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Trethera Announces Multiple Sclerosis Treatment Poster Presentation at the American Neurological Association Annual Meeting

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 04, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Trethera Corporation (“Trethera”), a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company committed to developing novel drugs targeting nucleotide metabolism for the treatment of cancer and autoimmune diseases, announces an upcoming poster presentation at the 147th Annual Meeting of the American Neurological Association (ANA). Dr. Peter M. Clark, of the University of California Los Angeles, will present preclinical research highlighting the use of Trethera’s deoxycytidine kinase (dCK) inhibitor, TRE-515, to selectively inhibit symptoms in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) mouse models of multiple sclerosis (MS). The ANA meeting is one of the largest annual gatherings of MS researchers and a key venue for presenting noteworthy neurology discoveries. The work presented by Dr. Clark also has application for optic neuritis, a rare neurologic disease which affects the optic nerve causing visual impairment. TRE-515 is currently being evaluated in a Phase 1 dose escalation solid tumors study.

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Trethera Announces Multiple Sclerosis Treatment Poster Presentation at the American Neurological Association Annual Meeting

NextCure Announces Initiation of Phase 1b/2 Clinical Trial to Evaluate NC410 in Combination with KEYTRUDA® (Pembrolizumab) in Patients with Immune…

BELTSVILLE, Md., Oct. 04, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- NextCure, Inc. (Nasdaq: NXTC), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company committed to discovering and developing novel, first-in-class immunomedicines to treat cancer and other immune-related diseases, today announced the initiation of a Phase 1b/2 clinical trial to evaluate NC410 in combination with KEYTRUDA® (pembrolizumab), Merck’s anti-PD-1 therapy, in patients with immune checkpoint refractory or immune checkpoint naïve solid tumors. In addition, NextCure announced it has entered into a supply agreement for KEYTRUDA with Merck (known as MSD outside the United States and Canada).

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NextCure Announces Initiation of Phase 1b/2 Clinical Trial to Evaluate NC410 in Combination with KEYTRUDA® (Pembrolizumab) in Patients with Immune...

Dante Genomics Unveils Digital Health Population Genomic Programs at the United Nations General Assembly Science Summit

NEW YORK, Oct. 04, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dante Genomics, a global leader in genomics and precision medicine, is pleased to announce that the Company’s co-founder and CEO Andrea Riposati presented as an opening speaker on Tuesday, September 27, 2022 at the 77th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Science Summit, where he unveiled the Company’s Digital Health Population Genomics Program in Europe, including living labs, which are groundbreaking pilot studies with fast impact on a country’s society and digital health.

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Dante Genomics Unveils Digital Health Population Genomic Programs at the United Nations General Assembly Science Summit

Mersana Therapeutics Announces Inducement Grants Under Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4)

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Oct. 04, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mersana Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRSN), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing a pipeline of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) targeting cancers in areas of high unmet medical need, today announced that on October 3, 2022, an authorized sub-committee of the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors of Mersana granted inducement awards, consisting of restricted stock unit awards (RSUs) to acquire an aggregate of 27,000 shares of its common stock, to six new employees whose employment commenced in September 2022. The awards were granted pursuant to terms and conditions fixed by the Compensation Committee and as an inducement material to each new employee entering employment with Mersana in accordance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4).

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Mersana Therapeutics Announces Inducement Grants Under Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4)

Veru Reports Inducement Grants Under NASDAQ Listing Rule 5635(c)(4)

MIAMI, Oct. 04, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Veru Inc. (NASDAQ: VERU), a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel medicines for COVID-19 and other viral and ARDS-related diseases and for the management of breast and prostate cancers, today announced the granting of inducement awards to seven new employees. In accordance with NASDAQ Listing Rule 5635(c)(4), the awards were made as a material inducement to the seven employees’ entry into employment with the Company.

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Veru Reports Inducement Grants Under NASDAQ Listing Rule 5635(c)(4)

Roche to present new data from its expanding neuromuscular disease portfolio at World Muscle Society 2022

Basel, 05 October 2022 - Roche (SIX: RO, ROG; OTCQX: RHHBY) today announced that new data from its industry-leading neuromuscular portfolio will be presented at the World Muscle Society (WMS) congress, 11th-15th October 2022. These data demonstrate Roche’s commitment to advancing clinical understanding and supporting the development of treatments for people living with neuromuscular disorders.

