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Combined General Meeting of May 22, 2024 – Availability of preparatory documents

Paris – April 30, 2024 – EUROAPI’s shareholders are invited to attend the Combined General Meeting to be held on Wednesday May 22, 2024 at 10:00 a.m. (CET) at the Centre de Conférences Verso, 52 rue de la Victoire 75009 Paris.The notice of meeting was published at the French official legal announcement publication (BALO) on Friday April 12, 2024 (bulletin n°45) and the convening notice (avis de convocation) was published in the Actu-juridique.fr, a French journal of legal notice, on April 29, 2024.

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Combined General Meeting of May 22, 2024 - Availability of preparatory documents

UM, CUHK jointly hold symposium on stem cells and regenerative medicine – gcs.gov.mo

The Faculty of Health Sciences (FHS) of the University of Macau (UM) and the School of Medicine of the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) jointly held the 10th CUHK International Symposium on Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine and the 3rd Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area International Conference on Regenerative Medicine. The two-day event attracted more than 100 renowned scholars, clinical medical experts, industry professionals, researchers and students from overseas, mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macao. They engaged in in-depth discussions on the advancements in the field of stem cells and regenerative medicine, as well as their clinical translation.

In his speech, Ge Wei, vice rector of UM, said that the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area is an important region for the development of medical science and technology in China. To support the countrys implementation of the Greater Bay Area development strategy, UM is committed to biomedical research and the training of outstanding talent in regenerative medicine, providing impetus to the sustainable development of the biomedical industry in the Greater Bay Area. The conference not only deepened the academic exchanges and cooperation between UM and CUHK, but also provided a valuable opportunity for students from both universities to exchange ideas.

Rocky Tuan, vice-chancellor and president of CUHK, said in his speech that regenerative medicine is a major breakthrough in biomedicine in the 21st century. Significant advances in stem cell biology and the development of smart biomaterial engineering have provided a solid foundation for future tissue regeneration to treat injuries and diseases. The conference provided a platform for the exchange of innovative research ideas and an opportunity to inspire students and young scientists to learn and collaborate.

The symposium featured eight keynote lectures and 39 sub-forum presentations, delivered by domestic and foreign experts in stem cell biology, regenerative medicine, bioengineering and other cutting-edge fields, which marked the highest number of presentations in the history of the event. During the keynote lecture session, Tuan presented the latest developments in stem cell technology and social problems that need to be solved; Qin Ling, fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering and renowned professor of orthopaedics and traumatology, shared the research progress of biodegradable metal-derived magnesium in bone regeneration and its clinical translation; Chang Jiang, fellow of the UK Royal Society of Chemistry and professor at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, talked about the prospects for the application of bioactive ceramics and composite materials in different tissue regeneration and disease treatment. In addition, a student forum was held during the symposium for the first time, providing students from both universities with a platform for academic exchanges and presentation of their research results.

Xu Renhe, associate dean of UMs FHS, and Li Gang, professor in CUHKs School of Medicine, served as co-chairs of the organising committee of the symposium. Co-organisers of the symposium included the Prince of Wales Hospital and the Center for Research Excellence of CUHK. Chuxia Deng, dean of UMs FHS also attended the event.

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UM, CUHK jointly hold symposium on stem cells and regenerative medicine - gcs.gov.mo

Duke team completes ten-year study on gene expression in stem cells – Duke Chronicle

How do cells acquire their identities? In hopes of answering this question, a Duke team recently completed a study explaining the expression of stem cells after a decade of research.

Stem cells are found in every living organism, including humans and plants. They are initially unspecialized and can develop into almost any cell type while dividing to produce new cells over time. At this point, theyre faced with a choice: divide to make copies of themselves or create something new.

To explore how stem cells make this decision, the group researched the expression of stem cells in plants by developing a specialized microscope that takes precise photographs through a technique called light sheet microscopy.

Cara Winter, associate research professor in biology, and postdoctoral associate Pablo Szekely began working on the project in the lab of Philip Benfey, former Paul Kramer distinguished professor of biology who passed away last year.

This eventually grew to a collaboration with the California Institute of Technology, which included a microscopist, a computer scientist, graduate students and undergraduate student assistants. Winter emphasized that the project was a collaborative effort.

