This Blood Stem Cell Research Could Change Medicine of the Future – SciTechDaily

The microfluidic device that emulated an embryos heartbeat and blood circulation. The cell seeding channels are indicated by red food dye, while the heart ventricular contraction control channels and circulation valve control channels are indicated by blue and green food dye respectively. Credit: Jingjing Li, UNSW Sydney

New discoveries about embryonic blood stem cell creation made independently by biomedical engineers and medical researchers at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) Sydney could one day eliminate the need for blood stem cell donors.

These achievements are part of a move in regenerative medicine towards the use of induced pluripotent stem cells to treat disease. This is where stem cells are reverse engineered from adult tissue cells rather than using live human or animal embryos.

Although we have known about induced pluripotent stem cells since 2006, researchers still have plenty to learn about how cell differentiation in the human body can be mimicked artificially and safely in the lab for the purposes of delivering targeted medical treatment.

Induced pluripotent stem cells are a type of pluripotent stem cell that can be generated directly from a somatic cell. A somatic cell is any biological cell forming the body of a multicellular organism other than a gamete, germ cell, gametocyte, or undifferentiated stem cell.

UNSW researchers have recently completed two studies in this area that shine new light on not only how the precursors to blood stem cells occur in animals and humans, but how they may be induced artificially.

One study was published on September 13, 2022, in the journal Cell Reports by scientists from the UNSW School of Biomedical Engineering. They demonstrated how a simulation of an embryos beating heart using a microfluidic device in the lab led to the development of human blood stem cell precursors, which are stem cells on the verge of becoming blood stem cells.

In another article, which was recently published in Nature Cell Biology, researchers from UNSW Medicine & Health revealed the identity of cells in mice embryos responsible for blood stem cell creation.

Both studies are significant steps towards an understanding of how, when, where, and which cells are involved in the creation of blood stem cells. In the future, this knowledge could be used to help cancer patients, among others, who have undergone high doses of radio- and chemotherapy, to replenish their depleted blood stem cells.

In the study detailed in Cell Reports, lead author Dr. Jingjing Li and fellow researchers described how a 3cm x 3cm (1.2 x 1.2) microfluidic system pumped blood stem cells produced from an embryonic stem cell line to mimic an embryos beating heart and conditions of blood circulation.

She said that in the last few decades, biomedical engineers have been trying to make blood stem cells in laboratory dishes to solve the problem of donor blood stem cell shortages. But no one has yet been able to achieve it.

Part of the problem is that we still dont fully understand all the processes going on in the microenvironment during embryonic development that leads to the creation of blood stem cells at about day 32 in the embryonic development, Dr. Li said.

So we made a device mimicking the heart beating and the blood circulation and an orbital shaking system which causes shear stress or friction of the blood cells as they move through the device or around in a dish.

These systems promoted the development of precursor blood stem cells which can differentiate into various blood components white blood cells, red blood cells, platelets, and others. They were excited to see this same process known as hematopoiesis replicated in the device.

Study co-author Associate Professor Robert Nordon said he was amazed that not only did the device create blood stem cell precursors that went on to produce differentiated blood cells, but it also created the tissue cells of the embryonic heart environment that is crucial to this process.

The thing that just wows me about this is that blood stem cells, when they form in the embryo, form in the wall of the main vessel called the aorta. And they basically pop out of this aorta and go into the circulation, and then go to the liver and form whats called definitive hematopoiesis, or definitive blood formation.

Getting an aorta to form and then the cells actually emerging from that aorta into the circulation, that is the crucial step required for generating these cells.

What weve shown is that we can generate a cell that can form all the different types of blood cells. Weve also shown that it is very closely related to the cells lining the aorta so we know its origin is correct and that it proliferates, A/Prof. Nordon said.

The researchers are cautiously optimistic about their achievement in emulating embryonic heart conditions with a mechanical device. They hope it could be a step towards solving challenges limiting regenerative medical treatments today: donor blood stem cell shortages, rejection of donor tissue cells, and the ethical issues surrounding the use of IVF embryos.

Blood stem cells used in transplantation require donors with the same tissue type as the patient, A/Prof. Nordon said.

Manufacture of blood stem cells from pluripotent stem cell lines would solve this problem without the need for tissue-matched donors providing a plentiful supply to treat blood cancers or genetic disease.

Dr. Li added: We are working on up-scaling manufacture of these cells using bioreactors.

Meanwhile, and working independently of Dr. Li and A/Prof. Nordon, UNSW Medicine & Healths Professor John Pimanda and Dr. Vashe Chandrakanthan were doing their own research into how blood stem cells are created in embryos.

In their study of mice, the researchers looked for the mechanism that is used naturally in mammals to make blood stem cells from the cells that line blood vessels, known as endothelial cells.

It was already known that this process takes place in mammalian embryos where endothelial cells that line the aorta change into blood cells during hematopoiesis, Prof. Pimanda said.

But the identity of the cells that regulate this process had up until now been a mystery.

In their paper, Prof. Pimanda and Dr. Chandrakanthan described how they solved this puzzle by identifying the cells in the embryo that can convert both embryonic and adult endothelial cells into blood cells. The cells known as Mesp1-derived PDGFRA+ stromal cells reside underneath the aorta, and only surround the aorta in a very narrow window during embryonic development.

