Human-Eye Precursor Grown from Stem Cell

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The achievement, with an 'optic cup' that contains multiple layers of photoreceptors, raises hopes for repairs of damaged eyes in the clinic

By David Cyranoski and Nature magazine | June 15, 2012|

The human eye is a complex structure but the cues to build it come from inside the growing cells. Image: Dougal Waters/Getty

From Nature magazine

A stem-cell biologist has had an eye-opening success in his latest effort to mimic mammalian organ development in vitro. Yoshiki Sasai of the RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology (CBD) in Kobe, Japan, has grown the precursor of a human eye in the lab.

The structure, called an optic cup, is 550 micrometres in diameter and contains multiple layers of retinal cells including photoreceptors. The achievement has raised hopes that doctors may one day be able to repair damaged eyes in the clinic. But for researchers at the annual meeting of the International Society for Stem Cell Research in Yokohama, Japan, where Sasai presented the findings this week, the most exciting thing is that the optic cup developed its structure without guidance from Sasai and his team.

The morphology is the truly extraordinary thing, says Austin Smith, director of the Centre for Stem Cell Research at the University of Cambridge, UK.

Until recently, stem-cell biologists had been able to grow embryonic stem-cells only into two-dimensional sheets. But over the past four years, Sasai has used mouse embryonic stem cells to grow well-organized, three-dimensional cerebral-cortex1, pituitary-gland2 and optic-cup3 tissue. His latest result marks the first time that anyone has managed a similar feat using human cells.

Familiar patterns The various parts of the human optic cup grew in mostly the same order as those in the mouse optic cup. This reconfirms a biological lesson: the cues for this complex formation come from inside the cell, rather than relying on external triggers.

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Human-Eye Precursor Grown from Stem Cell

Harvard To Resume Allston Science Center Development in 2014

After halting construction on its Allston science center more than two years ago, Harvard announced on Wednesday that it will resume development in 2014.

The facility, which will be called the Health and Life Science Center, will house academic projects for stem cell science and engineering and physical sciences.

Douglas A. Melton, a co-director of theHarvard Stem Cell Instituteand co-chair of the Harvard stem cell and regenerative biology department, added that this development "should leadto the kinds of collaborations and exciting advances, and interesting experiments in undergraduate teaching, that otherwise might not take place."

Previous plans for the new science center included stem cell science, but the second componentengineering and physical sciences with application to biological and life sciencesis new.

By allowing stem cell scientists and bioengineers with common goals to work literally side-by-side, in close proximity to the I-Lab and Business School, Harvard will be hastening the day discoveries in our labs can be moved into the clinic, where they will benefit patients, Melton said in a statement.

Associate Vice President for Public Affairs and Communications Kevin Casey, who presented the plan at a Harvard-Allston Task Force meeting, told attendees that that the complex would likely be 500,000 to 600,000 square feet in size,providing office space for 500 scientists and an additional support staff.

Harvard halted construction in Allston in 2009 following a credit crunch caused by the 2008 recession. Allston planning restarted in December 2011.

According to Harvard Executive Vice President Katherine N. Lapp, Harvard hopes to begin readying its Western Avenue site forconstruction towards the end of 2013.

"The Health and Life Science Center will represent the single largest investment in a science facility ever made by Harvard, and the biggest investment in science space envisioned for at least the next decade," Lapp wrote in a public update.

Harvard officials also updated Task Force members on the progress of its other efforts in Allston. University officials said that they will work with Boston-based Samuels & Associates to develop residential and retail spaces in Barrys Corner, few blocks away from the future site of the Health and Life Science Center.

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WPI spinoff VitaThreads to make biopolymer sutures

Harry Wotton, CEO, VitaThreads

VitaThreads LLC, a new life sciences company focused on making biopolymer threads and sutures for stem cell delivery and other uses, has been spun out of Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

The company, which CEO Harry Wotton said was incorporated two weeks ago, was founded by two WPI biomedical engineering professors, George Pins and Glenn Gaudette. It will commercialize the microthread technology under a license from WPI as a new treatment for common sports injuries and heart attacks and as a new way to deliver stem cells to regenerate damaged tissues in people and animals.

The company will have access to a computer-controlled extruder designed and built in Gaudettes lab to ramp up microthread production. It will operate initially within WPIs Bioengineering Institute at Gateway Park.

Pins and Gaudette will be scientific advisors to VitaThreads management, which includes co-founders Adam Collette, vice president of product development, and Wotton, who graduated from WPI in 1994. The four are the only employees now.

Cell therapies and tissue regeneration are coming to the clinic, and we believe the VitaThreads platform will be an important delivery system for these new therapies, said Wotton. He has two other startups to his name, veterinary orthopedics company Securos Inc. and International Veterinary Distribution Network Inc., both of Charlton. He sold both in 2007 for a total of $5 million to MWI Veterinary Supply Inc. of Idaho.

