Category Archives: Mesenchymal Stem Cells

A new study at Johns Hopkins University has shown that stem cells from patients' own cardiac tissue can be used to heal scarred tissue after a heart attack. This is certainly exciting news considering heart failure is still the No. 1 cause of death in men and women. The study included 25 heart attack victims, 17 of whom got the stem cell treatment. Those patients saw a 50% reduction in cardiac scar tissue after one year, while the eight control patients saw no improvement. The procedure involves removing a tiny portion of heart tissue through a needle, cultivating the stem cells from that tissue, and reinserting them in a second minimally invasive procedure, according to Bloomberg. "If we can regenerate the whole heart, then the patient would be completely normal," said Eduardo Marban, director of Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute who was the study's lead author. "We haven't fulfilled that yet, but we've gotten rid of half of the injury, and that's a good start." Business section: Investing ideas Interested in investing in the promise that stem cell therapy holds? For a look at the investing landscape, we compiled a list of the 10 largest companies involved in stem cell therapy. Do … Continue reading →

Editor's Choice Main Category: Stem Cell Research Article Date: 15 Feb 2012 - 8:00 PST email to a friend   printer friendly   opinions   Current Article Ratings: Patient / Public: 5 (2 votes) Healthcare Prof: According to a study published in the February issue of the STEM CELL Translational Medicine Journal , a world-first technique for generating adult stem cells (mesenchymal stem cells [MSCs]) has been developed by researchers at the University of Queensland. This new method can be used to repair bone and possibly other organs, and will considerably affect individuals suffering from a variety of serious diseases. Professor Nicholas Fisk, who leads the collaborative study between the UQ Clinical Research Center (UQCCR) and the UQ's Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN), explained: "We used a small molecule to induce embryonic stem cells over a 10 day period, which is much faster than other studies reported in the literature. The technique also worked on their less contentious counterparts, induced pluripotent stem cells. To make the pluripotent mature stem cells useful in the clinic, they have to be told what type of cell they need to become (pre-differentiated), before being administered to an injured organ, or otherwise they … Continue reading →

NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire -02/15/12)- Stem cell stocks have performed well of late, outperforming the S&P 500 by a large margin over the last three months. Since mid-November, TickerSpy's Stem Cell Stocks index (RXSTM) has returned more than 20 percent, as favorable news from some of stem cell industry heavyweights has boosted investor optimism in the sector. The Paragon Report examines investing opportunities in the Biotechnology Industry and provides equity research on Cytori Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: CYTX - News) and Cord Blood America, Inc. (OTC.BB: CBAI.OB - News). Access to the full company reports can be found at: http://www.paragonreport.com/CYTX http://www.paragonreport.com/CBAI Shares of Cytori Therapeutics have skyrocketed nearly 70 percent year-to-date. The company develops, manufactures, and sells medical products and devices to enable the practice of regenerative medicine. The Company's technology is the Celuion family of products, which processes patients' adipose-derived stem and regenerative cells (ADRCs) at the point of care. In late January, Cytori received an Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) approval from the U.S. FDA to begin the "ATHENA" trial. ATHENA will investigate the use of the Celution System to treat a form of coronary heart disease, chronic myocardial ischemia (CMI). The Paragon Report provides investors with an excellent first step … Continue reading →

NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire -02/15/12)- Stem cell stocks have performed well of late, outperforming the S&P 500 by a large margin over the last three months. Since mid-November, TickerSpy's Stem Cell Stocks index (RXSTM) has returned more than 20 percent, as favorable news from some of stem cell industry heavyweights has boosted investor optimism in the sector. The Paragon Report examines investing opportunities in the Biotechnology Industry and provides equity research on Advanced Cell Technology, Inc. (OTC.BB: ACTC.OB - News) and StemCells Inc. (NASDAQ: STEM - News). Access to the full company reports can be found at: http://www.paragonreport.com/ACTC http://www.paragonreport.com/STEM Shares of StemCells Inc. have skyrocketed nearly 20 percent year-to-date. StemCells Inc. is focused on cellular medicine, or the use of stem and progenitor cells as the basis for therapeutics and therapies, and enabling technologies for stem cell research, or the use of cells and related technologies to enable stem cell-based research and drug discovery and development. Earlier this month the company released a statement saying that it received U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorization to start a clinical trial of the company's potential treatment for dry age-related macular degeneration, or AMD. AMD is the leading cause of vision loss and blindness … Continue reading →

Public release date: 14-Feb-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Jennifer Beal healthnews@wiley.com 44-124-377-0633 Wiley-Blackwell Stem cell therapy moderately improves heart function after a heart attack, according to a systematic review published in The Cochrane Library. But the researchers behind the review say larger clinical trials are needed to establish whether this benefit translates to a longer life. In a heart attack, the blood supply to parts of the heart is cut off by a blocked artery, causing damage to the heart tissue. The cells in the affected area start to die. This is called necrosis and in the days and weeks that follow, the necrotic area may grow, eventually leaving a large part of the heart unable to contract and increasing the risk of further heart problems. Stem cell therapy uses cells from the patient's own bone marrow to try to repair and reduce this damage. Currently, the treatment is only available in facilities with links to scientific research. The authors of the review drew together all the available evidence to ask whether adult bone marrow stem cells can effectively prevent and repair the damage caused by a heart attack. In 2008, a Cochrane review of 13 stem … Continue reading →

