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Rethinking the Link between Cannabinoids and Learning – Lab Manager Magazine

By Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

Fluorescent image of a mouse brain with the cerebellum highlighted in the shape of a marijuana leaf.

Illustration by Rita Flix, PhD

Cannabinoids have a strong influence on how our brains work and how we behave. Many people are only aware of the recreational aspect of cannabinoids. But in fact these molecules naturally exist in our brains where they participate in various intrinsic processes.

Altered cannabinoid signaling, for instance due to chronic use of marijuana, results in a range of impairments. Similarly, mice lacking cannabinoid receptors exhibit reduced activity levels, as well as deficits in learning and memory.

How do cannabinoids exact their effect on learning? A team led by Megan Carey, a principal investigator at the Champalimaud Centre for the Unknown in Portugal, and Catarina Albergaria, a postdoctoral researcher in the lab, decided to tap into this question by investigating the brain mechanisms involved in a classical learning task called eyeblink conditioning.

In eyeblink conditioning, subjects learn to associate the appearance of a sensory stimulus, for example a flash of light, with a subsequent delivery of an airpuff to the eye. Once learned, the subjectin this case a mousecloses its eyes when the light appears to avoid the airpuff. "It's just like Pavlov's dog and the bell," says Albergaria.

Previous studies had established that this form of learning takes place in a brain structure called the cerebellum, and that it was impaired by altered cannabinoid signaling in both humans and mice. To study the role of cannabinoids in learning, the team used mutant mice lacking cannabinoid receptors, which show impaired eyeblink conditioning.

Why are these mice impaired? When they started, the researchers had an immediate suspect in mind. "Many studies support the idea that cannabinoids mediate neural plasticity, or experience-dependent changes in the connections between neurons," Carey explains. "We therefore first hypothesized that interfering with this process was what was driving the impairments in learning."

But like a good mystery novel, the immediate suspect turned out to be the wrong one. What was the real culprit? "In a study we published two years ago, we found that the more mice ran, the better they learned," Albergaria explains. The team began to suspect that the difference in learning might instead be due to the reduced activity levels of the mutant mice.

"We wondered whether the mutant mice weren't learning as well simply because they weren't active enough," Albergaria recalls. In the journal eLife, the team reports that the altered behavioral state of the mutants fully accounts for their impaired eyeblink conditioning. When the researchers placed the mice on a motorized treadmill that ensured that the mutants walked as much as normal mice, the results were striking: learning was completely restored.

The team also found that other cerebellar behaviors, locomotor coordination and learning, were normal in the cannabinoid mutants. Further, eyeblink conditioning was fully intact in mice that lacked cannabinoid receptors specifically within the cerebellum. "These experiments further supported our hypothesis that disrupted cannabinoid signaling was impairing learning by altering behavioral state, and not through direct effects on neural plasticity in the cerebellum," says Carey.

"There is a growing body of evidence that behavioral state profoundly influences brain function," says Carey. "Our study highlights the need to consider behavioral state as a powerful independent means through which individual genes contribute to complex behaviors."

"We were able to overcome a learning deficit associated with a genetic mutation with a purely behavioral intervention," adds Albergaria, suggesting a potential real-world consequence for these findings.

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Rethinking the Link between Cannabinoids and Learning - Lab Manager Magazine

Cold sore virus can spread to unborn babies harming their brains, docs warn – The Sun

By Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells

THE cold sore virus can spread to unborn babies and harm their brains, experts have warned.

New research has found that the herpes simplex virus type (HSV-1) can be passed to a fetus during the mother's pregnancy.

1

It may contribute to various developmental disabilities and long-term neurological problems, according to scientists at Wuhan University, China.

HSV-1, commonly known as the cold sore virus, isn't harmful to adults but is already known to be fatal for babies with weaker immune systems.

It can spread quickly to babies' brains and cause multiple organ failure, and ultimately death.

The experts behind the study, published in the open-access journal PLOS Pathogens, wanted to understand more about how HSV-1 can affect unborn babies.

Researchers Pu Chen and Ying Wu said that so far, studies in this area have been hampered by restricted access to fetal human brain tissue.

To address this gap in knowledge, the researchers generated three different cell-based neurodevelopmental disorder models, including a 2D layer of cells and a 3D brain-like structure.

These models are based on human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), which are generated by genetically reprogramming specialised adult cells.

Their modelling revealed that HSV-1 infection in these cells resulted in cell death as well as impaired production of new neurons.

It also mimicked the pathological features of neurodevelopmental disorders int he human fetal brain, including abnormalities in the brain structure.

Neonatal herpes is when a newborn or very young babyWhe is infected with the herpes virus.