Dr. Chandrakanthan said that knowing the identity of these cells provides medical researchers with clues on how mammalian adult endothelial cells could be triggered to create blood stem cells something they are normally unable to do.

Our research showed that when endothelial cells from the embryo or the adult are mixed with Mesp1 derived PDGFRA+ stromal cells they start making blood stem cells, he said.

While more research is needed before this can be translated into clinical practice including confirming the results in human cells the discovery could provide a potential new tool to generate engraftable hematopoietic cells.

Using your own cells to generate blood stem cells could eliminate the need for donor blood transfusions or stem cell transplantation. Unlocking mechanisms used by Nature brings us a step closer to achieving this goal, Prof. Pimanda said.

References:

Mimicry of embryonic circulation enhances the hoxa hemogenic niche and human blood development by Jingjing Li, Osmond Lao, Freya F. Bruveris, Liyuan Wang, Kajal Chaudry, Ziqi Yang, Nona Farbehi, Elizabeth S. Ng, Edouard G. Stanley, Richard P. Harvey, Andrew G. Elefanty and Robert E. Nordon, 13 September 2022, Cell Reports. DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2022.111339

Mesoderm-derived PDGFRA+ cells regulate the emergence of hematopoietic stem cells in the dorsal aorta by Vashe Chandrakanthan, Prunella Rorimpandey, Fabio Zanini, Diego Chacon, Jake Olivier, Swapna Joshi, Young Chan Kang, Kathy Knezevic, Yizhou Huang, Qiao Qiao, Rema A. Oliver, Ashwin Unnikrishnan, Daniel R. Carter, Brendan Lee, Chris Brownlee, Carl Power, Robert Brink, Simon Mendez-Ferrer, Grigori Enikolopov, William Walsh, Berthold Gttgens, Samir Taoudi, Dominik Beck and John E. Pimanda, 28 July 2022, Nature Cell Biology. DOI: 10.1038/s41556-022-00955-3

Funding: National Health and Medical Research Council, Stem Cells Australia, Stafford Fox Medical Research Foundation, Novo Nordisk

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Stem Cell Therapy Market worth $558 million by 2027 Exclusive Report by MarketsandMarkets – GlobeNewswire

Chicago, Sept. 14, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Stem Cell Therapy Marketis projected to reach USD 558 million by 2027 from USD 257 million in 2022, at a CAGR of 16.8% during the forecast period, according to a new report by MarketsandMarkets. Key drivers of the stem cell therapy market include increase in stem cell research funding, expanding number of clinical trials related to stem cell therapies, and growing number of GMP-certified cell therapy production facilities. However, high costs associated with the development of stem cell therapy along with the ethical concerns related to embryonic stem cells are likely to hamper the market growth to a certain extent.

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Browse in-depth TOC on "Stem Cell Therapy Market 155 Tables 43 Figures 166 Pages

The adipose tissue-derived MSCs segment dominates the cell source market in the stem cell therapy through 2020-2027.

The global stem cell therapy market is segmented into adipose tissue-derived MSCs (mesenchymal stem cells), bone marrow-derived MSCs, placenta/umbilical cord-derived MSCs, and other cell sources. Adipose-derived stem cell tissues can be obtained easily and also possess a variety of the regenerative properties similar to other mesenchymal stem cells/tissues. These cells are multipotent and are easy to isolate & harvest; these qualities have collectively rendered the adipose tissue-derived MSCs segment highest revenue in 2021.

In 2021, the musculoskeletal disorders ranked first in terms of revenue in the stem cell therapy market.

Based on therapeutic application, the global stem cell therapy market is segmented into musculoskeletal disorders, wounds & injuries, cardiovascular diseases, surgeries, inflammatory & autoimmune diseases, neurological disorders, and other therapeutic applications. In 2021, the musculoskeletal disorders application segment accounted for the largest share of the stem cell therapy market. Increasing market availability of stem cell-based therapeutic products across major markets and the growing patient preference for effective & early treatment strategies are driving the growth of this segment.

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The Asia Pacific region is the fastest-growing region of the stem cell therapy market in 2021.

The Asia Pacific region is estimated to grow at the highest CAGR in the stem cell therapy market during the forecast period. Japan and South Korea are the key revenue contributors of the Asia Pacific stem cell therapy market. Favorable government support for product approvals and the presence of major players in these countries are anticipated to drive the regional market growth.

The stem cell therapy market is consolidated in nature with prominent players in the stem cell therapy market include Smith+Nephew (UK), MEDIPOST Co., Ltd. (South Korea), Anterogen Co., Ltd. (South Korea), CORESTEM (South Korea), Pharmicell Co., Ltd. (South Korea), NuVasive, Inc. (US), RTI Surgical (US), AlloSource (US), JCR Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. (Japan), Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (Japan), Holostem Terapie Avanzate Srl (Italy), Orthofix (US), Regrow Biosciences Pvt Ltd. (India), and STEMPEUTICS RESEARCH PVT LTD. (India).

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Stem Cell Manufacturing Market by Product (Consumables, Instrument, HSCs, MSCs, iPSCs, ESCs), Application (Research, Clinical (Autologous, Allogenic), Cell & Tissue Banking), End User (Pharma & Biotech, Hospitals, Tissue Bank) - Global Forecast to 2026

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Creating stem cells from minipigs offers promise for improved treatments – University of Wisconsin-Madison

A breed of pigs called Wisconsin Miniature Swine created by a team of UWMadison scientists will help researchers better model and understand human diseases. Photo: Jeff Miller

Cells from miniature pigs are paving the way for improved stem cell therapies.

