PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

12-Dec-2013

Contact: Shaun Mason smason@mednet.ucla.edu 310-206-2805 University of California - Los Angeles

Stem cell researchers from UCLA have published the first study to identify the origin cells and track the early development of human articular cartilage, providing what could be a new cell source and biological roadmap for therapies to repair cartilage defects and damage from osteoarthritis.

Such transformative therapies could reach clinical trials within three years, said the scientists from UCLA's Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research.

The study, led by Dr. Denis Evseenko, an assistant professor of orthopedic surgery and head of UCLA's Laboratory of Connective Tissue Regeneration, was published online Dec. 12 in the journal Stem Cell Reports and will appear in a forthcoming print edition.

Articular cartilage, a highly specialized tissue formed from cells called chondrocytes, protects the bones of joints from forces associated with load-bearing and impact and allows nearly frictionless motion between the articular surfaces the areas where bone connects with other bones in a joint.

Cartilage injury and a lack of cartilage regeneration often lead to osteoarthritis, which involves the degradation of joints, including cartilage and bone. Osteoarthritis currently affects more than 20 million people in the U.S., making joint-surface restoration a major priority in modern medicine.

While scientists have studied the ability of different cell types to generate articular cartilage, none of the current cell-based repair strategies including expanded articular chondrocytes or mesenchymal stromal cells from adult bone marrow, adipose tissue, sinovium or amniotic fluid have generated long-lasting articular cartilage tissue in the laboratory.

For the current study, Evseenko and his colleagues used complex molecular biology techniques to determine which cells grown from embryonic stem cells, which can become any cell type in the body, were the progenitors of cartilage cells, or chondrocytes. They then tested and confirmed the growth of these progenitor cells into cartilage cells and monitored their growth progress, observing and recording important genetic features, or landmarks, that indicated the growth stages of these cells as they developed into the cartilage cells.

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UCLA stem cell scientists first to track joint cartilage development in humans

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Newswise Stem cell researchers from UCLAs Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research have published the first study to identify the origin cells and track the early development of human articular cartilage, providing what could be a new cell source and biological roadmap for therapies to repair cartilage defects and osteoarthritis. These revolutionary therapies could reach clinical trials within three years.

Led by Dr. Denis Evseenko, assistant professor of orthopedic surgery and head of UCLAs Laboratory of Connective Tissue Regeneration, the study was published online ahead of print in Stem Cell Reports on December 12, 2013.

Articular cartilage is a highly specialized tissue formed from cells called chondrocytes that protect the bones of joints from forces associated with load bearing and impact, and allows nearly frictionless motion between the articular surfaces. Cartilage injury and lack of cartilage regeneration often lead to osteoarthritis involving degradation of joints, including cartilage and bone. Osteoarthritis currently affects more than 20 million people in the United States alone, making joint surface restoration a major priority in modern medicine.

Different cell types have been studied with respect to their ability to generate articular cartilage. However, none of the current cell-based repair strategies including expanded articular chondrocytes or mesenchymal stromal cells from adult bone marrow, adipose tissue, sinovium or amniotic fluid have generated long-lasting articular cartilage tissue in the laboratory.

By bridging developmental biology and tissue engineering, Evseenkos discoveries represent a critical missing link providing scientists with checkpoints to tell if the cartilage cells (called chondrocytes) are developing correctly.

We began with three questions about cartilage development, Evseenko said, we wanted to know the key molecular mechanisms, the key cell populations, and the developmental stages in humans. We carefully studied how the chondrocytes developed, watching not only their genes, but other biological markers that will allow us to apply the system for the improvement of current stem cell-based therapeutic approaches.

This research was also the first attempt to generate all the key landmarks that allow generation of clinically relevant cell types for cartilage regeneration with the highest animal-free standards. This means that the process did not rely on any animal components, thus therapeutic products such as stem-cell serums can be produced that are safe for humans.

Evseenko added that in a living organism more than one cell type is responsible for the complete regeneration of tissue, so in addition to the studies involving generation of articular cartilage from human stem cells, he and his team are now trying different protocols using different combinations of adult progenitor cells present in the joint to regenerate cartilage until the best one is found for therapeutic use.

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UCLA Scientists First to Track Joint Cartilage Development in Humans

Worcester, MA (PRWEB) December 10, 2013

Tanja Dominko, DVM, PhD, associate professor of biology and biotechnology at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI), is the 2013 Slovenian Ambassador of Science, a national award given to one Slovenian native each year in recognition of outstanding achievements and global scientific impact. The award also honors Dominko's international engagement in developing programs that bring together WPI students and faculty members with Slovenian colleagues to address important biomedical challenges.

Slovenian President Borut Pahor presided at the awards ceremony on Nov. 22, 2013, in the city of Maribor, where Dominko joined nine other scientists and engineers who received national awards for a range of accomplishments. At the event, President Pahor spoke of the vital need to support scientific research and education on a global basis to help improve the human conditiona message that Dominko says resonates deeply with her personal and professional goals to discover and translate new knowledge of human physiology to help cure disease.

"When I learned that I was selected, it was a special moment," she said. "Knowing that after working in the United States for 23 years, that the people of my homeland recognized the value of what we have been doing here gave me a sweet feeling inside. What is most important, though, is the work we are continuing to do, both here at WPI and at the University of Nova Gorica in Slovenia, to help make regenerative cell therapies a reality for all people, regardless of where they live or their ability to pay for treatment."