It's caused by the same strain of herpes that triggers cold sores and genital ulcers in adults.

It can be extremely serious for a young baby, whose immune system won't have fully developed to fight off the virus.

While it's rare, it's important all parents are aware of the dangers.

Newborns can catch herpes in a number of ways.

It can be passed on during birth, if mum has genital herpes for the first time within six weeks of her pregnancy.

After birth, a baby can become infected if a person with a cold sore kisses them.

Or if mum breastfeeds with herpes sores on her breasts.

The warning signs to watch for in your baby are if they:

It's important to get your baby checked over if you suspect they've caught or been exposed to herpes.

It can develop quickly and spread to their brain or other parts of the body, proving fatal.

The 3D model also showed that HSV-1 infection promotes the abnormal spread of non-neuronal cells called microglia, along with by the activation of inflammatory molecules.

According to the authors, the findings open new therapeutic avenues for targeting viral reservoirs relevant to neurodevelopmental disorders.

They added: "This study provides novel evidence that HSV-1 infection impaired human brain development and contributed to the neurodevelopmental disorder pathogen hypothesis".

Studies on neonatal herpes - which is when a newborn baby has been infected with the virus - are more extensive.

It's understood that the younger the baby, the more vulnerable they are to the herpes virus.

While devastating, the condition is rare in the UK.

A baby is at greatest risk of catching the virus in the first four weeks of life, and it can be passed on in one of two main ways:

1. During pregnancy and labour

If mum has genital herpes for the first time in the last six weeks of pregnancy, her baby is at risk.

As a result, you should never kiss a baby if you have, or recently have had, a cold sore.

It's possible for a mum to pass the infection on during vaginal delivery.

2. After birth

The virus can be passed to a baby through a cold sore if someone affected kisses a baby.

It can also be passed via blisters on the breast of a mum, who has HSV-1, and is feeding.

Exclusive

Warning

Call your GP or health visitor straight away if your baby:

The early warning signs your baby is unwell - call 999 if your baby:

To find out more visit theNHS website.

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Cold sore virus can spread to unborn babies harming their brains, docs warn - The Sun

HBS and Harvard’s Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology Receive $25 Million Gift from The Chris and Carrie Shumway Foundation to Support…

By Stem Cell Medical Center

Harvard Business School (HBS) and Harvards Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology (HSCRB) have received a $25 million gift from The Chris (MBA 1993) and Carrie Shumway Foundation to fund programs promoting leadership in life sciences, including the MS/MBA Biotechnology: Life Sciences, a joint degree offered by HBS and the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and Harvard Medical School through HSCRB. The gift will help bridge the worlds of business and science by fostering an environment of collaboration and innovation at HBS and across Harvard, supporting work on pathbreaking research and educating a new generation of leaders in the life sciences. The gift will provide support for curriculum development and programming, faculty research, and student financial aid.

Every day we are contending with the challenges posed by a worldwide pandemic and seeing firsthand the importance of strong connections between the lab bench and the private sector, said Harvard President Larry Bacow. The Shumways have given us the opportunity to think deeply about how we train leaders at this intersection that will only grow in complexity and importance. We are grateful for their foresight and their exceptional generosity.

This gift will provide the University with the resources to support future leaders in life sciences, dramatically increase innovation and the commercialization of new discoveries, and efficiently and quickly take transformative discoveries from the laboratory to patients and the marketplace, said HBS Dean Nitin Nohria. The world needs more business leaders working at the intersection of science and society, with deep understanding of not only biotechnology and life sciences, but the management skills needed to help these important companies thrive.

To meet this need, the MS/MBA Biotechnology: Life Sciences Program, welcomed its first cohort of students this past August. In supporting financial aid that will cover the incremental costs of the MS/MBA program for these students, this gift will enable Harvard to attract and support outstanding students who already have experience and knowledge in life sciences. To recognize this support, the students in this program will be known as Shumway Fellows and this program will prepare them to take on leadership roles in biotechnology and life sciences organizations.

The program builds upon students existing biotech and life sciences knowledge and equips them with the latest business and scientific insights. This empowers them to launch, grow, and lead transformative organizations that will advance new drug discoveries or therapeutics. Students in the program study general management at HBS and life-sciences at HSCRB, which is a joint department of Harvards Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS) and Harvard Medical School (HMS). They benefit from the leadership of program co-chairs Amitabh Chandra (Henry and Allison McCance Professor of Business Administration at HBS and the Ethel Zimmerman Winer Professor of Public Policy and Director of Health Policy Research at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government) Mark Fishman (Professor of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology at Harvard University and Chief of Pathways Consult Service at Massachusetts General Hospital), and Douglas Melton (Xander University Professor at Harvard University and Co-Director of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute).