It was a great experience, and but I was ready for new challenges, Wotton said. It was time for me to get out of the big corporate environment and get back to a startup, which is what I really love. And the opportunity to work with the team at VitaThreads was a perfect fit.

About $1 million in National Institutes of Health and other grants has gone into the technology development at WPI, and Wotton said the company has $200,000 in funding now from government Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grants and from the companys owners. We need to get $500,000 to $1 million over the next 18 months to get to the next level, said Wotton, who also is trying to entice angel investors to contribute.

Made of collagen, fibrin, and other biologic materials, biopolymer microthreads about the width of a human hair can be braided into cable-like structures that mimic natural connective tissues. First developed in Pinss lab as a potential tool for repairing torn anterior cruciate ligaments in the knee, the microthreads were adapted by Pins and Gaudette for use as biological sutures to deliver bone marrow-derived stem cells to regenerate cardiac muscle damaged during a heart attack. Other WPI labs are using the threads, seeded with various cell types, as scaffolds for wound-healing and skeletal muscle regeneration, among other purposes, according to WPI.

VitaThreads plans to develop the microthread technology for a range of human clinical uses, but its first commercial product will deliver stem cells for the animal medicine market. Stem cell therapies are still in the research and development phase for humans, but they are a reality today in animal medicine, Wotton said. Every year thousands of horses and dogs have stem cell injections that heal torn ligaments and other connective tissues; this technology will be able to deliver those stem cells much more efficiently. He said the types of injuries that ended the careers of race horses like Barbaro and more recently Ill Have Another are targets for the stem cell treatment. It has high efficiency in delivery of stem cells, he said. Current methods use intravenous delivery, injections, hydrogels and scaffolds.

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Stem cell hope for hip replacement procedure

Hip replacements for some patients could be a thing of the past after surgeons pioneered a new stem cell procedure to tackle a bone disease that leads to arthritis.

Doctors at Southampton General Hospital are extracting stem cells from the bone marrow of patients in need of hip repair due to osteonecrosis - a condition where poor blood supply causes significant bone damage leading to severe arthritis.

These cells are mixed with cleaned, crushed bone from another patient who has had their own hip replaced and used to fill the hole made by surgeons after dead and damaged tissue has been removed from the joint.

The procedure has been developed by Doug Dunlop, a consultant orthopaedic surgeon at Southampton General Hospital, and Professor Richard Oreffo, a specialist in musculoskeletal science at the University of Southampton.

"Although this work is still ongoing, several patients who have had the procedure have reacted very well and, if we get the results we are hoping for, these patients won't need to have their hip joints replaced - they should be fixed completely," said Mr Dunlop.

Professor Oreffo added: "By using stem cells to send out chemical signals to blood vessels, we hope the body will continue to create new vessels in the hip which supply enough nutrients to maintain bone strength."

Osteonecrosis is on the rise in the UK with around 4,000 cases a year but it is much more widespread in Asia where it is the most common form of arthritis of the hip, the hospital said.

It can also be treated with drugs to help avoid arthritis and usually strikes between 30 and 50 years of age.

Osteonecrosis is one of the three main causes of arthritis alongside osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

Arthritis in general affects one in five people in the UK.

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Stem cell hope for hip replacement procedure

Why banking on cord blood isn't necessarily a good idea

CARLY WEEKS From Saturday's Globe and Mail Published Saturday, May. 26, 2012 6:00AM EDT

Its a straightforward pitch to expecting parents: Pay a private clinic to store your babys stem-cell-rich umbilical-cord blood, and rest assured that he or she has protection for life. Multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, diabetes, traumatic brain injury, stroke, brain tumours and even Alzheimers disease are just a few of the ailments stem cells may be able to treat or cure in the future.

The optimism is contagious. Tens of thousands of Canadian families have made the decision to pay thousands of dollars to bank cord blood. But beyond the websites and brochures featuring photos of smiling babies and testimonials from families, a different picture is emerging of an industry that uses inflated arguments, aggressive marketing and misleading information to convince parents to buy in.

I dont know if the families are walking away with an entirely honest picture of what theyre buying, says John Doyle, former head of blood and marrow transplants at Torontos Hospital for Sick Children. I dont think that parents truthfully understand the limits.

Theres a long-standing history of overinflated promises by the cord-blood banks, agrees Donna Wall, director of the blood and marrow transplant program at CancerCare Manitoba. I could have retired many times over if I had gotten into the business. Its just not the right thing to do.

Full of promise

The stem cells found in umbilical-cord blood have the ability to turn into red or white blood cells or blood-clotting cells. For that reason, they offer promising treatments for leukemia, lymphoma, sickle cell disease and other blood, bone, immune and metabolic disorders.