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Roche to present new data from its expanding neuromuscular disease portfolio at World Muscle Society 2022

Stem Cells Therapy for Autism: Does it Work?

Most of us are familiar with the scientific fact that any living, breathing animal, insect etc. is made up of cells. These cells form tissues and organs that support the existence of the host. Many of us have also heard of stem cells therapy for autism but are unsure about its validity.

Scientists have studied the underlying mechanism of cells, as well as their functioning, and have discovered ways of using the cells to improve the lives of humans and treat diseases. To do so, scientists have discovered stem cells; think of it as the building blocks of a fully differentiated cell.

Stem cells are human cells that can be developed and differentiated into other cell types. These cells can be derived from any part of the body, for example, stem cells from the brain, muscle, bone marrow, etc. Stem cells are versatile in that they can be used to fix damaged tissues. The two essential characteristics of stem cells include: Firstly, the ability to self-renew to create successors identical to the original cell. Secondly, stem cells, unlike cancer cells, are controlled and highly regulated, therefore, stem cells need to be able to give rise to specialized cell types that become part of the healthy body.

The purpose of stem cell therapy is to regenerate and repair damaged tissues and cells in the body. There are two main classes of stem cells. Pluripotent stem cells have the potential to become any cell in the adult body and multipotent stem cells are much more restricted to a specific population or lineage of cells. Other stem cell types include totipotent and unipotent.

Lets look at pluripotent and multipotent stem cells in detail.

Pluripotent stem cells are generated from somatic cells. These mainly come from embryos and, as such, theyre often referred to as embryonic stem cells.

Lets discuss three types of embryonic stem cells that are used to generate pluripotent cells. These include true embryonic stem cells (ES), nuclear transfer of somatic cells (ntES), and parthenogenetic embryonic stem cells (these are stem cells from unfertilized eggs).

The true embryonic stem cells are made from unused embryos, such as those that undergo IVF (in vitro fertilization). The process of IVF is such that the eggs and sperm are fertilized in a lab dish. What then happens is that, through this process, more embryos are generated, usually more than the couple actually need. Those that arent used can be donated to science.

Pluripotent cells made from these unused embryos are not genetically matched to the original hosts. These are mainly used in science for studies to learn how stem cells regenerate.

Every cell contains an organelle called a nucleus. The nucleus contains all the cells genetic information essential to its function. The word somatic refers to any cell in the body.

The process of somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) extracts the nucleus from a somatic cell and transfers it into another cell that has had its own nucleus removed; i.e. the nucleus from the previous cell is being transferred to an egg cell that does not contain a nucleus (unnucleated).

When the nucleus is transferred to another cell, it activates the process of pluripotent cell generation that reprograms the generation of genes in that cell. The egg then becomes a zygote nucleus or a fertilized egg, the cell then replicates and through it embryonic stem cells are created.

Imagine being able to fertilize an egg without fertilization by sperm. Unusual, but science makes crazy things happen.

Parthenogenesis is the process whereby an unfertilized egg develops an embryo without fertilization. This can be achieved through chemical, physical or combined activation methods.

The parthenogenetic embryonic stem cells have the capacity for infinite proliferation and self-renewal, and maintain the ability to differentiate into one or more specialized types of cell or tissue.

pESCs are especially useful for regenerative medicine, and therefore allow the generation of functional cells that could potentially be used as treatment for many incurable diseases in the future.

Multipotent stem cells are unspecialized cell types that have the ability to self-renew and differentiate into specialized cell types. However, these cells are specific to the type of tissue or organ. For example, a multipotent adult stem cell from the bone marrow can become specialized to produce all blood cell types; and cells in the stem cells from neural networks in the brain can specialize to glial and neuronal cells.

When we talk about all blood cell types, we have to get a little scientific, but for the curious mind, all blood cell types refers to platelets, B and T lymphocytes, natural killer cells, dendritic cells.the list goes on.

In addition, for the curious mind, various types of stem cells include hematopoietic stem cells (the ones that make blood cell types), mesenchymal stem cells (differentiate into bone, fat, cartilage, muscle, and skin), and neural stem cells (from neural networks).