There's no one person that knows all of the information that you need to know to make the microscope and the project work. So you really have to work together to figure out how to get to the goal, Winter said.

Researchers at the California Institute of Technology visited the Duke lab to help construct the microscope. Compared to traditional imaging, this specialized light sheet microscope caused less toxicity and photobleaching, which allowed the team to image cells for longer. This was key because the microscope needed a long observation period to collect enough data on the cells.

The microscope tracked the changing colors of the root cells, which indicated whether the cell would divide and the type of division that would occur. The researchers then connected this data with the level of proteins in the cells to explore how those proteins were associated with cell division. The level of high-resolution imaging of stem cells over such a significant period has never been done before.

Szekely noted that this was made possible by using machine learning and other technological tools to answer these biological questions.

The study allowed the team to photograph the expression of multiple genes in the context of a living organism and connect that gene expression to cell division. They were also able to use that data to test a model of a gene regulatory network, which allowed them to gain insight into asymmetric cell division and how it interfaces with the cell cycle.

The groups results were published in Nature. The study's findings connect to further research for humans and other animals in cancer therapies, drugs, and other aspects of the cell cycle.

I'm hoping to continue following with the next steps of this project, following up on sort of the ideas that came out of the paper, trying to understand exactly what these two regulators are doing early in the cell cycle, Winter said. I'm hoping to stick with imaging, continuing imaging and developing new imaging technologies to ask questions that couldn't be asked.

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Aseel Ibrahim is a Trinity first-year and a staff reporter for the news department.

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Duke team completes ten-year study on gene expression in stem cells - Duke Chronicle

HOIL-1L deficiency induces cell cycle alteration which causes immaturity of skeletal muscle and cardiomyocytes … – Nature.com

hiPSC culture

hiPSCs were generated from an Asian female HOIL-1L-deficient patient and healthy controls and kindly donated by the Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan). Patient-specific (HOIL-1L_1, CiRA-j-0154B and HOIL-1L_2, CiRA-j-0154D) and healthy control hiPSCs (Control_1, CiRA-j-1616-A, Asian female volunteer) were established from the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) using episomal vectors containing reprograming factors30. Another control hiPSC line from Asian male (Control_2, 110F5) was established as described previously31. Each cell line stored in liquid nitrogen using STEM-CELLBANKER (Takara, Cat.# 11924) and once thawed in 37C water bath, it was maintained in mTeSR1 medium (Stem Technologies, Cat.# 85,850) as previously reported32. Each cell was stocked at less than 15 passages, and all experimentations were done between 20 and 45 passages. The sequence of RBCK1 gene was confirmed by Sanger sequencing at the beginning of key experiments. Pluripotency of CiRA-j-1616-A, CiRA-j-0154B and CiRA-j-0154D was evaluated by OCT3/4 and NANOG mRNA expression by TaqMan qPCR and pluripotency of control_2 was evaluated by quantitative PCR analysis of Oct 3/4, Sox2, Klf4, and c-Myc using SYBR green. Cells were passaged every 45days at 1:10 or 1:12 ratio using accutase (Nacalai Tesque, Cat.# 12679-54). Dissociated cells were seeded on Matrigel-coated 6-well plates. The medium was supplemented with 5M Y27632 (TOCRIS, Cat.# 1254), a Rho-associated kinase inhibitor, on the first day of each passage. All cell lines were authenticated by their name, checked their sterrility regularly, and monitored of mycoplasma contamination using by PCR kit (Minerva biolabs, Cat.# 11-9025).

CMs were differentiated from hiPSCs using a previously reported protocol33. Briefly, hiPSCs were seeded into a 12-well growth-factor-reduced (GFR) Matrigel-coated plate, grown for 4days at 37C in 5% CO2 and mTeSR1 medium, and allowed to reach 8090% confluency. On day 0 of differentiation, the medium was changed to differentiation media, which was RPMI containing 2% B27 minus insulin supplement (Gibco, Cat.# A18956-01) and 1012M CHIR99021 (Selleck, Cat.# S2924), a GSK3 inhibitor. After incubation for 24h, the medium was replaced with fresh differentiation medium. On day 3, the medium was replaced with differentiation medium containing 5M IWP-2 (TOCRIS, Cat.# 3533), a Wnt inhibitor. On day 5, the medium was replaced with fresh differentiation medium. On day 7, B27 minus insulin was replaced with a B27 supplement (Gibco, Cat.# 17504044). Differentiated hiPSC-CMs were purified in glucose-depleted lactate medium as described previously34.

