term, to provide organs for transplant on demand, without the need for donation and without the problems of immune suppression and potential organ rejection."

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3D stem cells technique hailed

Imagine if you could take living cells, load them into a printer, and squirt out a 3D tissue that could develop into a kidney or a heart. Scientists are one step closer to that reality, now that they have developed the first printer for embryonic human stem cells.

In a new study, researchers from the University of Edinburgh have created a cell printer that spits out living embryonic stem cells. The printer was capable of printing uniform-size droplets of cells gently enough to keep the cells alive and maintain their ability to develop into different cell types. The new printing method could be used to make 3D human tissues for testing new drugs, grow organs, or ultimately print cells directly inside the body.

Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) are obtained from human embryos and can develop into any cell type in an adult person, from brain tissue to muscle to bone. This attribute makes them ideal for use in regenerative medicine repairing, replacing and regenerating damaged cells, tissues or organs. [Stem Cells: 5 Fascinating Findings]

In a lab dish, hESCs can be placed in a solution that contains the biological cues that tell the cells to develop into specific tissue types, a process called differentiation. The process starts with the cells forming what are called "embryoid bodies." Cell printers offer a means of producing embryoid bodies of a defined size and shape.

In the new study, the cell printer was made from a modified CNC machine (a computer-controlled machining tool) outfitted with two "bio-ink" dispensers: one containing stem cells in a nutrient-rich soup called cell medium and another containing just the medium. These embryonic stem cells were dispensed through computer-operated valves, while a microscope mounted to the printer provided a close-up view of what was being printed.

The two inks were dispensed in layers, one on top of the other to create cell droplets of varying concentration. The smallest droplets were only two nanoliters, containing roughly five cells.

The cells were printed onto a dish containing many small wells. The dish was then flipped over so the droplets now hung from them, allowing the stem cells to form clumps inside each well. (The printer lays down the cells in precisely sized droplets and in a certain pattern that is optimal for differentiation.)

Tests revealed that more than 95 percent of the cells were still alive 24 hours after being printed, suggesting they had not been killed by the printing process. More than 89 percent of the cells were still alive three days later, and also tested positive for a marker of their pluripotency their potential to develop into different cell types.

Biomedical engineer Utkan Demirci, of Harvard University Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital, has done pioneering work in printing cells, and thinks the new study is taking it in an exciting direction. "This technology could be really good for high-throughput drug testing," Demirci told LiveScience. One can build mini-tissues from the bottom up, using a repeatable, reliable method, he said. Building whole organs is the long-term goal, Demirci said, though he cautioned that it "may be quite far from where we are today."

Others have created printers for other types of cells. Demirci and colleagues made one that printed embryonic stem cells from mice. Others have printed a kind of human stem cells from connective tissues, which aren't able to develop into as many cell types as embryonic stem cells. The current study is the first to print embryonic stem cells from humans, researchers report in the Feb. 5 issue of the journal Biofabrication.

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3D-Printed Human Embryonic Stem Cells Created for First Time