A team led by University of WisconsinMadison Stem Cell & Regenerative Medicine Center researcher Wan-Ju Li offers an improved way to create a particularly valuable type of stem cell in pigs a cell that could speed the way to treatments that restore damaged tissues for conditions from osteoarthritis to heart disease in human patients.

In a study published in Scientific Reports, Lis team also provides insights into the reprogramming process that turns cells from one part of the body into pluripotent stem cells, a type of building block cell that can transform into any type of tissue. These new insights will help researchers study treatments for a wide range of diseases.

The researchers turned to pigs, a well-established animal model for potential human treatments, because translating research to improve human health is deeply important to Li, a professor of Orthopedics and Rehabilitation and Biomedical Engineering. He has spent much of his career studying cartilage and bone regeneration to develop innovative therapies to help people.

Li and members of his Musculoskeletal Biology and Regenerative Medicine Laboratory obtained skin cells from the ears of three different breeds of miniature pigs Wisconsin miniature swine, Yucatan miniature swine and Gttingen minipigs.

University of WisconsinMadison Stem Cell & Regenerative Medicine Center researcher Wan-Ju Li (left) shows a collagen fiber sample to Gwen Plunkett and Karen Plunkett. Funding from the Plunkett Family Foundation has contributed to research on cartilage repair therapies in UWMadisons Musculoskeletal Research Program.

The researchers reprogrammed the cells to create induced pluripotent stem cells and demonstrated that they have the capacity to become different types of tissue cells. Pluripotent stem cells are the bodys master cells, and they are invaluable to medicine since they can be used for the regeneration or repair of damaged tissues.

Findings of this study suggest that the miniature pig is a promising animal model for pre-clinical research. The team plans to use the established pig model to reproduce their recent findings of cartilage regeneration in rats as reported in Science Advances. Regenerating cartilage in animals even more alike to humans moves science one step closer to helping patients experiencing joint diseases such as osteoarthritis.

In successfully developing induced pluripotent stem cells from three different breeds of minipigs, we learned we can take somatic skin cells from these pigs that we programmed ourselves and then inject them back into the same animal to repair cartilage defects, says Li. Or we can create induced pluripotent stem cells from the skin cell that carried the gene causing cartilage diseases such as chondrodysplasia and put that into the culture dish and use that as a disease model to study disease formation.

Li says the approach can be applied to regenerative therapies targeting any organ or tissue.

The team also found that a particular protein complex involved in managing the way genes are expressed, and tied to cellular growth and survival, could influence how efficiently induced pluripotent stem cells are generated. While we successfully created induced pluripotent stem cells from the three different strains of pig, we noticed that some pigs had a higher reprogramming efficiency, says Li. So, the second part of our findings, which is significant in biology, is understanding how these differences occur and why.

These findings, he says, may directly translate to understanding differences in the effectiveness of induced pluripotent stem cell generation between individual people one study has shown cellular reprogramming efficiency varying by age and ancestry and lead to better tailored therapies.

I want to make sure that our findings in stem cell research can be used to help people, says Li. I just feel this internal drive to study this area and I feel good knowing this model carries significant weight in terms of its potential for translational stem cell research and the development of therapeutic treatments.

Interest in moving these treatments forward has grown, and while the study was funded in part by the National Institutes of Health, Li also received support from the Milwaukee-based Plunkett Family Foundation through their donation to the UW Stem Cell & Regenerative Medicine Center. After hearing of Lis research, Gwen Plunkett and her daughter Karen visited Lis lab in 2019 to learn more. They were inspired to support research into stem cells for cartilage regeneration.

Innovation in medicine sparks critical change, for the world and the survival of our species, and the Plunkett Family mission is to be a catalyst in stem cell and regenerative medicine research, says Karen Plunkett.

The donation was profoundly impactful, says Li, allowed him to further his goal of using stem cells to help patients living with osteoarthritis and other joint diseases many of whom write his lab regularly in hope of finding a clinical trial opportunity.

I have to keep saying, Wait for another two, three years, maybe well be ready for a clinical trial, Li says. But for me, its time to move on and really do our larger animal studies to fulfill our promise. At least that way, I can fill the gap between the lab and clinical trials as the larger animals must be studied before you go into a clinical trial.

This research was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health (R01 AR064803), the Plunkett Family Foundation and UW Carbon Cancer Center.

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Tanya Dorff, MD, Speaks to the Development of CAR T-Cell Therapy in Prostate Cancer – Cancer Network

At 2022 ASCO, Tanya Dorff, MD, reviewed the use of CAR T cells in the treatment of prostate cancer.

CAR T cells are typically used in the treatment of hematologic malignancies, but recent studies have shown they may also be used to combat prostate cancer. A recent panel discussion by Tanya Dorff, MD, from the 2022 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting shed light on this potential addition to the prostate cancer treatment paradigm.

Several trials are underway assessing the use CAR T cells targeted to prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA), prostate stem cell antigen (PSCA), and KLK2. Dorff emphasized the importance of educating oncologists who treat solid malignancies to identify adverse effects and mechanisms associated with CAR T-cell therapies that those specializing in hematologic malignancies may be more familiar with.