The MS/MBA program is a collaborative effort from several schools across Harvard to fill a unique need we see in the industry, said Emma Dench, dean of GSAS. The program provides students with the opportunity to become conversant in both biomedical science and business, and this generous gift will help to ensure that we can prepare them to lead in the rapidly growing life sciences fields.

The future of life sciences innovation will increasingly require deep scientific knowledge coupled with targeted business acumen, said George Q. Daley, dean of HMS. With this joint degree, Harvard will be uniquely positioned to educate students to lead at this nexus.

Sometimes it is at the intersection of disciplines where we find opportunities to ask new questions that have the potential to completely change the way we think about a problem, said Edgerley Family Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences Claudine Gay. This gift will enable Harvard to attract and support talented scholars in the life sciences and equip them with the tools they need to work at the interface of business and life sciences, asking the new questions that promote discovery and innovation in this important area.

Harvard has created an exceptional ecosystem that can develop and cultivate talented professionals across medicine, business and life sciences who are best positioned to tackle the worlds biggest global health challenges today and in the future, said Chris Shumway, managing partner and founder of Shumway Capital. As Harvard is geographically situated at the epicenter of the life sciences community with access to some of the worlds leading hospitals, pharma and biotechnology companies, we believe a tremendous opportunity exists to foster cross-pollination of ideas by marshalling the resources of Harvard and connecting with industry leaders to quickly understand and solve problems.

The gift will also support HBS as it engages and works closely with entrepreneurs and practitioners in the field on the creation of new research and the development of executive education training to serve their unique needs.

The acceleration of global health issues, including the current pandemic, demonstrates the need for entrepreneurial thinking, Chris Shumway added. Leaders born out of these programs will be equipped to drive organizations at the forefront of groundbreaking discoveries with the mindset needed to solve complex problems worldwide.

As an entrepreneur and Managing Partner of Shumway Capital, Chris Shumway has invested in, advised, and built growth businesses for over 25 years, including in biotechnology and life sciences. The Shumways are long-time supporters and advocates for philanthropic initiatives. As strong proponents of education reform, they established the Shumway Foundation with the primary goal of helping to break the cycle of poverty through better opportunities in education. The Shumway Foundation also actively supports other results-based non-profit organizations.

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HBS and Harvard's Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology Receive $25 Million Gift from The Chris and Carrie Shumway Foundation to Support...

Harnessing regeneration of retinal tissues: An option almost within reach – Ophthalmology Times

By Stem Cell Medical Center

This article was reviewed by Russell N. Van Gelder, MD, PhD

Neuronal cell replacement therapies remain a challenge in retinal diseases. Some fish and salamanders have the innate ability to regenerate retinal tissue after injuries and, as Russell N. Van Gelder, MD, PhD, pointed out, if researchers could harness this ability in humans, the possibilities would be great for repairing or replacing damaged tissue in a wide variety of retinal diseases. Stem cells are the key to cell replacement therapies.

Stem cells are cells that have not terminally differentiated and still have the potential to become many types of terminal cells, said Van Gelder, from the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Washington in Seattle. We all started as embryonic stem cells in the earliest phases of development.

Related: Retinal pathologies challenging to image with current technologies

Van Gelder went on to explain that there are now methods to create equivalently totipotent stem cells from individual induced progenitor stem cells derived from an individuals blood or epithelial cells.

The overarching goal is to create a cell type that needs replacement from a stem cell precursor, he said.

A major achievement in this quest for regenerative ability occurred in 2014 when an entire eye cup was grown from progenitor stem cells.

Van Gelder also described a study1 in which green fluorescent proteinlabeled retinal precursors derived from embryonic stem cells were transplanted into the subretinal space of macaques. Three months after the procedure, the researchers demonstrated that the bolus of cells persisted and had outgrowth of axons that were seen going to the optic nerve and on to the brain.

This result establishes the validity of a stem cell-based approach for doing regenerative medicine in primates, he said.

Related: Persistent retinal detachment associated with retinoblastoma

Replacement therapy hurdles As of now, however, no stem cell-based replacement treatment has received FDA approval. The problems preventing establishment of a treatment have been technical in nature and include correct cellular differentiation as well as generating adequate numbers of cells for large transplantation experiments, establishing correct cell polarity and connectivity, and ensuring the safety of these approaches regarding tumor or hamartoma formation, Van Gelder explained.

Managing inflammatory responses is a problem after cell transplantation. He cited a Japanese study2 of individual progenitor cell-derived retinal progenitor cells transplanted subretinally in monkey models.

