Category Archives: Cell Therapy

06-06-2012 13:09 Mesenchymal stem cell homing to tissue damage, umbilical cord stem cells historically used for anti-aging, mesenchymal stem cells role in immune system modulation, inflammation reduction and stimulating tissue regeneration, donor stem cell safety and testing, the role of HLA matching in donated umbilical cord-derived stem cells, umbilical cord blood safety data and historical use in blood transfusions, allogeneic stem cell persistence in human mothers. Treatment information at More information on Dr. Riordan at Continue reading here: Neil Riordan PhD - Stem Cell Therapy for Spinal Cord Injury (Part 3 of 5) || Stem Cell Treatments - Video … Continue reading →

06-06-2012 13:09 Mesenchymal stem cell homing to tissue damage, umbilical cord stem cells historically used for anti-aging, mesenchymal stem cells role in immune system modulation, inflammation reduction and stimulating tissue regeneration, donor stem cell safety and testing, the role of HLA matching in donated umbilical cord-derived stem cells, umbilical cord blood safety data and historical use in blood transfusions, allogeneic stem cell persistence in human mothers. Treatment information at More information on Dr. Riordan at Continue reading here: Neil Riordan PhD - Stem Cell Therapy for Spinal Cord Injury (Part 3 of 5) || Stem Cell Treatments - Video … Continue reading →

07-06-2012 07:39 Cell being the smallest part of any organism, is a building block of life. Cell therapies often focus on the treatment of hereditary diseases, with methods of gene therapy. The journal describes biology of a cell and the process of pioneering new cells into a tissue in order to negotiate a disease. Read more: OMICS Group :: Journal of Cell Science … Continue reading →

Newswise SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. Its the most common form of skin cancer, but in its advanced stages, basal cell carcinoma has the potential to become disfiguring and life threatening. An international phase 2 study headed by Mayo Clinic led to the recent Food and Drug Administration approval of the first drug of its kind to help advanced basal cell carcinoma patients who have few treatment options. The results appear in the June 7 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine. The study found the drug Erivedge (vismodegib) shrank advanced basal cell carcinoma tumors in 43 percent of patients with locally advanced disease and in 30 percent of patients whose disease spread to other organs. This targeted therapy represents a new paradigm in cancer treatment, says lead researcher Aleksandar Sekulic, M.D., Ph.D., a dermatologist and cancer researcher at Mayo Clinic in Arizona. More than 2 million cases of basal and squamous cell skin cancer are found in this country each year. Basal cell carcinoma accounts for approximately 80 percent of all diagnosed non-melanoma skin cancers, according to the American Cancer Society. It occurs when a basal cell develops a mutation in its DNA, causing it to multiply rapidly, with the potential … Continue reading →

LEUVEN, BELGIUM--(Marketwire -06/08/12)- TiGenix (EURONEXT:TIG) TiGenix obtains national reimbursement in the Netherlands for breakthrough cartilage therapy ChondroCelect TiGenix (EURONEXT:TIG) announced today that its innovative cartilage repair therapy ChondroCelect has obtained national reimbursement in the Netherlands. The Dutch National Health Authority (NZa) has formally announced that ChondroCelect is to receive national reimbursement retroactively per January 1, 2012. Previously ChondroCelect was made available in the Netherlands under a risk-sharing scheme. "We are delighted with the decision of the NZa to reimburse ChondroCelect, and look forward to working with Dutch orthopedic centers of excellence and health insurers to routinely make this breakthrough therapy available to the right patients in the Netherlands," said Eduardo Bravo, CEO of TiGenix. "Dutch clinicians and scientists have been instrumental in ChondroCelect's development and four Cartilage Expert Centers in the Netherlands have already gained extensive experience with the procedure. After having obtained national reimbursement in Belgium last year, this constitutes another major step in improving patient access to this innovative therapy. We remain optimistic that we can obtain national reimbursement in other European countries later this year." About TiGenix TiGenix NV (EURONEXT:TIG) is a leading European cell therapy company with a marketed product for cartilage repair, ChondroCelect, and a … Continue reading →

ScienceDaily (June 6, 2012) A clinical study has demonstrated that a new drug, a targeted molecular therapy called vismodegib (trade name Erivedge), can dramatically shrink basal cell skin cancers and prevent the formation of new ones, in patients with basal cell nevus syndrome (BCNS). This rare genetic condition causes dozens, and sometimes hundreds or thousands, of skin cancers on each patient's body. The primary treatment option is surgical removal. These study results are significant as they indicate the possibility of an alternative treatment with oral medication; although side effects remain a consideration. The phase II clinical study, led by researchers at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center (NYPH/CUMC) and Children's Hospital of Oakland Research Institute (CHORI), was published June 6 in the online edition of the New England Journal of Medicine. "In its current formulation, vismodegib is appropriate only for BCNS patients with very large numbers of basal cell skin cancers. Still, this is a huge step forward, pointing to the day when we can offer every one of these patients an alternative to repeated surgery, which can be disfiguring and burdensome," said study co-leader David R. Bickers, MD, the Carl Truman Nelson Professor and chairman of dermatology at CUMC and … Continue reading →