A big part of our education focus was just to help familiarize solid tumor oncologists with things like cytokine release syndrome and macrophage activation and the ways these present and how to manage them. Thats the long-term implementation of making sure the community is educated as a whole so these treatments can be widely accessed, Dorff, an associate professor in the Department of Medical oncology and Therapeutics Research, and section chief of the Genitourinary Disease Program at City of Hope, said in an interview with CancerNetwork.

Dorff also discussed highlights in prostate cancer from the 2022 ASCO Annual Meeting, including the use potential treatment intensification with triplet regimens up front and the efficacy of 177Lu-PSMA-617 in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer.

Dorff: I was part of an educational session discussing CAR T-cell therapy and bispecific T-cell engaging therapy for advanced prostate cancer. It was a case-based approach helping oncologists get a sense of how these treatments that are traditionally used in hematologic malignancies are being studied in prostate cancer, what to expect from them, how things are going, what kind of results were seeing, and where were going next with the field.

We have a long way to go to get CAR T-cell therapy into practice for prostate cancer, but weve been excited that even within the first handful of patients treated on the various trials, we are seeing responses. At the 2022 ASCO Genitourinary Symposium (ASCO GU), a poster was presented for POSEIDAs PSMA CAR T product by Susan F. Slovin, MD, PhD, of Memorial Sloan Kettering,1 showing this beautiful response in a patient and a fairly robust PSA [prostate specific antigen] response waterfall from that early experience with the CAR T-cell [study. Findings using] our PSCA-targeted CAR T from City of Hope that our scientists have developed and we produce here were also presented a ASCO GU showing, again, a robust response early on. However, the toxicity was considerable.2 Were just learning what the [adverse] effect [AE] profile will look like in [patients with] prostate cancer vs hematologic malignancies. Taking a step back, were still sorting out optimal dosing and whether were going to need adjunctive strategies or multiple doses to get a higher rate of nice, durable remissions with these therapies.

Multiple trials are open and accruing. We have 3 of them open here at City of Hope, 1 with our own PSCA-targeted CAR T-cell product. Were just finishing up phase 1 study and expect to open the phase 1b study later this summer where were going to be testing multiple dosing and radiation prior to CAR T-cell administration, which in the lab seems to augment responsiveness; a good number of patients already have been treated. The PSMA targeted CAR T from POSEIDA is still accruing. Weve treated 7 [patients] here. Its a multi-site study, so there are many other sites that have treated patients as well, and thats still ongoing. Then there's the KLK2 targeted CAR T-cell study [NCT04898634] from Janssen. Thats a little earlier along but theyve treated a fair number of patients at this point; its a multicenter study. This is already a reality in terms of clinical trials, but still far from practice.

There are 2 big topics that came out of ASCO for prostate cancer this year. One was the up-front intensification study using triplet combinations where were not only adding chemotherapy up front or an androgen targeted agent like abiraterone [Yonsa], enzalutamide [Xtandi], apalutamide [Erleda], or darolutamide [Nubeqa], but using all the above. The important message to get out is for community oncologists and urologists to act on this and implement this in their own practices. Newly diagnosed [patients with] metastatic prostate cancer should not get just castration monotherapy. They will benefit tremendously from having up-front intensification with either doublet or in some cases triplet therapy.

The other big story is the 177Lu-PSMA-617 which was recently approved by the FDA based on the [phase 3] VISION trial [NCT03511664].3 Theres a lot of information coming out at some of these meetings about differences between the VISION trial and the [phase 2] TheraP trial [NCT03392428], in which the control arm was cabazitaxel [Jevtana], which helps us benchmark the efficacy and start to think about sequencing. Also, what PSMA PET characteristics might help us optimally select patients for this treatment, because the criteria have been different [across] trials. There has been all kinds of practical and helpful information presented at ASCO and a lot of buzz and talking among attendees about those topics.

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Tanya Dorff, MD, Speaks to the Development of CAR T-Cell Therapy in Prostate Cancer - Cancer Network

What may have given modern humans an edge over Neanderthals, according to new research – kuna noticias y kuna radio

By Katie Hunt, CNN

From studying fossilized skulls, scientists know that the size of a Neanderthals brain was the same as, if not slightly bigger than, that of a modern human. However, researchers have known little about Neanderthal brain development because soft tissue doesnt preserve well in the fossil record.

Now, an intriguing study released September 8 has revealed a potential difference that may have given modern humans, or Homo sapiens, a cognitive advantage over the Neanderthals, the Stone Age hominins who lived in Europe and parts of Asia before going extinct about 40,000 years ago.

Scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics in Dresden, Germany, said they have identified a genetic mutation that triggered the faster creation of neurons in the Homo sapiens brain. The Neanderthal variant of the gene in question, known as TKTL1, differs from the modern human variant by one amino acid.

Weve identified a gene that contributes to making us human, said study author Wieland Huttner, professor and director emeritus at the institute.

When the two versions of the gene were inserted into mice embryos, the research team found that the modern human variant of the gene resulted in an increase in a specific type of cell that creates neurons in the neocortex region of the brain. The scientists also tested the two gene variants in ferret embryos and lab-grown brain tissue made from human stem cells, called organoids, with similar results.

The team reasoned that this ability to produce more neurons likely gave Homo sapiens a cognitive edge unrelated to overall brain size, suggesting that modern humans have more neocortex to work with than the ancient Neanderthal did, according to the study published in the journal Science.

