Posted: September 20, 2014 at 5:47 am
A Trojan horse in the fight against cancer | Marina Cihova | TEDxBratislava
This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences. Marna Cihov presents her fascinating research of the therapeutic potential of stem cells in cancer...
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A Trojan horse in the fight against cancer | Marina Cihova | TEDxBratislava - Video
Posted: September 20, 2014 at 5:44 am
Stem Cell Therapy Professional Football Player
James Lee a Professional Football player is back in action thanks to stem cell therapy and Dr. Dennis M. Lox MD. Dr. Lox | http://www.drloxstemcells.com | (844) 440...
By: Dr. Lox
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Stem Cell Therapy Professional Football Player - Video
Posted: September 20, 2014 at 5:43 am
Cellular therapeutics -- using intact cells to treat and cure disease -- is a hugely promising new approach in medicine but it is hindered by the inability of doctors and scientists to effectively track the movements, destination and persistence of these cells in patients without resorting to invasive procedures, like tissue sampling.
In a paper published September 17 in the online journal Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh and elsewhere describe the first human tests of using a perfluorocarbon (PFC) tracer in combination with non-invasive magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to track therapeutic immune cells injected into patients with colorectal cancer.
"Initially, we see this technique used for clinical trials that involve tests of new cell therapies," said first author Eric T. Ahrens, PhD, professor in the Department of Radiology at UC San Diego. "Clinical development of cell therapies can be accelerated by providing feedback regarding cell motility, optimal delivery routes, individual therapeutic doses and engraftment success."
Currently, there is no accepted way to image cells in the human body that covers a broad range of cell types and diseases. Earlier techniques have used metal ion-based vascular MRI contrast agents and radioisotopes. The former have proven difficult to differentiate in vivo; the latter raise concerns about radiation toxicity and do not provide the anatomical detail available with MRIs.
"This is the first human PFC cell tracking agent, which is a new way to do MRI cell tracking," said Ahrens. "It's the first example of a clinical MRI agent designed specifically for cell tracking."
Researchers used a PFC tracer agent and an MRI technique that directly detects fluorine atoms in labeled cells. Fluorine atoms naturally occur in extremely low concentrations in the body, making it easier to observe cells labeled with fluorine using MRI. In this case, the modified and labeled dendritic cells -- potent stimulators of the immune system -- were first prepared from white blood cells extracted from the patient. The cells were then injected into patients with stage 4 metastatic colorectal cancer to stimulate an anti-cancer T-cell immune response.
The published study did not assess the efficacy of the cell therapy, but rather the ability of researchers to detect the labeled cells and monitor what happened to them. Ahrens said the technique worked as expected, with the surprising finding that only half of the delivered cell vaccine remained at the inoculation site after 24 hours.
"The imaging agent technology has been to shown to be able to tag any cell type that is of interest," Ahrens said. "It is a platform imaging technology for a wide range of diseases and applications," which might also speed development of relevant therapies.
"Non-invasive cell tracking may help lower regulatory barriers," Ahrens explained. "For example, new stem cell therapies can be slow to obtain regulatory approvals in part because it is difficult, if not impossible, with current approaches to verify survival and location of transplanted cells. And cell therapy trials generally have a high cost per patient. Tools that allow the investigator to gain a 'richer' data set from individual patients mean it may be possible to reduce patient numbers enrolled in a trial, thus reducing total trial cost."
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Better way to track emerging cell therapies using MRIs
Posted: September 19, 2014 at 9:41 pm
Autologous Retrodifferentiated Neuronal stem cells therapy for Cerebral Palsy
cerebral palsy child treated with autologous retrodifferentiated neuronal stem cells and followed over time to see progress of therap ...
By: Ilham Abuljadayel
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Autologous Retrodifferentiated Neuronal stem cells therapy for Cerebral Palsy - Video
Posted: September 19, 2014 at 9:41 pm
A Trojan horse in the fight against cancer | Marina Cihova | TEDxBratislava
This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences. Marna Cihov presents her fascinating research of the therapeutic potential of stem cells in cancer...
By: TEDx Talks
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A Trojan horse in the fight against cancer | Marina Cihova | TEDxBratislava - Video
Posted: September 19, 2014 at 9:41 pm
Stem Cell Therapy | why no more news about embryonic stem cells
http://www.arthritistreatmentcenter.com Is embryonic stem cell research passe? Next How come no more news about embryonic stem cells? Embryonic stem cells come from human embryos and these...
By: Nathan Wei
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Stem Cell Therapy | why no more news about embryonic stem cells - Video
Posted: September 19, 2014 at 8:53 am
Joint research projects by NUIG and the Mayo Clinic will focus on a number of key strategic areas, including adult stem-cell therapy, gene therapy, biomaterials and biomedical engineering, the two institutes have said. Illustration: Getty
NUI Galway and the Mayo Clinic in the US plan to collaborate on clinical trials using regenerative medicine, following the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the two institutes.
The joint research projects will focus on a number of key strategic areas, including adult stem-cell therapy, gene therapy, biomaterials and biomedical engineering, the two institutes have said.
The Mayo Clinic and NUIGs Regenerative Medicine Institute have worked closely with each other for a number of years.
Both have licensed cell manufacturing facilities, and student and staff exchange programmes between Galway and the US will continue.
Welcoming the agreement, NUIG president Dr Jim Browne has noted that his university has Irelands only facility licensed to produce stem cells for human use.
A new clinical and translational research facility for conducting clinical trials with patients will be complete in early 2015, he said.
