Category Archives: Mesenchymal Stem Cells

SUNRISE, FL--(Marketwire - Dec 3, 2012) - Bioheart Inc. (BHRT.QB) previously announced that its cGMP facility would be utilized by Stemlogix to help promote regenerative medicine for the veterinary market.Stemlogix has just announced the first ever combination regenerative medicine treatment on a six-year-old Quarter Reined Cow horse that suffered a significant injury to its distal straight sesamoidean ligament. "The facilities at Bioheart Inc. are top notch and we are excited to move these new therapies for animals forward using state-of-the-art cGMP laboratories.We are fortunate to have the support and expertise of the Bioheart team," said Jason Griffeth, Chief Operating Officer of Stemlogix, LLC. To provide him with this groundbreaking treatment, two small fat samples were taken from the base of his tail via a minimally invasive lipoaspirate procedure. Fat tissue is the richest source of stem cells for both human patients and animal patients. One of the tissue samples was processed on-site to provide a same-day, point-of-care stem cell treatment while the other tissue sample was sent to the cGMP laboratory where the mesenchymal stem cells were isolated and expanded for three weeks. A portion of his stem cells were also cryopreserved for future use. Bioheart's president and CEO, Mike … Continue reading →

Public release date: 3-Dec-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Jillian Hurst press_releases@the-jci.org Journal of Clinical Investigation Lithium restores cognitive function in Down syndrome mice Down syndrome is a neurodevelopmental disorder that is the leading cause of genetically defined intellectual disability. In the brain, Down syndrome results in alterations in the connections between neurons and a reduction in the development of new neurons (neurogenesis) that usually occurs during learning. In this issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation, researchers led by Laura Gasparini at the Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia in Genova, Italy report that lithium, a drug commonly used for the treatment of mood disorders in humans, restores neurogenesis in the hippocampus, a part of the brain strongly associated with learning and memory. Lithium also significantly improved the performance of Down syndrome mice in tasks measuring contextual learning, spatial memory, and object discrimination. These results suggest that lithium-based therapies may help Down syndrome patients. TITLE: Lithium rescues synaptic plasticity and memory in Down syndrome mice AUTHOR CONTACT: Laura Gasparini Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, UNK, ITA Phone: +3901071781519; Fax: +3901071781230; E-mail: laura.gasparini@iit.it View this article at: http://www.jci.org/articles/view/64650?key=3cf4232a6447e03ab3e1 Stem cell-derived dopaminergic neurons rescue motor defects in Parkinsonian monkeys Parkinson's disease … Continue reading →

Public release date: 4-Dec-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Paddy Moore padmoore@ohri.ca 613-737-8899 x73687 Ottawa Hospital Research Institute December, 4, 2012 Ottawa For Ottawa scientist and neonatologist Dr. Bernard Thbaud, even a major paper that answers five significant questions still doesn't seem quite enough in his determined path to get his laboratory breakthrough into the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Dr. Thbaud's proposed therapy would use stem cells from umbilical cords to treat a disease previously thought to be untreatable bronchopulmonary dysplasia, or BPD. "BPD is a lung disease described 45 years ago in which we have made zero progress. And now, with these cord-derived stem cells there is a true potential for a major breakthrough," says Dr. Thbaud, a senior scientist at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute and CHEO Research Institute, a neonatologist at CHEO and The Ottawa Hospital, and a professor in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Ottawa. "I am confident that we have the talent and the tools here at CHEO and OHRI to find a treatment for BPD. These findings published today are helping us get there," continues Thbaud. BPD affects approximately 10,000 very premature newborns in Canada and the U.S. … Continue reading →

Public release date: 3-Dec-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Jillian Hurst press_releases@the-jci.org Journal of Clinical Investigation Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that is characterized by tremors, rigidity, slowness of movement, and difficulty walking. It is caused by loss of the neurons that produce the neurotransmitter dopamine (known as dopaminergic neurons). One of the primary goals in Parkinson's disease research is to develop a replacement for dopaminergic neurons. In this issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation, researchers led by Takuya Hayashi at the RIKEN Center for Molecular Imaging Science in Kobe, Japan, derived dopaminergic neurons from bone marrow stem cells in monkeys. The cells were retrieved during a standard bone marrow aspiration and then treated with growth factors that directed the stem cells to become dopaminergic neurons. The monkeys that donated the stem cells were treated with a chemical to induce Parkinson's disease and then received a transplant of the new dopaminergic neurons that had been derived from their own bone marrow stem cells. Monkeys that received the transplant showed significant improvement in motor defects. This study demonstrates that dopaminergic neurons derived from adult bone marrow stem cells can be safely used … Continue reading →

cord blood donation | Cord Blood - A Life Saving Gift http://www.cordbloodrecommendation.com Even if you don't want to bank your baby's blood, you can also consider donating it. Collection methods vary according to the period of collection - Ex utero method implies involves placing the placenta in a sterile supporting structure, where the clamped and cut off umbilical cord is injected with a syringe to drain the blood cells in a bag. Those that do not own their own lab, feel this strategy offers extra protection because two different companies would have to go out of business for any trouble to ensue. However, more research is required to determine if humans would benefit from mesenchymal stem cells. ""Cancer, which was supposed to be an incurable disease, can now be cured if detected at the right time. Most of the times, umbilical cord blood cells are not found in adequate portions to match the quantity required by an adult. The second fee is an annual storage fee. Now it is realized to be of helpful value and could save someone's life. Umbilical cord blood banking is beneficial because the blood contains valuable stem cells that can be put … Continue reading →