This shows us that even though we do not know how many neurons the Neanderthal brain had, we can assume that modern humans have more neurons in the frontal lobe of the brain, where TKTL1 activity is highest, than Neanderthals, Huttner explained.

There has been a discussion whether or not the frontal lobe of Neanderthals was as large as that of modern humans, he added.

But we dont need to care because (from this research) we know that modern humans must have had more neurons in the frontal lobe and we think that that is an advantage for cognitive abilities.

Alysson Muotri, professor and director of the Stem Cell Program and Archealization Center at the University of California San Diego, said while the animal experiments revealed quite a dramatic difference in neuron production, the difference was more subtle in the organoids. He was not involved in the research.

This was only done in one cell line, and since we have huge variability with this protocol of brain organoids, it would be ideal to repeat the experiments with a second cell line, he said via email.

It was also possible the archaic version of the TKTL1 gene was not unique to Neanderthals, Muotri noted. Most genomic databases have focused on Western Europeans, and its possible human populations in other parts of the world might share the Neanderthal version of that gene.

I think it is quite premature to suggest differences between Neanderthal and modern human cognition, he said.

Archaeological finds in recent years have suggested that Neanderthals were more sophisticated than pop culture depictions of brutish cavemen might suggest. Our ancient relatives knew how to survive in cold and warm climates and used complex tools. They also made yarn, swam and created art.

Study coauthor and geneticist Svante Pbo, director of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, pioneered efforts to extract, sequence and analyze ancient DNA from Neanderthal bones.

His work led to the discovery in 2010 that early humans interbred with Neanderthals. Scientists have subsequently compared the Neanderthal genome with the genetic records of living humans today to see how our genes overlap and differ: TKTL1 is just one of dozens of identified genetic differences, while some shared genes may have implications for human health.

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Stem Cell – Genome.gov

A stem cell is a specific type of cell in the body that has the potential to form many different cell types. So stem cells generally are undifferentiated, and then the kind of cells that they make would become the more mature cells that you're familiar with. So generally, if you think about it, stem cell is the top brick in a big pyramid, and at the base of the pyramid are maybe four different kinds of cells that are derived from that stem cell. And you can see that not only do they mature as they head down the pyramid, but they get greater in number. So a very small number of stem cells can give rise to an enormous number of mature progeny. Now, there are several different kinds of stem cells. There are somatic stem cells. These are the ones that live in the adult organism. And people have stem cells in their bone marrow that give rise to all the different kinds of blood that they have. There are stem cells in the liver that give rise to hepatocytes and secretory cells. There are stem cells in neural tissue that give rise to neurons and astroglial cells and things like that. And muscle has stem cells. And there are many different kinds of stem cells that have been identified in adults. There are also embryonic stem cells, and these are derived from three and a half days in the mouse and about six- to eight-day embryos in people, and these are cells with even more potential than the adult cells, because an embryonic stem cell derived in the proper way can give rise to neural cells, muscle cells, and liver cells. And these are the three different general parts of an organism that happens during its development. So the very important thing to remember about stem cells is they need not only divide and proliferate to make these many, many mature progeny cells, they also need to assure that their own stem cell pool is not reduced. So it's kind of like if you're getting three wishes, your last wish should be for more wishes. So what stem cells do is they have two different kinds of divisions they can make. They can make what's called a symmetric division, where the stem cell divides and both cells stay undifferentiated in stem cells. Or they can make asymmetric division, in which one cell goes on to proliferate and differentiate into the progeny, and the other cell stays a stem cell. So in periods like after a bone marrow transplant, where the stem cell number has to expand, they make many more symmetric than asymmetric divisions. But in the regular time in your bone marrow, the stem cells make mostly asymmetric divisions, which keep the number of stem cells pretty standard.

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11 Stem Cell Research Pros and Cons Vittana.org

Stem cell research can be classified into two specific areas: embryonic stem cells and non-embryonic stem cells. Amniotic, induced pluripotent, and adult stem cells do not involve the creation or destruction of a human embryo to have them collected.

Even embryonic stem cells can be collected, to some extent, without the destruction of an embryo. Modern collection techniques include using stem cells that are found in the umbilical cord, in breast milk, or even in bone marrow.

The primary benefit of stem cell research is its clear potential. Since 1868, the idea of using stem cells as a medical treatment has been contemplated in one way or another, especially as we began to understand their full potential. With stem cell therapies, we have the potential to treat injuries, degenerative conditions, or even a genetic disease or disorder.

As for the primary disadvantage of stem cell research, the ethics of collecting embryonic stem cells tends to dominate the conversation. To some people, the idea of destroying an embryo to harvest cells equates to murder. For others, they see the hundreds of thousands of frozen embryos, many of which are simply thrown away after being stored for too long, as wasted potential.

Here are some additional stem cell research pros and cons to review.

1. It could treat several conditions that are virtually untreatable right now. Stem cell research opens numerous avenues for treatments or a cure to be found for several conditions that are either untreatable or without a cure today. Everything from Alzheimers disease to Parkinsons disease to ALS could be improved. People who have a spinal cord injury could receive an injection of stem cells and potentially start the recovery process. Even mental health issues, such as schizophrenia, could one day be treated with stem cell applications.