In a written statement congratulating Dominko for her award, Dr. Boo Cerar, Slovenian Ambassador to the United States, said, "I wish to express my sincere compliments for your outstanding work in the area of stem cell research, regenerative medicine, and tissue engineering, moreover for your valuable role in promoting education and awareness about the fields, both in Slovenia and in the United States."

Dominko is globally recognized for her research in stem cell biology and regenerative medicine. Her work has spanned embryonic transfer, cloning through somatic cell nuclear transfer, and the basic science of early embryogenesis. She is currently at the forefront of the science of cellular reprograming, exploring how mature human skin cells can be coaxed to become more like stem cells able to recapitulate damaged tissues throughout the body.

"This is wonderful recognition for an important body of work and for Tanjas ongoing commitment to advance science and education," said Karen Kashmanian Oates, Peterson Family Dean of Arts and Sciences at WPI. "Through her efforts, Tanja not only honors her homeland, but brings honor to WPI and the faculty and students who work with her. Tanjas engagement of science across borders has created informal, yet essential, networks of science diplomacy. We look forward to the exciting work that will come from these collaborations."

After earning an MS in large animal reproduction and obstetrics and a doctor of veterinary medicine degree from the University of Ljubljana in Slovenia, Dominko came to the United States in 1990 to enroll in a graduate program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. There she earned a PhD in endocrinology and reproductive physiology, working in the lab next door to Professor Jamie Thomson, who made history by isolating the first embryonic stem cells, initially from primates and then from humans.

"I have always been interested in reproductive physiology, and when I was at Madison two important things happened that shaped my career," Dominko says. "First, there were the discoveries by Jamie Thomson. Then, two of my friends, Ian Wilmut and the late Keith Campbell in the UK, successfully cloned the sheep Dolly. So I guess it was a case of being in the right place at the right time, to be connected with these people, and then to be able to move my work into the area of stem cell biology, cloning, and ultimately regenerative cellular therapies."

After a postdoctoral fellowship at Madison, and another in the lab of Gerald Schatten, PhD, at the Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland, Dominko was recruited to Worcester for a senior research position at Advanced Cell Technology Inc. She came to WPI in 2006 as an assistant research professor and CEO of a start-up company she founded called CellThera, which moved into WPIs Bioengineering Institute. In 2008 Dominko was appointed associate professor of biology and biotechnology at WPI; she received tenure in 2012.

See the article here:
Worcester Polytechnic Institute’s Tanja Dominko Named Slovenian Ambassador of Science for 2013

Stem cell researchers from UCLA have published the first study to identify the origin cells and track the early development of human articular cartilage, providing what could be a new cell source and biological roadmap for therapies to repair cartilage defects and damage from osteoarthritis.

Such transformative therapies could reach clinical trials within three years, said the scientists from UCLA's Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research.

The study, led by Dr. Denis Evseenko, an assistant professor of orthopedic surgery and head of UCLA's Laboratory of Connective Tissue Regeneration, was published online Dec. 12 in the journal Stem Cell Reports and will appear in a forthcoming print edition.

Articular cartilage, a highly specialized tissue formed from cells called chondrocytes, protects the bones of joints from forces associated with load-bearing and impact and allows nearly frictionless motion between the articular surfaces - the areas where bone connects with other bones in a joint.

Cartilage injury and a lack of cartilage regeneration often lead to osteoarthritis, which involves the degradation of joints, including cartilage and bone. Osteoarthritis currently affects more than 20 million people in the U.S., making joint-surface restoration a major priority in modern medicine.

While scientists have studied the ability of different cell types to generate articular cartilage, none of the current cell-based repair strategies - including expanded articular chondrocytes or mesenchymal stromal cells from adult bone marrow, adipose tissue, sinovium or amniotic fluid - have generated long-lasting articular cartilage tissue in the laboratory.

For the current study, Evseenko and his colleagues used complex molecular biology techniques to determine which cells grown from embryonic stem cells, which can become any cell type in the body, were the progenitors of cartilage cells, or chondrocytes. They then tested and confirmed the growth of these progenitor cells into cartilage cells and monitored their growth progress, observing and recording important genetic features, or landmarks, that indicated the growth stages of these cells as they developed into the cartilage cells.

By bridging developmental biology and tissue engineering, Evseenko's discoveries represent a critical "missing link," providing scientists with checkpoints to tell if the cartilage cells are developing correctly.

"We began with three questions about cartilage development," Evseenko said. "We wanted to know the key molecular mechanisms, the key cell populations and the developmental stages in humans. We carefully studied how the chondrocytes developed, watching not only their genes but other biological markers that will allow us to apply the system for the improvement of current stem cell-based therapeutic approaches."

The research was also the first to employ the highest animal-free standards in attempting to generate all the key landmarks that allow the development of cell types that could be used in treatments to regrow damaged human cartilage. Stem cells are often grown using animal-based components, which help the stem cells flourish and grow, but such components can lead to unwanted variations and contamination. Evseenko's research process did not rely on any animal components, thus allowing for the potential production of therapies, such as stem cell serums, that are safe for humans.

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Scientists first to track joint cartilage development