Even with an immune HLA-matched donor, there was still a marked inflammatory response at the site of the transplantation, Van Gelder said. This and other inflammatory responses will have to be managed for cell transplantation to be successful. Related: Intravitreally injected hRPCs improve vision in retinitis pigmentosa cases

There are regulatory hurdles to clear. The FDA Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research regulates cellular therapy products, human gene therapy products, and certain devices related to cell and gene therapy.

Van Gelder recalled the well-publicized case of transplantation of fat-derived mesenchymal cells into patients eyes, resulting in loss of vision bilaterally. He pointed out that it is important to temper patient expectations regarding these therapies and to ensure that the work is being done with the highest degree of ethical integrity.

While great progress has been made in this field, significant barriers remain to the successful adoption in the clinical setting in the coming years, Van Gelder concluded. The barriers to cell replacement should be overcome.

Read more by Lynda Charters

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Russell N. Van Gelder, MD, PhD e: russvg@uw.edu Van Gelder has no financial interests in this subject matter. He serves on the advisory committee for the National Eye Institute Audacious Goals Initiative.

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References

1. Chao JR, Lamba DA, Kiesert TR, et al. Transl Vis Sci Technol. 2017;6:4; doi:10.1167/tvst/6/3/4

2. Fujii S, Sugita S, Futatsugi Y, et al. A strategy for personalized treatment of iPS-retinal immune rejections assessed in cynomolgus monkey models. Int J Mol Sci. 2020;21(9):3077. doi:10.3390/ijms21093077

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Harnessing regeneration of retinal tissues: An option almost within reach - Ophthalmology Times

Fate Therapeutics’ and Celyad’s CAR therapies in oncology offer potential – pharmaceutical-technology.com

By Stem Cell Medical Center

by Manasi Vaidya in New York.

Fate TherapeuticsandCelyadsnatural killer (NK) cell biology-focused cell therapies could overcome cell persistence challenges and consequent efficacy concerns with redosing strategies, experts said.

One of Fate Therapeutics lead products, FT596, is an allogeneic, multitargeted, chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) NK cell product. Celyads autologous CYAD-01 and CYAD-02 and allogeneic CYAD-101 are CAR T cell products using NK cell specificity to target T-cells. One analyst considered the potential to redose allogeneic products as a key item to consider while assessing clinical potential. While clinical data establishing the additive efficacy advantages of giving multiple doses is still preliminary, redosing allogeneic products could increase their expansion and persistence, experts said. Autologous therapies carry source constraints, so the ability to manufacture and administer allogeneic therapies is an advantage, they said.

While past NK cell therapy data has been mixed, experts saw potential in CAR NKs like FT596 or CAR T-cell products engineered to express NKG2D like CYAD-101, given the advancements in cell production.

Phase I FT596 results in B-cell lymphomas/ CLL are expected at either the American Society of Hematology (ASH) meeting in December or an investor meeting in early 2021, as per a second analyst report. Phase I data for CYAD-01 and CYAD-02 in relapsed/refractory (r/r) acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) and myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) are expected by YE20, as per the companys August corporate presentation. Celyads allogeneic CYAD-101 is being tested in a Phase I alloSHRINK trial (NCT03692429) in metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC), which has a primary completion date of November 2020.

FT596s sales are expected to reach $136m in 2026, according to a GlobalData Consensus forecast. Celyad did not respond to a request for comment.

Increasing the persistence of cell therapies once they are infused into a patient has been a challenge, especially with NK cell-based therapies, experts said. The issue of persistence and consequent efficacy is significant because the potential efficacy with Celyad and Fate Therapeutics platforms remains largely unknown, they added.

Because the immune system can recognise foreign cells, cell products would not last for more than a few weeks, said Dr Marco Davila, medical oncologist, in the Department of Blood and Marrow Transplantation, Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa, Florida. With CAR T-cell therapies, the expansion and persistence of CAR cells are said to correlate with the durability of response, said Dr David Sallman, assistant member, Department of Malignant Hematology, Moffitt Cancer Center.

Strategies involving multiple doses of cell therapies could maximise the total dose, improve duration, and increase efficacy magnitude with both autologous and allogeneic cell therapies, said Dr Tara Lin, associate professor of medicine, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City. Multiple infusions of therapy could also potentially lead to complete remission, said Sallman. In Fate Therapeutics Phase I FT500 (NCT03841110) study, patients had been given up to six doses of the therapy, which was not found to be toxic, according to Fate Therapeutics CEO Scott Wolchko. Redosing has the potential to offer multiple infusions as maintenance therapy, said Dr Jeffrey Miller, professor of Medicine, Division of Hematology, Oncology and Transplantation, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis.