2. It provides us with greater knowledge. By researching stem cells, we understand more about the growth process of humans. We learn more about how cells form and interact with one another. We can examine pluripotent cells, both induced and embryonic, to see what information is required for them to turn into a specific tissue cell. With a greater understanding of this micro-environment, we can learn more about who we are at our very core.

3. It offers new methods of testing. When new medical treatments are proposed, they must go through multiple stages of testing. This includes animal trials and human trials, which may or may not be successful. As our knowledge of stem cells grows, we could transition testing methods so that only cell populations are examined for a response instead of an innocent animal or a paid human research contributor. That may improve safety, reduce fatalities, and even speed up the approval process.

4. It reduces the risk of rejection. Many stem cell therapies today use the cells that are collected from a patients body. Because the cells are their own, the risk of rejection is reduced or even eliminated. If stem cells could be induced to form into organ tissues, such as a kidney, then the science of organ transplantation could be forever changed. Imagine growing a kidney that is a genetic match instead of trying to find a donor organ that could be rejected, even if a direct match is found. That is the potential of this medical research.

5. It could stop birth defects and mutations before they happen. By understanding the process of stem cell development, it could be possible to change the embryonic development process. Chromosomal concerns, birth defects, and other errors in development could be corrected before birth, giving more newborns a real chance to experience the gift of life. At the same time, the risks of pregnancy loss and health risks to new mothers could be decreased.

1. We have no idea about long-term side effect issues. According to the Canadian Cancer Society, there are several common short-term side effects that are associated with stem cell therapies. They may include infection, bleeding, skin or hair problems, unexplained pain, organ problems, or even the development of a secondary cancer. Every medical treatment provides some risk of a side effect, but this medical technology is so new that we have no idea what the long-term health effects might be.

2. It provides a health risk to everyone involved. Collecting stem cells from an adult carries a medical risk with it. Something could go wrong during the collection process that may reduce the quality of life for the patient. Their life could even be placed at-risk. For embryonic collection, the destruction of the blastocytes that are formed during egg fertilization is required. Since the embryo is technically a different form of human life, there will always be the chance of rejection occurring since the cells are not ones own.

3. Adult stem cells offer limited potential. Our current stem cell research findings indicate that adult stem cells that have already transitioned into specific tissues or formats because of their body location will stay that way. That means stem cells taken from muscle tissue would only be able to create additional muscle tissues. Even if they are induced to be pluripotent, the end result tends to be duplication instead of identification because they have a determined type.

4. It is still an unproven medical technology. There is a lot of hope for stem cell treatments. Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is performed about 50,000 times annually around the world and the success rate for the treatment is climbing above 90%. Because some forms of stem cell research are classified as illegal or immoral in the United States, however, progress to improve treatments or prove the effectiveness of this medical technology are not as advanced as their potential.

5. It isnt cheap. Stem cell therapies are far from affordable. Because most health insurers classify this type of treatment as experimental, it is rarely a covered procedure. Most treatments that are approved for use in the US cost more than $10,000 per procedure. Some treatment options are six figures. Even the cost of harvesting stem cells from an embryo is a couple thousand dollars. Access to this technology is restricted to socioeconomic means globally and to almost everyone in the United States.

6. Opportunities are limited. Although stem cell research isnt technically forbidden in the US, there are just 19 stem cell lines available for government grants and funding thanks to legislative restrictions that are enacted in 2001. Certain states have begun to draft legislation to completely ban stem cell research, or at least embryonic stem cell research, or at least place major restrictions on the process.

We should examine the ethics of embryonic stem cell research, but we should also examine the benefits it may provide. Adult stem cells, collected from consenting parties, should have no criticism whatsoever. As we move forward in this research, new pros and cons may also require additional contemplation. One thing is for certain: these stem cell research pros and cons show us that humanity is complex, beautiful, and wonderful in many ways.

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11 Stem Cell Research Pros and Cons Vittana.org

Rise In Number Of CROS In Various Regions Such As Europe Is Expected To Fuel The Growth Of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Market At An Impressive CAGR…

Rise In Research And Development Projects In Various Regions Such As East Asia, South Asia Are Expected To Offer An Opportunity Of US $ 0.5 Bn In 2022-2026 Period.

Fact.MR A Market Research and Competitive Intelligence Provider: The global induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) market was valued at US $ 1.8 Bn in 2022, and is expected to witness a value of US $ 2.3 Bn by the end of 2026.

Moreover, historically, demand for induced pluripotent stem cells had witnessed a CAGR of 6.6%.

Rise in spending on research and development activities in various sectors such as healthcare industry is expected to drive the adoption of human Ips cell lines in various applications such as personalized medicine and precision.

Moreover, increasing scope of application of human iPSC cell lines in precision medicine and emphasis on therapeutic applications of stem cells are expected to be driving factors of iPSC market during the forecast period.

Surge in government spending and high awareness about stem cell research across various organizations are predicted to impact demand for induced pluripotent stem cells. Rising prevalence of chronic diseases and high adoption of stem cells in their treatment is expected to boost the market growth potential.

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Besides this, various cells such as neural stem cells, embryonic stem cells umbilical cord stem cells, etc. are anticipated to witness high demand in the U.S. due to surge in popularity of stem cell therapies.

Key Takeaways:

Growth Drivers:

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Key Restraints:

Competitive Landscape:

Many key players in the market are increasing their investments in R&D to provide offerings in stem cell therapies, which are gaining traction for the treatment of various chronic diseases.

