Category Archives: Mesenchymal Stem Cells

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 22-Oct-2013 Contact: Eileen Leahy e.leahy@elsevier.com 732-238-3628 Elsevier Health Sciences San Francisco, CA, October 22, 2013 A study performed at Children's Hospital Los Angeles found no evidence that stem cell therapy improves vision for children with optic nerve hypoplasia (ONH). Their results are reported in the Journal of the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus (AAPOS). ONH, an underdevelopment of optic nerves that occurs during fetal development, may appear either as an isolated abnormality or as part of a group of disorders characterized by brain anomalies, developmental delay, and endocrine abnormalities. ONH is a leading cause of blindness in children in North America and Europe and is the only cause of childhood blindness that shows increasing prevalence. No treatments have been shown to improve vision in these children. With no viable treatment options available to improve vision, ophthalmologists are becoming aware that families with children affected by ONH are travelling to China seeking stem cell therapy, despite lack of approval in the United States and Europe or evidence from controlled trials. The American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus has also expressed its concern about these procedures. In response to this situation, pediatric neuro-ophthalmologist Mark Borchert, MD, … Continue reading →

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/s5wvt7/opportunities_in) has announced the addition of the "Opportunities in Human Embryonic Stem Cell (hESC) Products - Trends and Forecasts to 2017" report to their offering. Stem cells are primitive cells found in all multi-cellular organisms that are characterized by self-renewal and the capacity to differentiate into any mature cell type. Categorized by stage of life, several broad categories of stem cells exist, including: - Embryonic stem cells, derived from blastocysts - Post-natal stem cells, derived from newborn tissues - Adult stem cells, found in adult tissues - including hematopoietic stem cells, mesenchymal stem cells, neural stem cells, and more - Induced pluripotent stem cells, reprogrammed from adult cells - Cancer stem cells, which give rise to clonal populations of cells that form tumors or disperse in the body Embryonic stem cells are stem cells derived from the inner cell mass of a blastocyst, which is a stage reached four to five days post-fertilization. They are the most pluripotent of all stem cell types and can develop into over 200 different cell types of the human body. Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) were first derived from mouse embryos in 1981 by Martin Evans and Matthew Kaufman, … Continue reading →

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/7ntlsl/stem_cells_market) has announced the addition of the "Global Stem Cells Market Report 2013-2018" report to their offering. Stem Cells Market (Adult, Human Embryonic , Induced Pluripotent, Rat-Neural, Umbilical Cord, Cell Production, Cell Acquisition, Expansion, Sub-Culture) - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends And Forecast, 2012 - 2018 The market by products is segmented into three sub-types, namely adult stem cells, human embryonic stem cells and other type of stem cells. Adult stem cells are further segmented into hematopoietic stem cells, mesenchymal stem cells, neuronal stem cells, dental stem cells and umbilical cord stem cells. The other types of stem cells include induced pluripotent stem cells, natural rosette cells and very small embryonic like stem cells. The report highlights the market shares of key players in 2011. The company profiles for some of the key players, namely Advanced Cell Technology Inc., STEMCELL Technologies Inc., Cellular Engineering Technologies Inc., BioTime Inc., Aastrom Biosciences Inc. and California Stem Cell Inc. in terms of company overview, financial overview, business strategies, recent developments and product portfolio is also covered. Key Topics Covered: Chapter 1 Preface Chapter 2 Executive Summary Chapter 3 Market Overview Chapter 4 Global Stem Cells Market, … Continue reading →

Osiris Therapeutics, Inc.s (OSIR) shares continued to gain ever since the company announced its agreement for the sale of its culture-expanded mesenchymal stem cell (ceMSC) business. Last week, the company entered into an agreement with a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mesoblast Limited under which Osiris will sell its ceMSC business including Prochymal for up to $100 million. Osiris will be entitled to royalty payments as well. Shares are up about 5.8% since the agreement was announced. $50 million will be received by Osiris on the closing of the deal with the remaining $50 million falling due as and when milestones (development and regulatory) are achieved by Mesoblast. Mesoblast will be responsible for all future development costs for the ceMSC business. While a part ($35 million) of the initial $50 million payment will be made in cash, the balance ($15 million) and other milestone payments may be made in cash or stock. Osiris will also be entitled to receive single to low double-digit royalties on sales of products derived from the ceMSC technology. Osiris has also retained a license to all transferred intellectual property necessary to run its other businesses. This deal will provide Osiris with pro forma cash, investments and receivables … Continue reading →