Now that weve covered the types of stem cells, the question remains, can stem cell therapy cure autism? Lets have a look.

To answer this question, I refer to the review by Price (2020) as it is the latest up-date data on this subject. It is important to note however, that at the time of reading this article there may be other research data published on this topic.

Several research studies cite immune dysfunction as the cause and effect of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). By virtue of this analogy, it has informed the basis of the stem cell therapy approach for treating autism. This is founded on the properties that regulate the immune system (immuno-regulatory properties).

From the review, it was also found that when exposed to inflammatory stimuli, this may lead to the development of postnatal diagnosis of ASD. Inflammation to the cell describes the process that occurs when the cell is exposed to harmful stimuli such as bacteria, trauma, toxins, heat, and pathogens. The affected cells then release chemicals that cause blood vessels to leak fluid into the tissues, causing swelling.

Therefore, an inflammatory stimuli is that which influences the occurrence of an inflammatory response.

Other bodies of research found an altered level of proteins called cytokines which are essential for interaction and communication between cells in ASD. These may also be the cause of the development of autism spectrum disorder. Some genetic studies propose an association between a genetic loci (a specific point on the genome of the autistic individual) and ASD whose function is related to immune function. While others suggest a possible anomaly in the neuronal signaling pathway that directs communication and information transfer between neurons

All these are proposed reasons that hypothesize the use of stem cell therapy to treat autism biologically. However, all these propositions do not lead to one voice, there are too many hypotheses that make it difficult to narrow down the target area that would potentially treat autism or autism symptoms. Keeping in mind that autism traits are diverse, therefore, narrowing this information down to one plausible pathology is an even greater challenge.

So, is stem cell therapy effective? The answer to this is unknown.

Is ASD caused by genetic, immune dysfunction, or inflammatory stimuli? The answer to this is not clear and theres a vast number of studies that argue different theories.

It is even more disturbing to consider these hypotheses because, for example, each person can experience bacterial or viral infections, or stress that can impact immune functioning and/or lead to inflammation but were not all on the spectrum. Therefore, we cant say that factors which alter our immune functioning lead to the development of neurodevelopmental conditions.

However, according to Price, the study by Riordan et al. (2019) proposes the influence of cytokines for the treatment of autism.The data proposed could be a point in a positive direction to answering whether stem cell therapy could potentially treat autism symptoms.

Unfortunately, there is no data to positively state the effectiveness of stem cell therapy for treating autism. As more research is developed in this field, theres hope that more understanding of autism will arise, and perhaps an alternative form of treatment of autism symptoms can be developed. It is also worth noting the possibility of genetic markers that could help diagnose autism during pregnancy or during the prenatal development stage.

The studies highlighted in this article are simply preliminary assessments. Further research needs to be conducted in order to understand the potential of cell therapies for treating autism.

The findings of these studies vary in hypothesis and this makes generalization hard. Science has developed greatly over years, therefore, for those that believe in the potential of science and all that it could offer, theres a reason to hope that stem cell therapy could potentially be used as treatment for autism in the near future.

Biehl, J. K., & Russell, B. (2009). Introduction to stem cell therapy. The Journal of cardiovascular nursing, 24(2), 98105. https://doi.org/10.1097/JCN.0b013e318197a6a5

Price, J.(2020). Cell therapy approaches to autism: a review of clinical trial data. Molecular Autism, 11, 37 . https://doi.org/10.1186/s13229-020-00348-z

http://stemcell.childrenshospital.org/about-stem-cells/adult-somatic-stem-cells-101/where-do-we-get-adult-stem-cells/

Thermo Fisher Scientific. An Overview of Pluripotent and Multipotent Stem Cell Targets. https://www.thermofisher.com/za/en/home/life-science/antibodies/antibodies-learning-center/antibodies-resource-library/antibody-methods/pluripotent-multipotent-stem-cell-targets.html

Yu, Z., Han, B. (2016). Advantages and limitations of the parthenogenetic embryonic stem cells in cell therapy. Journal of Reproduction and Contraception, 27 (2), Issue 2, 118-124. https://doi.org/10.7669/j.issn.1001-7844.2016.02.0118

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Stem Cells Therapy for Autism: Does it Work?