For instance:

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Rise In Number Of CROS In Various Regions Such As Europe Is Expected To Fuel The Growth Of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Market At An Impressive CAGR...

Neukio Biotherapeutics completed Series A-1 financing, to accelerate discovery and development of next generation cell therapy products – PR Newswire

SHANGHAI, Sept. 2, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Neukio Biotherapeutics, a company committed to developing novel cell therapy products, announces it has closed$50 million in a Series A-1 funding round. The investment round was led by CD Capital, with the participation of Alwin Capital and Surplus Capital as new investors. Existing shareholders Lilly Asia Ventures, Sherpa Healthcare Partners and IDG Capital have continued to support the company with additional funding. G&G Capital served as the exclusive financial adviser. The funds raised will play important roles in accelerating the preclinical and clinical validation of induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived off-the-shelf CAR-NK cell therapy products, and supporting team recruitment and expansion.

Neukio, founded at the Simbay Park in Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone (China) in June 2021, is an innovative biotherapeutic company focusing on the development and commercialization of next generation immune cell therapy. Leveraging its significant experience in the R&D, CMC and commercialization of autologous CAR-T cell therapy, Neukio's management team has established an iPSC-CAR-NK-based pipeline development strategy, aiming to launch allogenic off-the-shelf cell therapy products that can be produced in scale for treating solid tumors. The company focuses on both in-house R&D innovation and global collaboration with leading partners, to provide valuable clinical solutions for cancer patients worldwide. Since its establishment just over one year ago, the company has made remarkable progress in talent recruitment, facility construction, R&D pipeline advancement and quality management system establishment, exceeding all expectations.

Dr. Richard Liqun Wang, founder, chairman and CEO of Neukio and former founding CEO of Fosun Kite Biotechnology Co., Ltd., has successfully broughtChina's first CAR-T cell therapy product Yescarca (Axicabtagene Ciloleucel) to the market in less than four years, laid foundation for the cell therapy industry in China. To address the challenges in manufacturing, clinical application, and patient access of autologous cell therapy, Dr. Wang and the Neukio team are aiming high to create novel cell therapies for the benefit of cancer patients by exploiting the clonality and unlimited replication capability of iPSCs in conjunction with cutting-edge gene editing technologies.

Dr. Wang commented: "In as little as 10 months since the operation of our new laboratories, not only have we completed several signaling pathway modifications and CAR designs tailored for solid tumors, but also we have made significant progress in the development of innovative manufacturing processes of NK differentiation and expansion. In today's challenging environment of capital market, we are honored to have received recognition from CD Capital, Alwin Capita, Surplus Capital, and previous investors of Sherpa Healthcare Partners, Lilly Asia Ventures and IDG Capital on our R&D strategy, development capabilities and project progress. I am very grateful to all investors and to G&G Capital and Silkroad Law Firm for their support in this round of financing, and we will reward them with rapidly moving forward in the preclinical and clinical validation of our R&D platform and products. The field of cell therapy is rapidly advancing with a promising future and a huge market potential, and iPSC-CAR-NK therapy has the potential to become one of the brightest stars of next generation cell therapy."

"The transition from traditional small molecules and antibodies to the era of cell therapy is a great leap in drug design and manufacturing capabilities of human being," said CD Capital, the leading investor in this round of financing. "With the commercialization of autologous CAR-T cell products, more and more improvement opportunities have emerged and need to be taken urgently. In the field of cell therapy, CD Capital continues to focus on innovations and breakthroughs in allogenic products to conquer solid tumors. Neukio has been deeply committed to iPSC-CAR-NK cell therapy. Within a short time of its establishment, Neukio has built up global leading technology platforms efficiently in both scientific innovation and process development, demonstrating its strong execution capability and efficiency. We hope that the company, under the leadership of Dr. Wang, will adhere to pragmatism, efficiency, and innovation, leading the advancement of the industry, and bringing a new generation of allogenic cell therapy products to the clinical application as soon as possible for the benefit of patients."

About CD Capital

CD Capital is an investment organization focusing on innovative medical technologies and cutting-edge biotechnologies. Run by a professional team with senior medical industry background, it is managing multiple USD and RMB funds. By adhering to the investment philosophy of "focus, excellence, and reputation" and by leveraging its abundant industrial resources and years of in-deep research and cultivation in the medical field, CD Capital is able to get first-hand insight into the latest international scientific and technological trends and seize the investment opportunities brought by technological innovation. CD Capital is committed to identifying top enterprises with leadership potential in the industry, builds an industrial ecosystem and grows together with entrepreneurs through the interconnected and win-win investment methodology and a precise and pragmatic post-investment empowerment system, and creates sustainable and excellent returns for investors.

About Alwin Capital

Focusing on the frontier areas of life sciences, Alwin Capital conducts in-deep research, unifies knowledge and practice, walks in non-consensus areas, and invests objectively and truthfully in real opportunities for medical transformation. With a core team formed by the veterans in both industry and capital market, Alwin Capital believes in the power of research, is committed to long-term investment, steadily builds the enterprise ecology, and strives to obtain systematic excess returns for investors.

About Surplus Capital

Surplus Capital is committed to discovering and supporting medical enterprises that promote the health of all humankind. It focuses on subdivision areas such as innovative drugs and innovative medical devices, and adopts diversified investment strategies to pay attention to all stages of enterprise development, including start-up, growth and maturity. Surplus Capital also cultivates seed-stage project sources, and invests and assists in the incubation of high-quality seed-stage projects to help enterprises create value.