The persistence of allogeneic therapies is not well understood, and it is unknown how long cells need to persist to be effective or whether persisting cells confer durability of response, said Wolchko. Giving multiple doses is one way to overcome the lack of persistence if it is an important factor for efficacy, he said. In a 4Q19 call, the FDA said it was allowing the dose to be repeated on a patient-by-patient basis, Wolchko said. In the alloSHRINK study, CYAD-101 is administered three times with a two-week interval between each administration in metastatic CRC, as per ClinicalTrials.gov.

However, even if the engineered cells do not persist in the body, the response rate and ability to eradicate the disease should not be limited, said Davila. With a limited lifespan, allogeneic cell therapies would dissipate as the patients immune system recovers, said Dan Kaufman. With the incorporation of interleukin (IL)-12 or IL-15 into the cell product, the cell therapy could persist without exogenous cytokines, said Kaufman. The FT596 construct contains an IL-15 fusion protein.

Experts cited the data from a Phase I / II (NCT03056339) investigator-led effort at MD Anderson Cancer Center using cord blood-derived anti-CD19 CAR NK cells as an example of an effective CAR NK therapy. The study by Rezvani and colleagues showed a persistence challenge did not seem to hamper the response, because once a critical threshold for cell expansion is crossed, the activity can be mediated, Davila said. Eleven r/r patients with CD19-positive cancers, such as non-Hodgkins lymphoma or CLL, were treated with a single infusion; eight had a response, including seven with a complete remission (Rezvani et al. [2020] N Engl J Med, 382, pp. 545553). Even if the cells do not persist, they expand to sufficient levels to eradicate the disease before they are lost, Davila added.

In the Phase I THINK(NCT03018405) CYAD-01 data, decreased bone marrow blasts were observed in eight patients, including five objective responses and one stable disease for three or more months, as per the company presentation. Responding patients did have blast clearances, but some of the remissions were short-lived and the cells did not persist in the system, said Sallman. However, the short hairpin (sh) ribonucleic acid (RNA) technology employed CYAD-02, which could increase persistence and expansion, said Sallman (Fontaine et al., [2019]Blood, 134[Suppl 1], p. 3931). ShRNA technology allows T cell engineering without the need for gene editing to inhibit alloreactivity and increase persistence, according to Celyad.

Ongoing research on improving preconditioning regimens by combining additional drugs could also help with the persistence of allogeneic products, said Davila. It is not known whether every dose needs a conditioning regimen, but since conditioning regimens can suppress a patients immune system for several months, it may not be necessary before every therapy infusion, he added.

Patients will not have to receive a preconditioning regimen before every cell infusion, said Wolchko, adding redosing FT500 was found to be safe. Celyads protocol does not specify the preconditioning strategy for redosing. No predictive biomarkers are available to explain why some patients respond well and others do not, said Sallman, adding it is critical to identify potential responders. Nonetheless, there is no way to predict clinical efficacy based only on preclinical data, so data is still needed, said Miller.

The economic advantage to developing off-the-shelf therapies has driven interest in NK-cell based platforms, said Miller and Davila. If quick treatment is needed, then an allogeneic NK cell therapy would be better than an autologous therapy, which may take up to six weeks to manufacture, said Sallman. While the results with autologous CAR T-cell therapies have been significant, their scale-up and costs are challenging, said Kaufman.

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The ability to use induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSCs) or cord blood cells as a source would help scale up the cell manufacture and allow effective results, said Kaufman. iPSCs provide advancement in expansion protocols, which can provide multiple doses, Miller added. Fate Therapeutics has an iPSC-derived NK cell franchise. Also, since T cell therapies require donor apheresis to collect cells in a process lasting four to five hours, it is not feasible to keep going back to the same donor, said Miller.

Moreover, newer platforms are expected to improve on past NK cell therapy trials, specifically those showing mixed efficacy. Past studies had feasibility limitations in getting the required number of cells, said Miller. Those small studies were conducted at a time when cell isolation and production systems were not as advanced as they are now, said Davila.

Manasi Vaidya is a Senior Reporter for Clinical Trials Arena parent company GlobalDatas investigative journalism team. A version of this article originally appeared on the Insights module of GlobalDatas Pharmaceutical Intelligence Center. To access more articles like this, visit GlobalData.

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Fate Therapeutics' and Celyad's CAR therapies in oncology offer potential - pharmaceutical-technology.com

Vor Biopharma Appoints Matthew R. Patterson to its Board of Directors – BioSpace

By Stem Cell Medicine

Oct. 20, 2020 12:00 UTC

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Vor Biopharma, an oncology company pioneering engineered hematopoietic stem cells (eHSCs) for the treatment of cancer, today announced the appointment of Matthew R. Patterson, a biotechnology executive with nearly 30 years of experience in research, development, and commercialization of innovative treatments, to its Board of Directors.