Stemedica has been issued U.S. Patent #8,105,380 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. This broad-based patent covers the combination of scaffolds with stem cells derived from ectodermal and mesenchymal tissue. These multi-stem cell products address need in the $12.5 billion wound care field. San Diego, CA (PRWEB) February 15, 2012 Stemedica Cell Technologies, Inc. (Stemedica), a leading manufacturer of adult allogeneic stem cells and stem cell factors announced that the Company has been issued U.S. Patent #8,105,380 by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. This broad-based patent covers the combination of scaffolds with stem cells derived from ectodermal and mesenchymal tissue. Unique features of the invention include a two-layer approach to wound healing: 1) a biodegradable layer that enhances growth factor and cytokine delivery in the wound bed and 2) a non-absorbable biological bandage layer that encourages epidermal closure. Mimicking human skin in its design, the Stemedica product will serve as a skin substitute for full thickness burns and chronic wounds. Estimated sales of wound care products in 2012 are $12.5 Billion. Nikolai Tankovich, M.D., Ph.D., President and Chief Medical Officer of Stemedica noted, “This patent brings together many aspects of regenerative medicine that are unique to … Continue reading →

14-02-2012 08:13 STEM CELLS The dance of life Recent developments in regenerative medicine and modern biology are going to have an enormous impact on our lives. Also the way itself we face the problem of sickness, aging and death changes as the hope (or the illusion?) grows that we always can fight and delay them. Stem cell research is in fact changing our knowledge of the fundamental mechanisms of life and feeding the idea that we can increasingly contrast the cruel natural selection rules which make us fall ill, grow old and die. A new frontier opens and unpredictable changes in our culture are taking place. People's hopes and fears grow at the same time. The general properties of the stem cells is presented, namely the ability to proliferate and, under certain conditions, to differentiate in other types of cells. In this way they can generate a new tissue replacing a damaged one, and also a new organ (like blood, thrachea, liver, heart, skin, cornea and very recently retina). A stamp is shown, which was emitted by the Japanese government to celebrate the discovery of a university team, which was able to regenerate a cornea and giving the opportunity to … Continue reading →

SUNRISE, Fla., Feb. 14, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bioheart, Inc. (BHRT.OB) announced today that it has acquired the worldwide exclusive rights to Ageless Regenerative Institute's adipose (fat) derived therapeutic cell technology for use in the cardiac field. "The Ageless adipose stem cell technology will allow us to broaden our portfolio of product candidates for cardiac patients," said Mike Tomas, President and CEO of Bioheart. "We have successfully treated patients in Mexico and now we are ready to expand into the US." Adipose tissue is readily available and has been shown to be rich in microvascular, myogenic and angiogenic cells. Bioheart has recently applied to the FDA to begin trials using adipose derived stem cells or LipiCell(TM) in patients with chronic ischemic cardiomyopathy. Transplantation of LipiCell(TM) will be accomplished through endocardial implantations with the MyoStar(TM) Injection Catheter under the guidance of the NOGA(R) cardiac navigation system by Biosense Webster, Inc. -- A Johnson & Johnson Company. Under the terms of the agreement, Bioheart will have a worldwide exclusive license to all of Ageless technology for use in the heart attack and heart failure markets. The agreement provides for upfront and milestone equity payments to Ageless. Ageless' President and Chief Executive Officer, … Continue reading →

February 14, 2012, 3:17 PM EST By Ryan Flinn (Adds comment from researcher in 13th paragraph.) Feb. 14 (Bloomberg) -- Stem cells grown from patients’ own cardiac tissue can heal damage once thought to be permanent after a heart attack, according to a study that suggests the experimental approach may one day help stave off heart failure. In a trial of 25 heart-attack patients, 17 who got the stem cell treatment showed a 50 percent reduction in cardiac scar tissue compared with no improvement for the eight who received standard care. The results, from the first of three sets of clinical trials generally needed for regulatory approval, were published today in the medical journal Lancet. “The findings in this paper are encouraging,” Deepak Srivastava, director of the San Francisco-based Gladstone Institute of Cardiovascular Disease, said in an interview. “There’s a dire need for new therapies for people with heart failure, it’s still the No. 1 cause of death in men and women.” The study, by researchers from Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute in Los Angeles and Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, tested the approach in patients who recently suffered a heart attack, with the goal that repairing the damage might help stave … Continue reading →

WALKER, Mich. (WOOD) - Dogs who received the first in-clinic stem cell therapy in West Michigan returned to the vets who treated them Monday morning. Boris and Natasha returned to Kelley's Animal Clinic for their 60-day checkup after receiving stem cell treatment in December 2011. Dr. James Kelley and his staff of vets removed fat tissue from the dogs and activated it with an enzyme before injecting it into their back legs. This adult animal stem cell technology is different from the controversial embryonic stem cell therapy. Kelley said both dogs are doing amazingly well and that the procedure has done more than just help their arthritis. "We're finding that not only the joints are affected, the rest of the animal is affected as well," said Kelley. "The skin is better. The attitude in these dogs is much improved." Kelley and his staff have done 16 stem cell treatments since the first on Boris and Natasha, and he said all the dogs are showing signs of improvement after a short period of time. See the rest here: Dogs who got stem cell therapy are well … Continue reading →