About Lilly Asia Ventures

Founded in 2008, Lilly Asia Ventures (LAV) is a leading venture fund firm focusing on investment in the life sciences and healthcare sectors with offices in Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Silicon Valley. LAV is committed to being a trusted partner for exceptional entrepreneurs seeking smart capital, and looks forward to working with top entrepreneurs to build great companies developing breakthrough products that treat diseases and improve human health.

About Sherpa Healthcare Partners

Sherpa Healthcare Partners (Sherpa) is a professional fund firm focusing on early-stage medical and health investment. It adheres to the investment concept of building industry ecology, builds portfolios for rigid unmet medical needs on the basis of in-depth understanding of the treatment of critical diseases, and plans the layout along the industry depth and upstream and downstream. By actively sharing operational experience and forward-looking perspectives of the whole industrial chain with the invested enterprises, the team from Sherpa actively promotes internal and external synergy, helping enterprises achieve rapid growth in both business performance and value and take a leading position in their market segments. It has invested in leading enterprises in such subdivisions as medical services, medicine, genetic technology and medical devices, forming a full range of resource advantages in project sources, post-investment value-added services, exits, etc. From 2011 to 2022, after 4 fund years and more than 100 medical projects, Sherpa has grown up hand in hand with many outstanding entrepreneurs.

About IDG Capital

IDG Capital pioneered the venture capital business in China in 1993. For years, IDG Capital consistently pursues long-term value investment and maintains long-term close relationships with diverse investment partners from around the world. IDG capital has accumulated extensive investment experience in venture capital, private equity and industrial development. It has the following areas of focus, including consumer goods, chain services, Internet and wireless applications, new media, education, health care, new energy, advanced manufacturing, etc. The investment covers companies at all stages of development: start-up, growth, maturity and pre-IPO, with a size of investment ranging from millions to tens of millions of U.S. dollars.

For more information and updates on Neukio Therapeutics, please visit the company's website at http://www.neukio.com.

SOURCE Neukio Biotherapeutics

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Neukio Biotherapeutics completed Series A-1 financing, to accelerate discovery and development of next generation cell therapy products - PR Newswire

Novel Method Accelerates the Immune Cell Production Pipeline – Technology Networks

A University of British Columbia research team has developed a new, fast, efficient process for producing cancer-fighting immune cells in the lab. The discovery could help transform the field of immune cell therapy from an expensive, niche endeavour to something easily scalable and broadly applicable.

Weve figured out the minimal necessary steps to efficiently guide pluripotent stem cells to develop in the dish into immune cells, in particular, T cells, said Dr. Yale Michaels, referring to the most essential cells of the human immune system. One of the next steps were working on is to scale this up and make it work more efficiently so that we can make enough cells to treat patients.

The breakthrough paper, published last week in Science Advances by Dr. Michaels, PhD student John Edgar, and a team from Dr. Peter Zandstras lab at UBCs Michael Smith Laboratories and School of Biomedical Engineering, describes a novel method that is now the fastest known way to produce T cells in the lab.

T cells are instrumental in CAR T therapy, a well-known and successful cancer treatment that involves obtaining immune cells from the patient, genetically modifying them to fight against the patients cancer and infusing them back into the patients body to fight the disease. Although this type of therapy has an efficacy rate of close to 50 per cent for some cancers, a new batch of medicine needs to be created for each treatment, costing roughly half a million dollars each round.

Because the main cost associated with these treatments is the fact that theyre made individually, a more cost-effective strategy could be figuring out how to manufacture those immune cells in the lab using stem cells, instead of taking them directly from a patient, explains Michaels.

Pluripotent stem cells have the ability to differentiate into any type of cell in the human body and can endlessly renew themselves. Using PSCs to create immune cells in the lab for therapeutic treatments means hundreds of doses of a medicine could be derived from a single cell.

Building on a large body of previous work in the area, Michaels, Edgar and a team from the Zandstra lab discovered that providing two proteins to stem cells during a key window of development improved the efficiency of immune cell production by 80 times. By working strictly with the proteins DLL4 and VCAM1, instead of the animal cells and serums that complicated previous methods, the production process becomes a carefully controlled pipeline that is easy to replicate.

The improvement of this production pipeline is one step among many towards solving a variety of human health challenges. How to scale up a cell differentiation process, how to make cells good at killing cancer and fighting against other immune diseases, and how to deliver them to patients in a safe way are all important questions being explored simultaneously by the Zandstra lab and other research groups.

Dr. Michaels acknowledged that the collective work of thousands of people, each making important contributions, enabled this project to succeed.

"People have made tremendous progress over the last 20 years and this breakthrough is an exciting continuum, he said.

The team hopes their new findings and ongoing work in the lab will contribute to future clinical pipelines.

Reference:Michaels YS, Edgar JM, Major MC, et al. DLL4 and VCAM1 enhance the emergence of T cellcompetent hematopoietic progenitors from human pluripotent stem cells. Sci Adv. 2022;8(34):eabn5522. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.abn5522

This article has been republished from the following materials. Note: material may have been edited for length and content. For further information, please contact the cited source.

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Novel Method Accelerates the Immune Cell Production Pipeline - Technology Networks