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New hope for stem cells, regenerative medicine emerges from the lab

By adminDecember 17, 2013Stem Cell Medical Center

5 hours ago In the right column, four images confirm the successful in vivo reprogramming of somatic liver cells (blue) into stem cells (pink), versus a control (left column). Credit: JoVE, the Journal of Visualized Experiments

Today, December 17, JoVE, the Journal of Visualized Experiments, has published a novel technique that could resolve a snag in stem cell research for application in regenerative medicinea strategy for reprograming cells in vivo to act like stem cells that forgoes the risk of causing tumors.

Dr. Kostas Kostarelos, principal investigator of the Nanomedicine Lab at the University of Manchester, said that he and his colleagues have discovered a safe approach to reprogramming somatic cells (which constitute most of the cells in the body) into induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. Research in this field has been embraced as an alternative to the controversial use of embryonic stem cells.

"We have induced somatic cells within the liver of adult mice to transiently behave as pluripotent stem cells," said Dr. Kostas Kostarelos, the lab's principal investigator, "This was done by transfer of four specific genes, previously described by the Nobel-prize winning Shinya Yamanaka, without the use of viruses but simply plasmid DNA [a small circular, double-stranded piece of DNA used for manipulating gene expression in a cell]."

The technique comes as an alternative to Dr. Shinya Yamanaka's reprograming methods, which won him the Nobel prize in 2012. Dr. Yamanaka's approach involved reprogramming somatic cells in vitro by introducing four genes through the use of a virus. While promising, the use of this method has been limited. As Dr. Kostarelos's article states, "One of the central dogmas of this emerging field is that in vivo implantation of [these stem] cells will lead to their uncontrolled differentiation and the formation of a tumor-like mass."

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Dr. Kostarelos and his team have determined that their technique does not share the risk of uncontrolled stem cell growth into tumors as seen in in vitro, viral-based methods. "[This is the] only experimental technique to report the in vivo reprogramming of adult somatic cells to pluripotency using non-viral, transient, rapid and safe methods," Kostarelos said.

The Nanomedicine Lab's approach involves injecting large volumes of plasmid DNA to reprogram cells. However, because plasmid DNA is short-lived in this scenario, the risk of uncontrolled growth is reduced.

The research group chose to publish their technique with JoVE as a means to emphasize the novelty, uniqueness and simplicity of their procedure. Along with their article, a demonstration of their technique has been published as a peer-reviewed video to ensure the proper replication of this technique by other researchers in the field.

Explore further: Test to improve stem cell safety

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New hope for stem cells, regenerative medicine emerges from the lab

With new multimillion-dollar grants, UCLA scientists take stem cell research to patients

By adminDecember 17, 2013Uncategorized

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

16-Dec-2013

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

Scientists from UCLA are now bringing their groundbreaking stem cell science directly to patients in two exciting new clinical trials scheduled to begin in early 2014, thanks to funding from California's stem cell agency.

The new grants to researchers at UCLA's Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research, which total nearly $21 million, were announced Dec. 12 at a meeting of the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) Citizen's Oversight Committee. They are apart of the state agency's Disease Team Therapy Development III initiative.

A team led by UCLA's Dr. Dennis Slamon and Dr. Zev Wainberg was awarded nearly $7 million for a clinical trial that will test a new drug targeting cancer stem cells, and UCLA's Dr. Donald Kohn received almost $14 million for a clinical trial that will focus on stem-cell gene therapy for sickle cell disease.

"The CIRM support demonstrates that our multidisciplinary center is at the forefront of translating basic scientific research into new drug and cellular therapies that will revolutionize medicine," said Dr. Owen Witte, director of the UCLA Broad Stem Cell Research Center.

Dennis Slamon and Zev Wainberg: Targeting solid tumor stem cells

This clinical trial builds on Slamon's previous work, partially funded by CIRM, with Wainberg and Dr. Tak Mak, director of the Campbell Family Institute at the University Health Network in Toronto, aimed at developing a drug that targets those stem cells thought to initiate solid cancer tumors.

The AmericanCanadian collaborative team will lead this first in-human Phase 1 trial testing their new therapy, which has received investigational new-drug approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Health Canada, Canada's therapeutic regulatory agency. The project has been approved to begin enrolling patients in both the U.S. and Canada.