C2C12 cells were kindly provided by Dr. Yuji Yamanashi (The Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo)35. The growth medium was DMEM/F12 (Sigma-Aldrich, Cat.# D6421) containing 20% FBS, 2mM glutamine (Gibco, Cat.# 25030081), 100 units/mL penicillin, and 100g/mL streptomycin. Cells were incubated at 37C in a humidified incubator containing 5% CO2. Myoblasts were differentiated into myotubes in DMEM/F12 medium containing 2% horse serum (Gibco, Cat.# 16050122, Lot. 1968945)36,37.

Lenti-CRISPR v2 (Addgene, Cat. # 52961), which contains a puromycin resistance gene, carrying a guide RNA oligonucleotide (5-acctcacccttcagtcacgg-3 for Exon 5 of the Hoil-1l gene or 5-acgcagcaccacggcctcgc-3 for Exon 7 of the Hoil-1l gene) was constructed. HEK293T cells were transfected with the plasmids using Lipofectamine 2000 (Thermo Fisher, Cat.# 11668019). Viruses were harvested at 48h after transfection, and the media were filtered through a 0.45m PES filter. C2C12 cells were transduced with the viruses in medium containing 10g/mL polybrene. At 24h after transduction, puromycin selection was started. The selected cells were collected and KO of Hoil-1l was confirmed by Sanger DNA sequencing.

Myotubes differentiated from C2C12 cells on day 5 of differentiation were fixed in 4% paraformaldehyde (PFA) for 1h at 4C, permeabilized in 0.1% Triton X-100 for 10min at room temperature, and blocked in PBS containing 3% skim milk for 1h. Thereafter, myotubes were stained with an anti-MHC antibody (1:200, mouse monoclonal, R&D Systems, Cat.# MAB4470). The fusion index was calculated by dividing the number of nuclei in myotubes by the total number of nuclei in a field of view36. The MHC density was calculated by dividing the area occupied by MHC-positive myotubes by the total area of the field of view. The fusion index and MHC density were reported as averages of at least three fields of view (>500 total nuclei). Three independent experiments were performed for the calculation. For pluripotency marker analysis, undifferentiated hiPSC colonies were fixed in the same way, and fixed cells were stained with mouse anti-Oct3/4 (1:50, Santa Cruz Biotechnology, Cat.# sc5279) and anti-TRA1-81 (1:100, Millipore, Cat.# MAB4381) antibodies. Cells were then incubated with Alexa Fluor-conjugated secondary antibodies (1:1000) overnight at 4C.Nuclei were stained withHoechst 33342(1:1000, Invitrogen, Cat.#H3570). For immunofluorescence microscopy analysis of hiPSC-CMs, size and multinucleation were analyzed after around 5060days of differentiation and mitosis was analyzed after 20days of differentiation. hiPSC-CMs were replated onto GFR Matrigel-coated 24-well dishes, incubated at 37C in 5% CO2 for 72h, fixed in 4% PFA for 1h at 4C, permeabilized in 0.1% Triton X-100 for 10min at room temperature, and blocked in PBS containing 3% skim milk for 1h. Thereafter, hiPSC-CMs were stained with anti-cTnT (1:100, mouse monoclonal, Thermo Fisher, Cat.# MA5-12960) and anti-phospho-histone H3 (Ser10) (1:1000, rabbit monoclonal, Cell Signaling, Cat.# D7N8E) antibodies. After primary antibody treatment, cells were rinsed three times with PBS for 5min at room temperature and then incubated overnightat 4 with secondary antibodies diluted 1:1000 in PBS. Nuclei were stained with Hoechst 33342. For isotype controls, mouse IgG1 isotype (BD Biosciences, Cat.# 554121) and rabbit IgG isotype (BD Biosciences, Cat.# 550875) were used. All immunofluorescence analyses were performed using a BZ-710X microscope (Keyence). The TUNEL assay was performed using a Cell Death Detection Kit (Roche, Cat.# 11684795910) following the manufacturers protocol.