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NUI Galway in joint stem cell project with Mayo Clinic
Posted: September 19, 2014 at 8:50 am
Investigators from the Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer (IRIC) at the Universit de Montral have just published, in the journal Science, the announcement of the discovery of a new molecule, the first of its kind, which allows for the multiplication of stem cells in a unit of cord blood. Umbilical cord stem cells are used for transplants aimed at curing a number of blood-related diseases, including leukemia, myeloma and lymphoma. For many patients this therapy comprises a treatment of last resort.
Directed by Dr. Guy Sauvageau, principal investigator at IRIC and hematologist at the Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital, the research has the potential to multiply by 10 the number of cord blood units available for a transplant in humans. In addition, it will considerably reduce the complications associated with stem cell transplantation. And it will be particularly useful for non-Caucasian patients for whom compatible donors are difficult to identify.
A clinical study using this molecule, named UM171 in honor of the Universit de Montral, and a new type of bioreactor developed for stem culture in collaboration with the University of Toronto will be initiated in December 2014 at the Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital.
According to Dr. Guy Sauvageau, "This new molecule, combined with the new bioreactor technology, will allow thousands of patients around the world access to a safer stem cell transplant. Considering that many patients currently cannot benefit from a stem cell transplant for lack of matching donors, this discovery looks to be highly promising for the treatment of various types of cancer."
The Centre of Excellence for Cellular Therapy at the Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital will serve as production unit for these stem cells, and grafts will then be distributed to patients in Montreal, Quebec City and Vancouver for this first Canadian clinical study. Tangible results should be available one year later, that is, in December 2015. The significance of this new discovery is such that over time, conclusive clinical results could revolutionize the treatment of leukemia and other blood-related illnesses.
"These extraordinary advances result from the efforts of a remarkable team that includes extremely gifted students and postdoctoral investigators working in the IRIC laboratories," adds Dr. Guy Sauvageau. "Among them, the first authors of this publication: Iman Fars, doctoral student, and Jalila Chagraoui, research officer, along with the professionals in IRIC's medical chemistry core facility under the direction of Anne Marinier, who optimized the therapeutic properties of this new molecule."
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Umbilical cord blood from newborn children is an excellent source of hematopoietic stem cells for stem cell transplants, since their immune system is still immature and the stem cells have a lower probability of inducing an adverse immune reaction in the recipient.
Furthermore, it is not necessary for the immunological compatibility between donor and recipient to be perfect, unlike in a bone marrow transplant. However, in most cases the number of stem cells obtained from an umbilical cord is much too low for treating an adult, and its use is confined above all to the treatment of children. With the new molecule UM171 it will be possible to multiply stem cells in culture and to produce enough of them to treat adults, especially those who are not Caucasian, and who because of the lack of donors have limited access to transplants.
Collaborators from the Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital, the British Columbia Cancer Agency, the Ontario Cancer Institute and the Fred Hutchison Cancer Research Center also played an important role in evaluating the biological properties of this new molecule, and those from the University of Toronto in developing the bioreactor.
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New molecule allows for up to 10-fold increase in stem cell transplants
Posted: September 19, 2014 at 3:41 am
Edgar Irastorza was just 31 when his heart stopped beating in October 2008.
A Miami property manager, Irastorza had recently gained weight as his wife's third pregnancy progressed. "I kind of got pregnant, too," he said.
During a workout one day, he felt short of breath and insisted that friends rush him to the hospital. Minutes later, his pulse flatlined. He survived the heart attack, but the scar tissue that resulted cut his heart's pumping ability by a third. He couldn't pick up his children. He fell asleep every night wondering if he would wake up in the morning.
Desperation motivated Irastorza to volunteer for a highly unusual medical research trial: getting stem cells injected directly into his heart. "I just trusted my doctors and the science behind it, and said, 'This is my only chance,' " he said recently.
Over the last five years, by studying stem cells in lab dishes, test animals and intrepid patients like Irastorza, researchers have brought the vague, grandiose promises of stem cell therapies closer to reality.
Stem cells broke into the public consciousness in the early 1990s, alluring for their potential to help the body beat back diseases of degeneration like Alzheimer's, and to grow new parts to treat conditions like spinal cord injuries.
Progress has been slow. But researchers are learning how to best use stem cells, what types to use and how to deliver them to the body findings that are not singularly transformational, but progressive and pragmatic.
As many as 4,500 clinical trials involving stem cells are under way in the United States to treat patients with heart disease, blindness, Parkinson's, HIV, blood cancers and spinal cord injuries, among other conditions.
Initial studies suggest that stem cell therapy can be delivered safely, said Dr. Ellen Feigal, senior vice president of research and development at the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine, the state stem cell agency, which has awarded more than $2 billion toward stem cell research since 2006.
But enthusiasm for stem cells sometimes outstrips the science. When Gov. Rick Perry of Texas had adult stem cells injected into his spine in 2011 for a back injury, his surgeon had never tried the procedure and had no data to support the experiment. A June review in the New England Journal of Medicine found that "platelet-rich plasma" stem cell therapies praised by a number of athletes worked no better than placebos.
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Stem cell revolution gets closer
Posted: September 19, 2014 at 12:46 am
Blazin #39; For Rikky 2014
A kid that was told he would never walk, and with the miracle of stem cells he just may get that chance! When we were 20 weeks pregnant and the Spina Bifida was seen on the ultrasound, our...
By: Heath Reese
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Blazin' For Rikky 2014 - Video
