Promising Results for Stem Cell Treatment of Degenerative …

By Pat Anson, PNN Editor

An Australian regenerative medicine company has released positive results from a Phase III randomized trial showing that a single injection of its proprietary stem cell product can provide long-term relief for people with chronic lower back pain caused by degenerative disc disease.

Mesoblast Limited said the results are so promising it plans to meet with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to discuss ways to accelerate approval of the drug as a treatment that reduces the use of opioid pain medication.

The companys stem cell product -- remestemcel-L -- has been under development for several years. It uses mesenchymal precursor cells taken from the bone marrow of healthy donors to reduce inflammation by inhibiting the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines by white blood cells.

Sixty percent of the patients in the clinical trial who were injected with remestemcel-L reported minimal or no pain after 12 months. After 24 months, 54 percent reported little or no pain, with the greatest pain reduction in patients in the early stages of degenerative disc disease. Many patients also significantly reduced their use of opioids during the study period.

The durable pain reduction for at least two years from a single administration indicates that rexlemestrocel-L has the potential to change the treatment paradigm for chronic low back pain due to inflammatory disc disease, a condition that affects as many as seven million patients across the United States and Europe, and to prevent or reduce opioid use and dependence, Dr. Silviu Itescu, CEO of Mesoblast, said in a statement.

Over 400 patients were enrolled in the Phase III trial, which was conducted at 48 sites around the world, mostly in the United States. Although Mesoblast told physicians and patients not to change any medications during the trial, after 24 months there was a 40% reduction in opioid use in patients injected with rexlemestrocel-L. Those who were given a placebo saline injection increased their daily opioid consumption.

In a previous study of patients with chronic lower back pain who did not respond to conventional treatment, a single injection of remestemcel-L also reduced pain for at least two years.

The FDA has prioritized the development of new pain treatments that reduce the use of opioids. Although the agency has taken a dim view of some stem cell therapies as unproven and potentially dangerous, Mesoblast believes the FDA will be more open-minded about its rexlemestrocel-L treatment. Last year the agency approved an investigational new drug application for rexlemestrocel-L as a therapy for COVID-19.

We now have two studies that show significant pain reduction and were fully prepared to have a discussion with FDA on a path forward, said Mesoblast Chief Medical Officer Dr. Fred Grossman. Were going to get into discussions to see if theres an accelerated path. Or, if we do need to do another study, we now have a very defined patient population where we see significant pain reduction.

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Promising Results for Stem Cell Treatment of Degenerative ...

Stem Cell Therapy for Heart Disease – Cleveland Clinic

Overview Stem Cell Therapy: Helping the Body Heal Itself

Stem cells are natures own transformers. When the body is injured, stem cells travel the scene of the accident. Some come from the bone marrow, a modest number of others, from the heart itself. Additionally, theyre not all the same. There, they may help heal damaged tissue. They do this by secreting local hormones to rescue damaged heart cells and occasionally turning into heart muscle cells themselves. Stem cells do a fairly good job. But they could do better for some reason, the heart stops signaling for heart cells after only a week or so after the damage has occurred, leaving the repair job mostly undone. The partially repaired tissue becomes a burden to the heart, forcing it to work harder and less efficiently, leading to heart failure.

Initial research used a patients own stem cells, derived from the bone marrow, mainly because they were readily available and had worked in animal studies. Careful study revealed only a very modest benefit, so researchers have moved on to evaluate more promising approaches, including:

No matter what you may read, stem cell therapy for damaged hearts has yet to be proven fully safe and beneficial. It is important to know that many patients are not receiving the most current and optimal therapies available for their heart failure. If you have heart failure, and wondering about treatment options, an evaluation or a second opinion at a Center of Excellence can be worthwhile.

Randomized clinical trials evaluating these different approaches typically allow enrollment of only a few patients from each hospital, and hence what may be available at the Cleveland Clinic varies from time to time.

Cleveland Clinic is a large referral center for advanced heart disease and heart failure we offer a wide range of therapies including medications, devices and surgery. Patients will be evaluated for the treatments that best address their condition. Whether patients meet the criteria for stem cell therapy or not, they will be offered the most advanced array of treatment options.

Allogenic: from one person to another (for example: organ transplant)

Autogenic: use of one's own tissue

Myoblasts: immature muscle cells, may be able to change into functioning heart muscle cells

Stem Cells: cells that have the ability to reproduce, generate new cells, and send signals to promote healing

Transgenic: Use of tissue from another species. (for example: some heart valves from porcine or bovine tissue)

Last reviewed by a Cleveland Clinic medical professional on 01/03/2019.

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Stem Cell Therapy for Heart Disease - Cleveland Clinic

Stem Cell Therapy for Stroke Recovery | University of …

This procedure uses a combination of X-rays and computer technology to produce cross-sectional images of the body both horizontally and vertically, to detect abnormalities and help identify the location or type of stroke.

MRI uses magnetic fields to detect small changes in brain tissue that help to locate and diagnose stroke.

This nuclear brain scan uses radioactive compounds injected into a vein in the arm, and a machine (similar to a Geiger counter) to create a map showing their uptake into different parts of the head, often detecting areas of decreased blood flow and tissue damage.

This special type of CT scan can look at specific blood vessels within the body.

Using MRI technology, this procedure evaluates blood flow through arteries in a noninvasive way.

This variation of MRI is used to determine the specific location of the brain where a certain function, such as speech or memory, occurs.

This procedure records the brain's continuous, electrical activity by means of electrodes attached to the scalp.

This test records the brain's electrical response to visual, auditory, and sensory stimuli.

A small microphone is placed over the carotid artery on the neck to record sounds created by blood flow as it passes through a partially blocked artery.