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With new multimillion-dollar grants, UCLA scientists take stem cell research to patients

Foetal stem cell treatment sees success in fighting brittle bone disease

By adminDecember 17, 2013Stem Cell Treatment

SINGAPORE: A team of experts from Singapore's National University Hospital (NUH) has made a clinical breakthrough in their work on foetal stem cell treatment.

The team is part of an international collaboration comprising researches from Karolinska Institutet, Sweden, and Taiwan.

The treatment involves the injection of stem cells into a foetus while still in the mother's womb to treat various abnormalities and genetic disorders.

The experts announced this after successfully treating two girls with brittle bone disease. One of them is a four year-old who was treated in Singapore.

The team plans to carry out further research on the use of stem cell treatment for other prenatal abnormalities.

Dr Citra Mattar, associate consultant from the Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology at NUH, said: "Treating a foetus that's only 12 grams or 20 grams in the early part of pregnancy is likely to be much more effective when we give a certain dose of stem cell or gene therapy product; compared to treating a baby -- when it's born it's 2.5 kg, it's much bigger than the foetus. So we can use a smaller amount of product to achieve a greater result."

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Foetal stem cell treatment sees success in fighting brittle bone disease

Phoenix Pain Management Doctors at Arizona Pain Stem Cell …

By adminDecember 16, 2013Stem Cell Doctors

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Exception Details: System.NullReferenceException: Object reference not set to an instance of an object.

Source Error:

1. Add a "Debug=true" directive at the top of the file that generated the error. Example:

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or:

2) Add the following section to the configuration file of your application:

Note that this second technique will cause all files within a given application to be compiled in debug mode. The first technique will cause only that particular file to be compiled in debug mode.

Important: Running applications in debug mode does incur a memory/performance overhead. You should make sure that an application has debugging disabled before deploying into production scenario.

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Phoenix Pain Management Doctors at Arizona Pain Stem Cell ...

Kidney grown from stem cells by Australian scientists

By adminDecember 16, 2013Stem Cell Doctors

Scientists are hoping to increase the size of future kidneys and believe the resulting organs will boost research and allow cheaper, faster testing of drugs. Within the next three to five years, the artificial organs could be used to allow doctors to repair damaged kidneys within the body, rather than letting diseases develop before proceeding with a transplant.

The engineered kidney was developed by a team of Australian scientists led by the University of Queensland's Institute for Molecular Bioscience.

Professor Wainwright said the process for developing the kidney was "like a scientific approach to cooking". The scientists methodically examined which genes were switched on and off during kidney development and then manipulated the skin cells into embryonic stem cells which could "self-organise" and form complex human structures.

"The [researchers] spent years looking at what happens if you turn this gene off and this one on," he said. "You can eventually coax these stem cells through a journey they [the cells] go through various stages and then think about being a kidney cell and eventually pop together to form a little piece of kidney."

The research could eventually help address the demand for transplant organs and improve medical testing of new drugs for patients with kidney disease.

Human kidneys are particularly susceptible to damage during trials, which makes finding effective medicines costly and time-consuming.

Professor Melissa Little, from the University of Queensland, said scientists could try to grow full-grown kidneys for transplants or even "clusters of mini kidneys" that could be transplanted to boost patients' renal functions. But she told The Australian she believed such developments were still more than a decade away.

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Kidney grown from stem cells by Australian scientists

UC San Diego Gets $4M Grant For Stem Cell Research

By adminDecember 16, 2013Stem Cell Medicine

The state agency that funds stem cell research has given UC San Diego a new $4-million grant. The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine has given the school 62 grants.

The institute known as CIRM made its first grants in 2006. Since then, the agency has awarded UC San Diego $142 million for stem cell research.

That makes the school the fourth highest recipient of CIRM grants in the state.

Dr.Catriona Jamieson, UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center stem cell research program director, said CIRM has funded a lot of cutting-edge science.

They also gave us a training grant that has been absolutely vital for being able to train the next generation of physician-scientists, and scientists who want to be able to work with regenerative therapies, Jamieson said.

A variety of other local entities have received CIRM grants, including the Salk Institute and San Diego State University.