Matt is a highly respected leader in biotech, and for good reason, said Robert Ang, MBBS, MBA, Vors President and Chief Executive Officer. His expertise, guidance, and insights will be critical as we continue to advance our science towards the goal of developing potentially transformative therapies for patients with blood cancers.

Mr. Patterson has held senior leadership positions in both private and publicly-traded biotechnology companies. He is the co-founder of Audentes Therapeutics and was its Chief Executive Officer for eight years until its acquisition by Astellas Pharma in 2020; he also chaired the companys Board of Directors and continues to serve as a strategic advisor to the company. Additionally, he is a member of the Board of Directors of Homology Medicines, Inc., and the Board of Directors of 5:01 Acquisition Corp. Mr. Patterson also currently serves as the Chairman of the Alliance for Regenerative Medicine (ARM), the international advocacy organization representing the gene and cell therapy and broader regenerative medicine sector.

Prior to Audentes, Mr. Patterson was an entrepreneur-in-residence with OrbiMed. Earlier in his career, he worked for Genzyme Corporation, BioMarin Pharmaceutical, and Amicus Therapeutics. Mr. Patterson received his bachelors degree in biochemistry from Bowdoin College.

Vors innovative approach to cell therapy and passionate team have the potential to transform the lives of cancer patients, Mr. Patterson said. I am excited to provide guidance and mentorship to Robert and the team as they continue to build a world class cell therapy company.

About Vor Biopharma

Vor Biopharma aims to transform the lives of cancer patients by pioneering engineered hematopoietic stem cell (eHSC) therapies. By removing biologically redundant proteins from eHSCs, these cells become inherently invulnerable to complementary targeted therapies while tumor cells are left susceptible, thereby unleashing the potential of targeted therapies to benefit cancer patients in need.

Vors platform could be used to potentially change the treatment paradigm of both hematopoietic stem cell transplants and targeted therapies, such as antibody drug conjugates, bispecific antibodies, and CAR-T cell treatments.

Vor is based in Cambridge, Mass. and has a broad intellectual property base, including in-licenses from Columbia University, where foundational work was conducted by inventor and Vor Scientific Board Chair Siddhartha Mukherjee, MD, DPhil.

About VOR33

Vors lead product candidate, VOR33, consists of engineered hematopoietic stem cells (eHSCs) that lack the protein CD33. Once these cells are transplanted into a cancer patient, we believe that CD33 will become a far more cancer-specific target, potentially avoiding toxicity to the normal blood and bone marrow associated with CD33-targeted therapies. Vor aims to improve the therapeutic window and effectiveness of CD33-targeted therapies, thereby potentially broadening the clinical benefit to patients suffering from acute myeloid leukemia.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201020005188/en/

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Vor Biopharma Appoints Matthew R. Patterson to its Board of Directors - BioSpace

Five Penn faculty elected to the National Academy of Medicine – Penn Today

By Stem Cell Medicine

Five faculty members from Penn have been elected to the National Academy of Medicine (NAM), one of the nations highest honors in the fields of health and medicine. William Beltran of the School of Veterinary Medicine, Matthew McHugh of the School of Nursing, and Ronald DeMatteo, Raina Merchant, and Hongjun Song of the Perelman School of Medicine are among the 100 new members, elected by current NAM members.

Election recognizes individuals who have made major contributions to the advancement of the medical sciences, health care, and public health.

William Beltran is professor of ophthalmology in the Department of Clinical Sciences and Advanced Medicine and director of the Division of Experimental Retinal Therapies at Penn Vet. His research focuses on inherited retinal degeneration, a major cause of blindness in dogs and humans worldwide. Specifically, he has investigated the signaling pathways affected by X-linked retinitis pigmentosa and autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa, two of the most common forms of inherited retinal degeneration in humans. Working in canines, who suffer from forms of retinal degeneration that closely mimic the human diseases, he has helped develop effective gene therapies with promising results for treating both early- and late-stage disease.

Ronald Paul DeMatteo is the John Rhea Barton Professor and chair in the Perelman School of Medicines Department of Surgery. DeMatteo served as principal investigator on three national trials for the adjuvant drug imatinib for gastrointestinal stromal tumor, the most common human sarcoma. His work led to imatinibs approval for adjuvant use by the FDA and established the standard-of-care for GIST, combining surgery and imatinib. DeMatteo is also being recognized for his work to define the immune response to GIST and its modulation by targeted therapy.