Myotubes at day 5 of differentiation were lysed in M-PER buffer (Thermo Scientific, Cat.# 78501) containing 1protease inhibitor and then incubated on ice. The samples were sonicated on ice for 30s. The lysates were incubated on ice for 10min and then centrifuged at 15,000rpm for 15min. Protein concentrations were determined using the Bradford assay. Thereafter, 30g of protein was loaded onto each lane of 10% SDS-PAGE gels. The membranes were probed with an anti-MHC antibody (1:100, R&D Systems, Cat.# MAB4470) in blocking buffer (5% BSA) at 4C overnight, washed, incubated in secondary antibodies for 1h at room temperature, developed using ECL western blotting substrate (Bio-Rad, Cat.# 1705060), and imaged using the ChemiDoc MP Imaging System (Bio-Rad). The blots were cut prior to hybridization with antibodies, and two replicates were done at the same time for Fig.1B and Supplementary Fig.2C as shown in supplementaryFig.5.

hiPSC-CMs were dissociated on the day of evaluation by incubating them in 0.25% trypsinEDTA for 1015min at 37C. They were fixed in Cytofix/Cytoperm solution (BD Biosciences, Cat.# 554714) for 20min at 4C, washed with BD Perm/Wash buffer (Cat.# 554723), stained with an anti-cTnT antibody (1:200, mouse monoclonal, Thermo Fisher, Cat.# MA5-12960) followed by Alexa Fluor-conjugated secondary antibodies, and analyzed using FACSverse (BD Biosciences). In cell cycle analysis, hiPSC-CMs after 20days of differentiation were gathered. After fixing and washing the hiPSC-CMs as described above, they were stained with an anti-cTnT antibody (1:200) and an anti-Ki67 antibody (1:400, rabbit monoclonal, Cell Signaling Technology, Cat. # 9129) followed by Alexa Fluor-conjugated secondary antibodies, and analyzed using FACSverse. Data were collected from at least 10,000 events. Data with>70% cTnT populations were used for all experimental analyses.

Total RNA was extracted from day 0 to day 7 of myotube differentiation using an RNeasy Mini Kit (Qiagen, Cat.# 74104) according to the manufacturers instructions. qPCR was performed using SYBR Green PCR Master Mix (Takara, Cat.# RR820) on a StepOnePlus system (Thermo Fisher Scientific) with the Ct method. GAPDH was used to standardize gene expression. Total RNA was extracted from hiPSC-CMs at 4560days after differentiation.

Hoil-1l-KO and control mouse embryos were generated as described previously14. Paraffin sections of E10.5 Hoil-1l null/+ and control littermate mouse embryos were deparaffinized and stained with H&E.

RNA was isolated from C2C12 cells using a RNeasy Mini Kit, according to the manufacturers instructions. RNA integrity was measured using an Agilent 2200 TapeStation and RNA Screen Tapes (Agilent Technologies). Sequencing libraries were prepared using a NEBNext Ultra II RNA Library Kit for Illumina (New England Biolabs) with the NEBNext Poly (A) mRNA Magnetic Isolation Module (New England Biolabs), according to the manufacturers protocol. Prepared libraries were run on an Illumina HiSeq X sequencing platform in 150bp paired-end mode. Sequencing reads were aligned to the GRCm38 mouse genome assembly using STAR (c.2.5.3). Mapped reads were counted for each gene using the GenomonExression pipeline (https://github.com/Genomon-Project/GenomonExpression). Normalization of the read counts of RNA seq data and differential expression analysis were performed using the Bioconductor package DESeq2 (version 1.26.0). Differentially expressed genes with a greater than twofold change and a false discovery rate less than 0.1 were filtered and evaluated. RNA seq data have been deposited with links to BioProject accession number PRJDB17426 in the DDBJ BioProject database.