CIRM has awarded San Diego institutions a total of more than $350 million since it began doling out grants seven years ago. Thats nearly one-sixth of the total amount awarded statewide.

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UC San Diego Gets $4M Grant For Stem Cell Research

Regenerative medicine: Mayo Clinic and collaborators develop new tool for transplanting stem cells

By adminDecember 16, 2013Stem Cell Clinic

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

16-Dec-2013

Contact: Jennifer Schutz newsbureau@mayo.edu 507-284-5005 Mayo Clinic

ROCHESTER, Minn. -- Mayo Clinic researchers and colleagues in Belgium have developed a specialized catheter for transplanting stem cells into the beating heart. The novel device includes a curved needle and graded openings along the needle shaft, allowing for increased distribution of cells. The result is maximized retention of stem cells to repair the heart. The findings appear in the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Interventions.

"Although biotherapies are increasingly more sophisticated, the tools for delivering regenerative therapies demonstrate a limited capacity in achieving high cell retention in the heart," says Atta Behfar, M.D., Ph.D., a Mayo Clinic cardiology specialist and lead author of the study. "Retention of cells is, of course, crucial to an effective, practical therapy."

Researchers from the Mayo Clinic Center for Regenerative Medicine in Rochester and Cardio3 Biosciences in Mont-Saint-Guibert, Belgium, collaborated to develop the device, beginning with computer modeling in Belgium. Once refined, the computer-based models were tested in North America for safety and retention efficiency.

What's the significance?

This new catheter is being used in the European CHART-1 clinical trials, now underway. This is the first Phase III trial to regenerate hearts of patients who have suffered heart attack damage. The studies are the outcome of years of basic science research at Mayo Clinic and earlier clinical studies with Cardio3 BioSciences and Cardiovascular Centre in Aalst, Belgium, conducted between 2009 and 2010.

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The development of the catheter and subsequent studies were supported by Cardio3 BioSciences; Walloon Region General Directorate for Economy, Employment & Research; Meijer Lavino Foundation for Cardiac Research Aalst (Belgium); the National Institutes of Health; Grainger Foundation; Florida Heart Research Institute; Marriott Heart Disease Research Program; and the Mayo Clinic Center for Regenerative Medicine.

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Regenerative medicine: Mayo Clinic and collaborators develop new tool for transplanting stem cells

West Coast Stem Cell Clinic, Telehealth, Now Offering Stem Cell Injections for Plantar Fasciitis

By adminDecember 16, 2013Uncategorized

Orange County, California (PRWEB) December 16, 2013

Top California stem cell clinic, TeleHealth, is now offering stem cell injections for plantar fasciitis. The condition may lead to chronic pain and may not respond to traditional treatments, with the stem cell therapy often allowing for pain relief and the ability to avoid the need for surgery. For more information and scheduling, call (888) 828-4575.

Planter fasciitis affects millions of Americans. The condition leads to chronic heel pain and may make it difficult to participate in recreational activities and even walk normally. Traditional treatments such as physical therapy, NSAIDS, steroid injections and orthotics are often effective over time. However, the condition may not respond as desired to these options and stem cells for plantar fasciitis may be the answer.

Therefore, stem cell injections that TeleHealth provides may offer an excellent option for healing the inflamed area while at the same time providing considerable pain relief. The conventional pain management treatments tend to mask pain, however, they do not actually heal the condition directly.

Regenerative medicine treatments with stem cells maintain the potential of actually healing the damaged tissue to provide long term relief. Telehealth has multiple US Board Certified doctors who have a long history of providing stem cell therapy for numerous conditions including degenerative arthritis, rotator cuff and Achilles tendonitis, ligament injury, elbow soft tissue tendinitis and more.

For those suffering from planter fasciitis or any of the other arthritic or soft tissue injury conditions, call TeleHealth at (888) 828-4575.

Arizona Pain Stem Cell Institute Now Offering Stem Cell Therapy for Plantar Fasciitis

By adminDecember 16, 2013Stem Cell Treatment

Phoenix, Arizona (PRWEB) December 16, 2013

The top Phoenix stem cell treatment clinic, Arizona Pain Stem Cell Institute, is now offering stem cell therapy for plantar fasciitis. The treatments are offered by Board Certified pain management doctors in Arizona, and often help patients avoid surgery. For more information and scheduling, call (602) 507-6550.