Matthew McHugh is the Independence Chair for Nursing Education and professor of nursing at Penn Nursing, associate director of the Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research (CHOPR), and senior fellow of the Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics. As principal investigator on multiple large-scale studies funded by the National Institutes of Health, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, McHughs work has advanced the field of nursing outcomes and policy research by showing the value of investing in nursing to achieve a higher functioning health care system. In addition to findings from direct evaluations of nurse staffing ratio laws, research from McHugh and colleagues from the CHOPR at Penn Nursing has informed legislation proposed in multiple states and countries on safe nurse-staffing levels.

Raina Merchant is associate vice president and director of the Center for Digital Health in Penn Medicine and associate professor of emergency medicine in the Perelman School of Medicine.Merchants work has sought to gain insights through digital media about important health trends, and she is recognized for developing, deploying, evaluating, and refining novel tools and techniques to promote individual and population health. Some of her projects in this arena include tracking both physical and mental health symptoms via Twitter during the COVID-19 pandemic, determining keywords and phrases that could be used to flag depression via Facebook posts, and a crowdsourcing initiative called the MyHeartMap Challenge to construct an online map of automated external defibrillators across Philadelphia. In 2019, Merchant was named to NAMs class of Emerging Leaders of Health and Medicine Scholars.

Hongjun Song is the Perelman Professor of Neuroscience in the Perelman School of Medicines Department of Neuroscience and co-director of the Institute for Regenerative Medicine Neurodevelopment and Regeneration Program. His work focuses on neural stem cell regulation and neurogenesis and their effects on neural function as well as epigenetic and epitranscriptomic mechanisms and their role in the mammalian nervous system. He is being recognized for revealing unexpected dynamics and plasticity of the neuronal epigenome, as well as its functions under physiological and pathological conditions. In response to urgent global health concerns, his team made a series of timely discoveries on the pathogenesis, mechanisms, and treatment of Zika virus infections.

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Five Penn faculty elected to the National Academy of Medicine - Penn Today

Accident & Injury Solutions Is the Place to Throw Light on Regenerative Medicine in Mesa and Phoenix, Arizona – Press Release – Digital Journal

By Platelet Rich Plasma Injections

Individuals looking for treatment for injuries or Osteoarthritis can get in touch with Accident & Injury Solutions.

This press release was orginally distributed by ReleaseWire

Scottsdale, AZ -- (ReleaseWire) -- 10/19/2020 -- Not many are aware of the importance of regenerative medicine, which can help treat several physical ailments. Injuries can result out of nowhere, and most of the time, these injuries are from overuse. Individuals can suffer from tennis elbow or rotator cuff repair, and golfer's nee. Those facing these ailments have a hard time healing the damaged tissues that include cartilage tendons and ligament. As time passes, these deteriorate further and are often damaged beyond regeneration on own. Some intervention is required, and the role is usually played by regenerative medicine.

Finding the right place to help with regenerative medicine Mesa and Phoenix, Arizona is essential for the desired results. For that, one can get in touch with Accident & Injury Solutions. They are the ones who have been doing a great job in bringing the best regenerative medicine to their patients with Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) and Stem Cell Therapy Injections. There are a good number of injuries that can be successfully treated with regenerative medicine. Muscle strains, ligament sprains, injured tendons, inflamed joints, and Osteoarthritis can be treated successfully with regenerative medicine.

Accident & Injury Solutions has had great success with outcomes and helping patients get back their quality of life. Part of this is due to the high quality of materials that are being administered to the patients. They consider the source for stem cells one of the best. They come from amniotic fluid that has proven to be an excellent source for tissue growth and regeneration.

The company also offers physical therapy in Mesa and Phoenix, Arizona. With proper and timely physical therapy, individuals might be able to battle effectively the pain and issues resulting from injuries.

Call 602-466-9664 for more details.

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Accident & Injury Solutions Is the Place to Throw Light on Regenerative Medicine in Mesa and Phoenix, Arizona - Press Release - Digital Journal

Kim Kardashians changing face as she hits 40 and why shes probably about to reach for the Botox – The Sun

By Platelet Rich Plasma Injections

KIM Kardashian is celebrating her 40th birthday today - and if you ask us, she looks as good now as she did when Keeping Up with the Kardashians debuted in 2007.

Over the past 13 years, Kim has established herself as a savvy businesswoman (estimated to be worth 670m) and is now a proud mum-of-four.

But while there's no denying the Kardashians have influenced our fashion choices over the years , we also have Kim to thank for our full-blown obsession with contouring.

Here Fabulous Digital takes a look back at Kim's changing face as the social media icon turns 40.

If old episodes of Keeping Up with the Kardashians are anything to go by, Kim might just feel brave enough to give Botox another go now she's 40 years old.

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In season five of the hit series, Kim - who was 30 at the time - took sister Khlo along for moral support as she tried Botox for the first time.