GSEA was performed using software (version 4.0.3) from the Broad Institute. Normalized expression data obtained from RNA seq were assessed using GSEA software and the Molecular Signature Database (http://www.broad.mit.edu/gsea/). c5 ontology gene sets were used, and a false discovery rate less than 0.01 was considered to be statistically significant. Pathway enrichment analysis using g:Profiler and visualization of enrichment results in an enrichment map were performed using Cytoscape software (version 3.7.2) as described previously38.

Data are shown as meanSEMs, as indicated in the figure legends. All statistical analyses were performed using Welchs t-test with GraphPad Prism (version 9.00, GraphPad Software). P<0.05 was defined as significant.

Use of patient-derived iPSCs was approved by the Ethics Committee of Kyoto University (R0091 and G0687), and written informed consent obtained from the donor (or their guardians) in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki.

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HOIL-1L deficiency induces cell cycle alteration which causes immaturity of skeletal muscle and cardiomyocytes ... - Nature.com

SCG CELL THERAPY AND A*STAR LAUNCH JOINT LABS WITH COLLABORATION NEARING S$30 MILLION TO … – PR Newswire

SINGAPORE, April 16, 2024 /PRNewswire/ --SCG Cell Therapy (SCG) and the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) announced the launch joint laboratories for cellular immunotherapies. This collaboration, at a combined funding of close to S$30 million supported under Singapore's Research, Innovation and Enterprise 2025 Plan (RIE2025), aims to advance the development of induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology to produce novel cell therapies that meet Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standards. The collaboration will also establish a talent development programme to train the next generation of experts in this field, in accordance with current GMP and regulatory requirements.

The research and application of new technologies are essential for addressing growing healthcare needs and maintaining long-term sustainability. However, turning laboratory innovations into practical clinical solutions poses significant challenges. These often involve developing manufacturing processes, validating analytical methods, and implementing automation and digitalisation to guarantee the stability and scalability of products.

The joint laboratories, established at SCG's GMP facility and A*STAR's research facility, leverage SCG's and A*STAR's proprietary technologies to develop scalable GMP-grade iPSC and therapeutic products. SCG contributes its specialised, automated cell therapy manufacturing technologies, while A*STAR brings its unique monoclonal antibody assets, iPSC banks, and expertise in process scaling and analytics.

This collaboration bridges the expertise between public sector research and development (R&D) and industry, consolidating resources from SCG Cell Therapy and A*STAR's Bioprocessing Technology Institute (BTI) and Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB) to advance innovative R&D towards GMP manufacturing. Additionally, it immerses researchers in the rigorously controlled GMP environment, facilitating the progression from research to clinical application.

"Cellular immunotherapies herald a new era of regenerative medicine, offering hope for patients with cancers and other serious illnesses. As a key player in T cell receptor (TCR) T cell therapeutics, SCG has developed in-house cGMP manufacturing capabilities to supply high-quality cell therapy products to patients. Through this first-of-its-kind joint collaboration with A*STAR, we bring together A*STAR's advanced iPSC technology and bioprocessing capabilities with our expertise in GMP cell therapy manufacturing and clinical development, furthering our mission to provide affordable off-the-shelf cell therapy treatment options to patients", said Christy Ma, Chief Strategy Officer of SCG Cell Therapy.

"The discovery of iPSCs has revolutionised regenerative medicine, offering the potential for standardised, off-the-shelf cell therapies. Through this collaboration with SCG Cell Therapy, we aim to accelerate the translation of iPSC research into clinically viable therapies and strengthen Singapore's position as a global leader in cell therapy innovation. By leveraging our complementary expertise and resources, the joint labs will not only advance iPSC technology for scalable, GMP-compliant cell therapy production but also serve as a platform for nurturing the next generation of talent in this transformative field," said Prof Koh Boon Tong, Executive Director, A*STAR's BTI.

About iPSC

Induced pluripotent stem cells (also known as iPS cells or iPSCs) are a type of pluripotent stem cell that can be generated directly from adult cells. The iPSC technology was pioneered by Shinya Yamanaka's lab in Kyoto, Japan, who showed in 2006 that the introduction of four specific genes encoding transcription factors could convert adult cells into pluripotent stem cells. He was awarded the 2012 Nobel Prize along with Sir John Gurdon "for the discovery that mature cells can be reprogrammed to become pluripotent". Pluripotent stem cells hold great promise in the field of regenerative medicine. Because they can propagate indefinitely, as well as give rise to every other cell type in the body (such as neurons, heart, pancreatic and liver cells), they represent a single source of cells that could be used to replace those lost to damage or disease.