Plantar fasciitis affects millions of Americans, causing heel pain that may make it difficult to participate in recreational activities and walking in general. Conventional treatments such as steroid injections, NSAIDS, bracing and physical therapy at times do not relieve the pain properly. Surgery for plantar fasciitis unfortunately does not always provide the desired relief.

Regenerative medicine at the Arizona Pain Stem Cell Institute offers a nonoperative option for plantar fasciitis. This may include stem cell injections with bone marrow, fat derived or amniotic derived material. The procedure is outpatient and low risk.

In addition to treatments for plantar fasciitis, the Institute offers stem cell treatments for degenerative arthritis, tennis elbow, rotator cuff symptoms, achilles tendonitis and more. The procedures are performed by Board Certified pain doctors, with four research projects ongoing.

The Institute is a division of Arizona Pain Specialists, the leading pain center in Arizona. Five locations accept over 50 insurance plans including Workers Compensation, Personal Injury, PPO's, some HMO's and self pay. The regenerative medicine treatments are offered as fee for service.

For more information and scheduling to discuss plantar fasciitis options, call (602) 507-6550.

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Arizona Pain Stem Cell Institute Now Offering Stem Cell Therapy for Plantar Fasciitis

Brittle-bone babies helped by fetal stem cell grafts

By adminDecember 16, 2013Stem Cell Treatment

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

16-Dec-2013

Contact: Press Office pressinfo@ki.se 46-852-486-077 Karolinska Institutet

Osteogeneis imperfecta (OI) is a congenital bone disease that causes stunted growth and repeated, painful fracturing. Ultrasound scans can reveal fractures already in the fetus, and now an international team of researchers from Sweden, Singapore and Taiwan have treated two babies in utero by injecting bone-forming stem cells. The longitudinal results of the treatment are published in the journal Stem Cells Translational Medicine.

The babies were treated with mesenchymal stem cells, connective tissue cells that can form and improve bone tissue. The stem cells were extracted from the livers of donors and although they were completely unmatched genetically, there was no rejection and the transplanted cells were accepted as self.

Back in 2005, a paper was published from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden describing how stem cells were given to a female fetus. The present study describes how the girl suffered a large number of fractures and developed scoliosis up to the age of eight, whereupon the researchers decided to give her a fresh stem cell graft from the same donor. For the next two years the girl suffered no new fractures and improved her growth rate. Today she takes dance lessons and participates more in PE at school.

Another unborn baby with OI, a girl from Taiwan, was also given stem cell transplantation by the Karolinska Institutet team and their colleagues from Singapore. The girl subsequently followed a normal and fracture-free growth trajectory until the age of one, when it levelled off. She was given a fresh stem cell treatment and her growth resumed. The girl started to walk and has since not suffered any new fractures. Today she is four years old.

"We believe that the stem cells have helped to relieve the disease since none of the children broke bones for a period following the grafts, and both increased their growth rate," says study leader Dr Cecilia Gtherstrm, researcher at Karolinska Institutet's Department of Clinical Sciences, Intervention and Technology. "Today, the children are doing much better than if the transplantations had not been given. OI is a very rare disease and lacks effective treatment, and a combined international effort is needed to examine whether stem cell grafts can alleviate the disease."

The researchers have also identified a patient, a boy from Canada, who was born with OI caused by exactly the same mutation as the Swedish girl had. The boy was not given stem cell therapy and was born with severe and widespread bone damage, including numerous fractures and kyphosis of the thoracic vertebrae, which causes such over-curvature of the spine that it impairs breathing. The boy died of pneumonia within his first 5 months.

Participating institutions in Singapore have been the National University Hospotal, and the KK Women's and Children's Hospital. Collaborating partner of Taiwan was the Chang Gung Memorial Hospital in Linkou. Researchers of several universities and hospitals in Sweden, Canada and the USA also took part in the work. The study was financed with a grant from the Swedish Society for Medical Research, and two of the participating researchers received a salary from the Singaporean Ministry of Health.

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Brittle-bone babies helped by fetal stem cell grafts