Ahead of the appointment, Kim said: "I'm going to try Botox to get rid of my wrinkles and once and for all I'm going to see what it's all about."

The star visited Lift MD Aesthetics in Beverly Hills where she had Botox injected near her temples.

In the days that followed, Kim says the area where she'd been injected was swollen, sore and itchy - which prompted her to swear off Botox for another ten years.

While out for lunch with Khlo, Kim asked for a glass of ice and said her eyes felt like they were "on fire".

Although Kim feared she'd had an allergic reaction to the Botox, her family doctor Dr Vaisman confirmed that bruising was a normal yet uncomfortable side effect of the procedure.

After the swelling eventually went down, Kim said: "I'll never do this again... at least, not until I'm 40."

Over the past 13 years, Kim has proved she isn't afraid to experiment with her hair - changing from luscious long locks to cropped blonde bobs in a heartbeat.

But in 2015, the star admitted that she'd had laser hair removal on her forehead to get a more defined hair line.

She told People magazine: "I have the hairiestforehead you could ever imagine, and I would always break out.

"In high school, I would wax it off because there was just so much hair."

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A year later, Kim admitted in a blog post on her website that she regretted having the permanent laser treatment.

She wrote: "Every photographer would Photoshop them out anyway, and I thought I looked better without the baby hairs, but now I miss them."

If there's one thing we know about Kim Kardashian - it's that she's doesn't shy away from experimental beauty treatments... no matter how uncomfortable they may be.

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In 2013, the star hit headlines when she tried out the experimental "vampire facial" while filming Kourtney & Kim Take Miami.

The actual name for a vampire facial is Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) Therapy which uses nothing but the patient's own blood to plump the skin.

Platelets are tiny blood cells which play a crucial part in helping the body stop bleeding - as well as repairing damaged blood vessels and cells.

In PRP, a needle is used to draw blood from the client's arm. The blood is then spun in a machine, to remove the platelets.

Although patients are offered local anaesthetic cream before the injections, Kim told W magazine in 2018that she'd refused painkillers because she'd just found out she was pregnant with North.

She said: "Before I got the procedure, I just found out that I was pregnant, so I couldnt use numbing cream or a pain killer and both are suggested.

"It was really rough and painful for me."

Last year, Kim tried out the the Exilis Laser 360 facial which uses radio frequency and an ultrasound technology laser to tighten skin.

The treatment also stimulates collagen production which makes the skin look plumper.

Reality star, social media icon, mum-of-four, multimillionaire - there are a lot of things you can call Kim Kardashian... but "Queen of Contour" is our personal favourite.

Although Hollywood starlets had used contouring to highlight their cheekbones, Kim brought it to the mainstream in 2012 when she shared a photo of her lengthy make-up routine.

Makeup artist Scott Barnes started by using a generous amount of light concealer under Kim's eyes along her nose.

He then went in with a cream bronzer underneath Kim's cheekbones to create a natural-looking shadow.

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And just like that, Kim kickstarted a beauty craze which meant we could all fake the perfect bone structure.

The star has since gone on to launch her own contouring products as part of her KKW line.

However, in 2016 Kim said she was "over contouring".

Speaking on a panel with Charlotte Tilbury, she said: "I think right now it's more about nontouring, like real skin with less make-up on it.

"I'm trying to wear less... and my husband loves me without make-up."

It's safe to say that beauty trends have come a LONG way since Kim first rose to fame 13 years ago.

In the noughties, brows were thin and defined and it was all about the smokey eye.

She previously told TODAY: "In the 90s, in high school, I would make my brows so thin!"

According to Cult Beauty, the star loves Anastasia Beverly Hills' 15 brow pomade so much that she even used it on her wedding day to Kanye.

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Kim reportedly maintains her brows with professional waxing and trimming appointments too.

And just because she has access to the world's top make-up artists, that doesn't stop Kim from using a beauty bargain from time-to-time.

In a YouTube beauty tutorial, Kim's make-up artist Mario Dedivanovic raved about Ardell's 5 false lashes.

Explaining how he combines different lengths to create a fluttery effect on the star, he said: "I like to useArdell DuraLash Naturalsin Medium and Long." *Adds to basket*

For more celebrity stories, these reality stars are morphing into each other as Kady McDermott goes full Maura & Vicky Pattison gets a Towie clone.

And Gemma Atkinson opened up to Fabulous magazine about mum life, taking on haters & keeping things hot with Gorka.

Plus Meghan wore 300k worth of jewellery and clothes in new pic to promote show on building a better digital world.

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Kim Kardashians changing face as she hits 40 and why shes probably about to reach for the Botox - The Sun

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