About SCG Cell Therapy

SCG is a clinical-stage biotechnology company focusing on the development of novel immunotherapies in infections and its associated cancers. The company targets the most common cancer-causing infections: helicobacter pylori, human papillomavirus, and hepatitis B, and develops a broad and unique pipeline against infections and to prevent and cure its associated cancers. Established and headquartered in Singapore, SCG combines regional advantages in Singapore, China and Germany, covering the entire value chain from innovative drug research and discovery, manufacturing, clinical development and commercialization. For more information about SCG, please visit us at http://www.scgcell.com.

About the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR)

The Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) is Singapore's lead public sector R&D agency. Through open innovation, we collaborate with our partners in both the public and private sectors to benefit the economy and society. As a Science and Technology Organisation, A*STAR bridges the gap between academia and industry. Our research creates economic growth and jobs for Singapore, and enhances lives by improving societal outcomes in healthcare, urban living, and sustainability. A*STAR plays a key role in nurturing scientific talent and leaders for the wider research community and industry. A*STAR's R&D activities span biomedical sciences to physical sciences and engineering, with research entities primarily located in Biopolis and Fusionopolis. For ongoing news, visit http://www.a-star.edu.sg.

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SCG CELL THERAPY AND A*STAR LAUNCH JOINT LABS WITH COLLABORATION NEARING S$30 MILLION TO ... - PR Newswire

Man Paralyzed In Surfing Accident Regains Ability to Walk After Stem Cell Treatment – The Inertia

After a surfing accident left Chris Barr paralyzed from the neck down, stem cell treatment got him back on his feet again. Photo: Mayo Clinic

Seven years ago, Chris Barr went surfing at San Franciscos Ocean Beach, the same as hed done every weekend for a decade. It began as a day like any other, but it would end with a life-changing accident. Barr walked into the water that day, but when he fell on a wave, he broke his neck in eight places. He was paralyzed from the neck down. But after a miraculous stem cell trial at the Mayo Clinic, Barr is walking again.

He was so distraught over being paralyzed from the neck down as a result of his injuries, wrote Joel Streed for the Mayo Clinic, that the first thing he mouthed to his wife, Debbie, through the intubation tube when she arrived at his hospital bedside was a plea to take it all away.

Her husband asked the impossible of her. The first words he mouthed to me were Pull the plug, which was so shocking, she said.

Thankfully, Barrs mental state improved with time. A few days later, a friend of Barrs named Chris Whitewho was the one who pulled Barr out of the water on that fateful day came to visit him. Knowing Barr was in a dark place, he had some words of encouragement.

He said, Theres technology, new developments every day, Barr remembered. Why would you throw in the towel? Youve got nothing to lose.'

In the weeks following his injury, Barr underwent a battery of tests, surgeries, and therapies. He improved for the first six months, but then his process flatlined. Thats when a nuerosurgeon from the Mayo Clinic named Mohamad Bydon came to see him and offered him something he couldnt turn down: the chance to participate in a stem cell trial aimed at helping paralyzed people improve their mobility.

Stem cell treatments are still relatively new, but they show enormous promise.

Mesenchymal stem cells taken from the stomach fat of a patient with a spinal cord injury are given time to multiply in a cultured laboratory setting, according to the Mayo Clinic. Then they are injected into the patients lower back. The cells migrate to the site of the patients injury and help augment healing and any initial improvement in motor and sensory function the patient might have experienced after surgery.

Dr. Bydon emphasizes that the six-month wait is an important part of the stem cell recovery process.

We want to intervene when the physical function has plateaued, he said, so that we do not allow the intervention to take credit for early improvements that occur as part of the natural history with many spinal cord injuries.

After a few more months and consultations, Barr entered the Mayo Clinic to be patient number one in a clinical trial, including nine others, each with a variety of different spinal cord injuries. The trial tested the safety, side effects, and dosages of stem cells, and as of this writing, hasnt been approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

But the results were, quite frankly, astonishing. Barr told ABC that the effects were immediate.