A special transducer is used to direct sound waves into a blood vessel to evaluate the sound of blood moving though the vessel, looking for faintness or absence of sound.

This test measures pressure on the eyes, or detects pulses in the eyes.

This test measures the amount of oxygen in the blood supply that reaches different areas of the brain.

The test involves inserting a small, thin tube (catheter) into an artery in the leg and passing it up to the blood vessels in the brain. A contrast dye is injected through the catheter and X-ray images are taken.

Link:
Stem Cell Therapy for Stroke Recovery | University of ...

Stem Cell Treatment: Future of Modern Medicine | Science Times

(Photo : https://www.pexels.com/photo/clinic-doctor-health-hospital-4154/)

What are stem cells?

Stem cells, also known as "master cells," are body cells from which "daughter cells" are generated from. The daughter cells are processed to become new cells or specialized cells that may function as heart cells, bone cells, blood cells, brain cells and other forms of cells needed for patients to recuperate from an injury or illness.

Stem cell treatment is a state-of-the-art regenerative medicine that aims to provide relief, repair, and regrowth to damaged or injured tissues. This type of treatment is minimally invasive, non-opioid, and non-surgical. Thus, it reduces the risks of complications and adverse reactions.

How does stem cell treatment work?

Stem cells are taken directly from one part of the patient's body and are processed in a centrifuge machine that produces concentrated stem cell substances. The concentrated substance is then injected into the patient's affected body part.

Stem cells are concentrated to specifically treat the injured or affected part of the human body. It works according to certain medical specifications. Some stem cells are processed to have a "specialized" function. These are cases when stem cells are used to specifically repair damaged body organs including the brain, heart, blood, muscle and soft and hard tissues of the body.

Stem cell treatment has the power to alter conventional medical procedures to more innovative and state-of-the-art practice. This treatment uses the regenerative power of stem cells to relieve patients from pain, injury, trauma, and disease.

The use of stem cells is a relatively new technology. It has shown promising potentials of providing a wide variety of treatment for diseases by generating specific stem cell concentrate. Thus, many medical authorities consider stem cells as the "future of modern medicine."

Stem cells contain natural growth factors that accelerate the body's healing response. It can also help manage pain caused by injuries sustained without the need for pain-killing medications.

The use of stem cells in regenerative medicine provides many advantages in pain management and other medical procedures. The benefits of stem cell treatments include effective pain reduction, minimal post-procedural recovery, increased body functionality, flexibility and mobility, prevention of nerve damage, and potential injury reversal.

Other benefits include reducing the need for long-term medication, lowering the risks of surgery and complications, non-administration of anesthesia, and improving collagen production in the body. Stem cell procedures also lower the risks of spreading diseases from one person to another since the stem cell is originally taken from the patient's own body.

Stem cell is taking the world of medicine to the next level! Indeed, it is the future of modern medicine!

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Stem Cell Treatment: Future of Modern Medicine | Science Times

Researchers may have found a miracle cure for baldness – BGR

Many people have been trying to cure a medical condition that affects millions of people worldwide, with men predominantly affected by it. Baldness can be triggered by specific drug therapies, like cancer treatment, and some COVID-19 survivors have discovered that hair loss is an unusual symptom. But baldness occurs in many others without a specific trigger. By the age of 35, two-thirds of American men will experience some degree of hair loss, according to the American Hair Loss Association. By the age of 50, up to 85% of men will experience significantly thinning hair.

Baldness does not impact ones health, but it can extract an emotional toll on those who are impacted by it. There are various therapies for baldness, but theres no cure that can reverse the process. Now, however, a team in Japan might have found a solution to restore hair growth with the help of stem cells.

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The researchers used stem cells to create hair follicles that can regrow hair after it falls out. Thats how hair growth should function. Hair loss is natural, but every strand of hair should be replaced by a new one that regrows in its place. The RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research scientists published a paper in Nature Scientific Reports (via Futurism) detailing their progress with stem cells on mammals.

They took fur and whisker cells from mice and then cultured them in the lab together with other ingredients. They used 220 combinations, finding that one type of collagen paired with five factors (NFFSE medium) would lead to the highest rate of stem cell amplification in the shortest period of time. The RIKEN team explained that a successful hair-regeneration treatment that could cure baldness must produce hair that recycles. That means the hair can regrow after falling out naturally.

These researchers combined bioengineered hair follicle stem cells with the NFFSE medium, as well as with the medium missing one of the ingredients. They observed the regenerated hair for three weeks and discovered that the NFFSE medium allowed the hair follicles to go through at least three cycles of normal hair production. The other medium wasnt nearly as efficient, with 79% of follicles producing only one hair cycle.

The researchers also found that a specific marker on the surface of cells cultured in the NFFSE medium favored hair cycling. We found almost 80% of follicles reached three hair cycles when Itg5 was also bioengineered into the hair follicle germ, author Makoto Takeo said in a statement. In contrast, only 13% reached three cycles when it was not present.

Our culture system establishes a method for cyclical regeneration of hair follicles from hair follicle stem cells and will help make hair follicle regeneration therapy a reality in the near future, Takashi Tsuji, the lead author of the study, said.

Before this baldness cure becomes commercially available, it has to pass clinical trials. So far, the RIKEN researchers have demonstrated stem cell therapy in preclinical lab tests. Tsuji said that the institute is looking for outside collaborators to help develop clinical applications for the new hair growth technology.

The full study is available at this link.

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Chris Smith started writing about gadgets as a hobby, and before he knew it he was sharing his views on tech stuff with readers around the world. Whenever he's not writing about gadgets he miserably fails to stay away from them, although he desperately tries. But that's not necessarily a bad thing.

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Researchers may have found a miracle cure for baldness - BGR