An estimated 200,000 patients a year have acute respiratory failure in the U.S. and mortality is about 30 to 40 percent, according to Michael Matthay, MD, a critical care specialist and professor of medicine and anesthesia at UC San Francisco. Matthay is working with Jae-Woo Lee, MD, Kathleen Liu, MD, MAS, PhD, and Carolyn Calfee, MD, MAS, associate professors of medicine and anesthesia, on developing cell-based therapies that he hopes will make a major difference in reducing mortality in patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome, a major cause of acute respiratory failure in critically-ill patients. The research teams experience translating these therapies from scientific concept to clinical practice is featured in a series of videos on LaunchPad, a new online resource for translational researchers that is managed by UCSFs Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI). Moving a novel treatment into clinical trials requires an "Investigational New Drug" (IND) approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). As Liu describes in the video, Preparing the entire IND application for this project was going to be an enormous undertaking that I think we hadnt really appreciated. Up until the IND process, the team of investigators had worked over many years on … Continue reading →

Ankle arthritis treatment... what are thre options? http://www.stemcellsarthritistreatment.com Ankle arthritis is increasing in prevalence. The most common causes are trauma and ligamentous laxity. Conservativ... By: Nathan Wei … Continue reading →

Oct. 14, 2013 Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago have identified a protein expressed by human bone marrow stem cells that guides and stimulates the formation of blood vessels. Their findings, which could help improve the vascularization of engineered tissues, were reported online on October 12 in the Journal of Molecular and Cellular Cardiology. "Some stem cells actually have multiple jobs," says Dr. Jalees Rehman, associate professor of cardiology and pharmacology at the UIC College of Medicine and lead author of the paper. For example, stem cells in the bone marrow, he said, differentiate into bone or cartilage, but also have a secondary role in helping to support other cells in the bone marrow. Rehman and his colleagues, who are developing engineered tissues for use in cardiac patients, observed that certain stem cells in bone marrow, called mesenchymal stem cells, seemed crucial for organizing other cells into functional blood vessels. The researchers demonstrated that when they mixed mesenchymal stem cells from human bone marrow with the endothelial cells that line blood vessels, the stem cells elongated to form scaffolds and the endothelial cells organized around them to form tubes. "But without the stem cells, the endothelial cells just … Continue reading →

Stem cell research is surrounded by loaded controversy over the bioethical issues that itposes. What many peopledont understand is that there are two different types of stem cells currentlybeing used for research:embryonic and adult.Adult stem cell use isnot the causefordiscussion, allowingresearch to continue with the hopes of changing the treatment of disease. Researchers worldwide, whohave alreadydeveloped varioustherapies to treat leukemia, alsohope to treat cancer, Parkinsons disease and spinal cord injuriesone day. Now, Boston-based researchers have made the next development in stem cellstudies, whichwill reap exciting benefitsfor a large population ofpatients suffering from inflammatory diseases. A group of researchers from Brigham and Womens Hospital, theHarvard Stem Cell Institute, Massachusetts Institute of Technologyand Massachusetts General Hospital have uncovered a wayforstem cellstoact as a drug factory at thesite of inflammation in the body, according to a study published Oct. 4 on EurekAlert. Oren Levy,the head researcher, said he isoptimistic about the discoverys potential to treat diseases such as myocardialinfarction, multiple sclerosisand even certain types of cancer. Its important not to create false hope, but we do see a lot of progress to be made,Levy said. What did they do? Levy,with the help ofcollaborators Jeffrey Karp,WeianZhao,MehmetFatihYanikand Charles Lin,began the researchas a proof-of-concept studyto determine … Continue reading →

Mathew Blurton Jones - New Hope: Stem Cell Therapy in Alzheimer's Disease "New Hope: Stem Cell Therapy in Alzheimer's Disease" Mathew Blurton-Jones, Ph.D. -- University of California, Irvine 24th Annual Southern California Alzheime... By: UCITLTC … Continue reading →

Mesoblast Ltd. (MSB) climbed the most in eight months in Sydney trading after agreeing to buy a stem-cell business of Osiris Therapeutics Inc. (OSIR) for as much as $100 million to gain new treatments. The maker of stem-cell therapies rose as much as 11 percent, the largest advance since Feb. 7, and was up 6.2 percent to A$5.82 as of 11:47 a.m. in Sydney trading. Mesoblast will buy the mesenchymal stem-cell unit of Osiris, including Prochymal, a treatment for acute graft versus host disease, Columbia, Maryland-based Osiris said in a statement. The price tag includes as much as $50 million in payments if certain trial and regulatory milestones are met, and Osiris may also receive royalties on sales of certain products, Melbourne-based Mesoblast said in a separate statement today. Prochymal has received conditional approval in Canada and New Zealand for use in children with acute graft versus host disease, and is available under an access program in the U.S. for treating both children and adults, according to Osiriss statement. The illness is a complication that can occur after a stem-cell or bone-marrow transplant in which the newly transplanted donor cells attack the transplant recipients body, according to Medline Plus. To … Continue reading →