I could feel it, he said of the hours after his first stem cell injection. I absolutely felt something in my legs.

From there, Barrs condition only continued to improve. The stem cells worked on repairing his injuries, and in the following months nearly everything got better. His scores on a grip and pinch strength test, a 10-meter walking test, and an ambulation test improved by 50 percent above his waist and 25 percent below.

Still, though, his recovery was and still is a long road, but the improvements Barr was seeing spurred him on. While Barrs response to the treatment were extraordinary, Dr. Bydon knows that it wasnt the norm.

Although some patients like Chris are super-responders, other patients are moderate responders or nonresponders, he said. But this trial will help us advance the field, so we can offer new treatments for patients with spinal cord injury.

Barr still does require a cane and a helping hand now and then to walk and go about his day-to-day business, but considering the fact that he was paralyzed from the neck down, the stem cell treatment was like a miracle.

I cant say it enough times that the stem-cell regimen and protocol offers hope, he said. The hopelessness of paralysis is just unlike anything you can imagine. And this is the hope.

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Man Paralyzed In Surfing Accident Regains Ability to Walk After Stem Cell Treatment - The Inertia

Rejuvenating the immune system by depleting certain stem cells – National Institutes of Health (NIH) (.gov)

At a Glance

The risk for serious infections rises with age, as peoples immune systems lose the ability to respond to novel infections. Part of the reason for this is that the types of hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), which make the various types of blood cells, change with age.

Some HSCs, called myeloid-biased HSCs (my-HSCs) produce mostly myeloid cells, which include red blood cells, platelets, and most cells of the innate immune system. Others, called balanced HSCs (bal-HSCs), produce a healthy mix of myeloid and lymphoid cells, which include the T and B cells that make up the adaptive immune system.

The proportion of my-HSCs increases with age. Thisleads to more myeloid cells and fewer lymphoid cells. More myeloid cellsincreaseinflammation and bring an increased risk of atherosclerosis and myeloid-related diseases such as leukemia. Fewer lymphoid cellsreduces theability to fight infections. A research team led by Drs. Kim Hasenkrug and Lara Myers at NIH and Drs. Irving Weissman and Jason Ross at Stanford University School of Medicine explored whether reducing my-HSCs could restore a more youthful immune system in aged mice. The results appeared in Nature on March 27, 2024.

The team began by identifying proteins on the surface of mouse HSCs that are unique to my-HSCs. They then created antibodies against these proteins and used them to deplete my-HSCs in aged mice.

Depletingmy-HSCs reduced the effects of aging on the mouse immune system.Itincreased lymphoid progenitor cells, which give rise to T and B cells, in the bone marrow. Consequently, treated mice had more nave T cells and B cells in their blood than untreated mice. These cells allow the immune system to learn to recognize novel infections. Thetreatmentalsolowered levels of exhausted T cells and age-associated B cells, along with certain inflammatory markers.

When the researchers vaccinated aged mice with a live, weakened virus, those with depleted my-HSCs had a stronger T cell response than untreated mice. The treated mice also gained better protection against infection from the vaccination.

These findings could explain why older people are more vulnerable to infections such as SARS-CoV-2. Weakened adaptive immunity from fewer lymphoid cells makes it harder for them to fight off the infection. At the same time, increased myeloid cells cause harmful inflammation. The researchers noted that the genes that characterize my-HSCs in mice are also found in aged human HSCs. This suggests that my-HSC depletion might be used in humans to relieve certain age-associated health problems.

During the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, it quickly became clear that older people were dying in larger numbers than younger people, Weissman says. This trend continued even after vaccinations became available. If we can revitalize the aging human immune system like we did in mice, it could be lifesaving when the next global pathogen arises.

by Brian Doctrow, Ph.D.

Funding:NIHs National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), and National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS); Virginia and D.K. Ludwig Fund for Cancer Research; Stanford University; Radiological Society of North America; Stanford Cancer Institute.

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Rejuvenating the immune system by depleting certain stem cells - National Institutes of Health (NIH) (.gov)