A local veterinary clinic recently added a cuttingedge treatment. Dr. Tina Gemeinhardt, owner of Tsawwassen Animal Hospital, is excited to be offering stem cell therapy to animals suffering from arthritis and joint issues. "I'm excited about trying to bring some relief to dogs that are living in pain," she said. The therapy, which uses stem cells harvested from fat that is surgically removed from the dog, is, in most cases, able to offer relief from the pain and stiffness associated with Gemeinhardt said once it's determined the therapy is the right course of treatment for an animal, body fat is surgically removed and sent to a lab in California where the stem cells are harvested. The harvested stem cells are then sent back to the vet clinic within 48 hours and injected into the joints in question. Gemeinhardt, who added the treatment to the clinic's list of services earlier this year, said it's not quite clear exactly how the stem cells work. "Stem cells seem to inherently know what needs to be done in that area," she said. The treatment is not a cure-all - the arthritis is still there but the symptoms are lessened - and it does not … Continue reading →

Public release date: 5-Jun-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: David Eve celltransplantation@gmail.com Cell Transplantation Center of Excellence for Aging and Brain Repair Tampa, Fla. (June 5 , 2012) A study characterizing the multipotency and transplantation value of olfactory stem cells, as well as the ease in obtaining them, has been published in a recent issue of Cell Transplantation (20:11/12), now freely available on-line at http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/cog/ct/. "There is worldwide enthusiasm for cell transplantation therapy to repair failing organs," said study lead author Dr. Andrew Wetzig of the King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. "The olfactory mucosa of a patient's nose can provide cells that are potentially significant candidates for human tissue repair." According to the study authors, olfactory neural stem cells can be derived from a patient's own cells, they are readily available by a minimally invasive biopsy technique, and they can be expanded in vitro. The cells are plentiful because the olfactory epithelium undergoes neurogenesis and continual replacement of sensory neurons throughout adult life. "Using the rat as our animal model source, we examined the basic aspects of olfactory neural stem cell biology and its potential for self-renewal and phenotypic expression in various … Continue reading →

Public release date: 4-Jun-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: David Eve celltransplantation@gmail.com Cell Transplantation Center of Excellence for Aging and Brain Repair Tampa, Fla. (June 4, 2012) After carrying out a study comparing the repopulation efficiency of immature hepatic stem/progenitor cells and mature hepatocytes transplanted into liver-injured rats, a research team from Sapporo, Japan concluded that mature hepatocytes offered better repopulation efficiency than stem/progenitor cells. Until day 14 post-transplantation, the growth of the stem/progenitor cells was faster than the mature hepatocytes, but after two weeks most of the stem/progenitor cells had died. However, the mature hepatocytes continued to survive and proliferate one year after their implantation. The study is published in Cell Transplantation (21:1), now freely available on-line at http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/cog/ct/. "Cell-based therapies as an alternative to liver transplantation to treat liver disease have shown promise," said study corresponding author Dr. Toshihiro Mitaka of the Cancer Research Institute of the Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan. "However, the repopulation efficiency of two candidate cell sources - hepatic progenitor/stem cells and mature hepatocytes - had not been comprehensively assessed and questions concerning the efficiency of each needed to be resolved." The researchers noted that the shortage of cell … Continue reading →

SAN DIEGO, CA--(Marketwire -06/04/12)- Medistem Inc. (MEDS) announced today positive safety data from the first 5 patients enrolled in the Non-Revascularizable IschEmic Cardiomyopathy treated with Retrograde COronary Sinus Venous DElivery of Cell TheRapy (RECOVER-ERC) trial. The clinical trial uses the company's "Universal Donor" Endometrial Regenerative Cells (ERC) to treat Congestive Heart Failure (CHF). According to the study design, after 5 patients enter the trial, they must be observed for a two month time period before additional patients are allowed to enter the study. Patient data was analyzed by the study's independent Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB), which concluded that based on lack of adverse effects, the study be allowed to continue recruitment. "Medistem is developing a treatment for CHF that uses a 30-minute catheter-based procedure to administer the ERC stem cell into the patients' hearts. The achievement of 2 month patient follow-up with no adverse events is a strong signal for us that our new approach to this terrible condition is feasible," said Thomas Ichim, CEO of Medistem. The RECOVER-ERC trial will treat a total of 60 patients with end-stage heart failure with three concentrations of ERC stem cells or placebo. The clinical trial is being conducted by Dr. Leo … Continue reading →