SCMOM 2012_Stanford Cardiovascular Institute Stanford Cardiovascular Institute (CVI) is the nucleus for cardiovascular research at Stanford University. Formed in 2004, the Cardiovascular Institute is home to Stanford's myriad cardiovascular-related adult and pediatric research, clinical, and educational programs, centers and laboratories, as well as over 500 Stanford basic scientists, graduate students, clinician scientists, and other researchers in heart and vessel disease and prevention. Within the area of cardiac regenerative medicine, the Stanford CVI has significant research endeavors involving human pluripotent stem cells for (1) cardiovascular disease modeling, (2) drug screening and discovery, and (3) personalized cell therapy. Recently, Stanford CVI investigators received a $20 million CIRM Disease Team Therapy Award for performing pre-IND work that would enable the first-in-man clinical trial involving injection of human embryonic stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes for patients with heart failure. wulab.stanford.edu Presenter Joseph Wu, Associate Professor, Cardiovascular Medicine, Stanford University School of MedicineFrom:AllianceRegenMedViews:3 0ratingsTime:17:06More inScience Technology Follow this link: SCMOM 2012_Stanford Cardiovascular Institute - Video … Continue reading →

San Diego, CA /PRNewswire/ - Fate Therapeutics, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the discovery and development of adult stem cell modulators, announced today the initiation of a randomized, controlled, Phase 2 multi-center study of its investigational hematopoietic stem cell therapy, ProHema, in adult patients undergoing double umbilical cord blood transplantation (dUCBT) for hematologic malignancy. The advancement of ProHema into later-stage development builds upon positive results from a Phase 1b single-center study, interactions with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and refinements to the product manufacturing process. The previously completed Phase 1b study achieved its primary objective of demonstrating safety and tolerability. The study also established early clinical proof-of-concept trends of accelerated neutrophil recovery, improved 100-day survival and low rates of graft-versus-host disease were evident, and durable and preferential reconstitution with ProHema occurred in 10 of 12 evaluable patients. ProHema is produced through a proprietary, two-hour,ex vivomodulation process, which has been shown to significantly activate key biological pathways involved in hematopoietic stem cell homing, proliferation and survival in preclinical models. "Allogeneic umbilical cord blood transplantation holds great promise as a potentially curative treatment for children and adults with hematologic malignancies and many other life-threatening, non-malignant disorders," saidChristian Weyer, M.D., M.A.S., … Continue reading →

CARLSBAD, CA--(Marketwire - Nov 29, 2012) - International Stem Cell Corporation ( OTCQB : ISCO ) (www.internationalstemcell.com) ("ISCO" or "the Company"), a California-based biotechnology company focused on the development of therapeutic products, today announced the achievement of a critical milestone towards the clinical development of its stem cell therapy. The Company's research and development team has created the world's first human clinical-grade stem cell lines with the ability to immune-match millions of individuals. ISCO's existing research-grade parthenogenetic stem cell lines, one of which contains the most common immune type in the Caucasian population and may be an immune-match to approximately 70 million people, are used in pre-clinical development. These new clinical-grade stem cell lines position ISCO to be able to conduct clinical trials in the United States. Dr. Semechkin, CEO and Co-Chairman of the Board, comments, "We've been working diligently for three years to perfect this technology, which was first developed by our scientific founder, Dr. Elena Revazova in Moscow, and I'm excited to report that we have been able to derive new stem cell lines in the United States under the US and California regulatory frameworks. I'm optimistic that the new parthenogenetic stem cell lines, by providing a potentially … Continue reading →

A panel at the Harvard Law School Wednesday discussed the ethical debate over the use of embryonic stem cells in the United States, focusing on the burgeoning controversy surrounding the role of stem cell therapy in medical tourism. Medical tourism, in which patients travel internationally to gain access to specific health care services, has become increasingly common, panelists said. They said that reasons for medical tourism range from basic hip replacement surgery to black market organ sales. As most stem cell therapies are not approved in the United States, numerous patients are going abroad to countries like China and Russia where treatment is legal. Panelist I. Glenn Cohen, an assistant professor at the Law School, said that it was probable that a Chinese stem cell facility performs several hundred thousand of these treatments yearly. He said that numerous celebrities, including football quarterback Peyton Manning, have reportedly traveled abroad to receive stem cell treatment not approved by the FDA. A number of facilities claim to use stem cells to cure a wide array of diseases. University of Alberta law professor Timothy Caulfield, another panelist, pointed out that a simple Google search leads potential patients to a plethora of websites which claim … Continue reading →

GeneCell International Launches Educational Cord Blood Workshops for South Florida Expecting Parents Miami, FL (PRWEB) November 29, 2012 GeneCell International specializes in the collection, transport, processing and cryogenic storage of adult stem cells from various sources including; umbilical cord blood, dental pulp and adipose tissue (fat) that can later be used to treat a variety of diseases. The laboratory is also involved in scientific research and development with a range of stem cells from various adult tissues. Umbilical cord blood preservation is a process by which blood is collected from the umbilical cord of a newborn baby and is stored cryogenically in a specially-designated bank. According to the National Marrow Donor Program, cord blood contains cells that can be transfused to a patient to treat various diseases, including lymphoma and leukemia. The list of illnesses that can be treated with cord blood continues to grow. In addition, the cord blood can be used to treat the child from whom the blood was collected as well as some first-degree relatives who are a close genetic match, such as family members. Cord blood banking is regulated by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration and each year more and more parents choose to … Continue reading →