Adults also carry these stem cells, which is why Canadian Blood Services has a campaign to recruit people to join OneMatch, its network to connect stem-cell and bone-marrow donors to patients. But finding a suitable donor is much more difficult than simply matching blood types. Patient and donor cells must match 10 out of 10 human leukocyte antigens or proteins found on the surface of cells. Donor registries are limited and seldom diverse enough to serve patients of all ethnicities.

Hence the excitement over umbilical-cord-blood stem cells: Not only are they young and less likely to lead to complications, they need not match as precisely as adult cells.

This has just opened up so many more possibilities to patients in need, says Sue Smith, executive director for stem cells at Canadian Blood Services.

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Why banking on cord blood isn't necessarily a good idea

Growth Factor in Stem Cells May Spur Recovery From MS

Newswise A substance in human mesenchymal stem cells that promotes growth appears to spur restoration of nerves and their function in rodent models of multiple sclerosis (MS), researchers at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have found.

Their study is embargoed until published in the online version of Nature Neuroscience at 1 p.m. U.S. Eastern Standard Time on Sunday, May 20.

In animals injected with hepatocyte growth factor, inflammation declined and neural cells grew. Perhaps most important, the myelin sheath, which protects nerves and their ability to gather and send information, regrew, covering lesions caused by the disease.

The importance of this work is we think weve identified the driver of the recovery, said Robert H. Miller, professor of neurosciences at the School of Medicine and vice president for research at Case Western Reserve University.

Miller, neurosciences instructor Lianhua Bai and biology professor Arnold I. Caplan, designed the study. They worked with Project Manager Anne DeChant, and research assistants Jordan Hecker, Janet Kranso and Anita Zaremba, from the School of Medicine; and Donald P. Lennon, a research assistant from the universitys Skeletal Research Center.

In MS, the immune system attacks myelin, risking injury to exposed nerves intricate wiring. When damaged, nerve signals can be interrupted, causing loss of balance and coordination, cognitive ability and other functions. Over time, intermittent losses may become permanent.

Miller and Caplan reported in 2009 that when they injected human mesenchymal stem cells into rodent models of MS, the animals recovered from the damage wrought by the disease. Based on their work, a clinical trial is underway in which MS patients are injected with their own stem cells.

In this study, the researchers first wanted to test whether the presence of stem cells or something cells produce promotes recovery. They injected mice with the medium in which mesenchymal stem cells, culled from bone marrow, grew.

All 11 animals, which have a version of MS, showed a rapid reduction in functional deficits.

Analysis showed that the disease remained on course unless the molecules injected were of a certain size; that is, the molecular weight ranged between 50 and 100 kiloDaltons. Research by others and results of their own work indicated hepatocyte growth factor, which is secreted by mesenchymal stem cells, was a likely instigator.

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BioTime Completes Merger of XenneX, Inc. into LifeMap Sciences, Inc.

ALAMEDA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--BioTime, Inc. (NYSE MKT: BTX) and its subsidiary LifeMap Sciences, Inc. today announced that they have completed the acquisition of XenneX, Inc. through a merger of XenneX into LifeMap Sciences. The definitive merger agreement was previously announced on April 20, 2012.

The need for the LifeMap database is a reflection of the growth of the field of regenerative medicine

LifeMap Sciences now holds the exclusive, worldwide licenses to market GeneCards and PanDaTox from Yeda Research and Development Company Ltd, the technology transfer arm of the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel. Developed by a leading bioinformatics team at the Weizmann Institute of Science, GeneCards is an online database that provides concise genomic, transcriptomic, genetic, proteomic, functional and disease-related information on all known and predicted human genes. With over 12 million page visits per year from hundreds of thousands of unique users worldwide, GeneCards is used by academia, research hospitals, patent offices, and leading biotech and pharma companies. PanDaTox is a recently developed, searchable database that can aid in the discovery of new antibiotics and biotechnologically beneficial products.

LifeMap Sciences goal is to be the leading resource for the emerging field of regenerative medicine, by providing access to GeneCards, and its LifeMap database of embryonic development and stem cells, and by also marketing research products manufactured by BioTime, including ACTCellerateTM cell lines, HyStem hydrogels, and cell culture media.

LifeMap scientists will also utilize its databases to aid in the development of BioTimes proprietary ACTCelleratehuman progenitor cell lines into products for the treatment of human diseases, especially degenerative diseases that might be treatable by cell replacement therapies.

Since 2003, XenneX has been commercializing GeneCards worldwide. Its customers include biotechnology, pharmaceutical and other life sciences companies, as well as organizations dealing with biotechnology intellectual property.

Through the merger, XenneX stockholders received 1,362,589 shares of LifeMap Sciences common stock, which represents approximately 13% of the LifeMap Sciences common stock now outstanding. XenneX shareholders also received 448,431 BioTime common shares as part of the transaction.

The need for the LifeMap database is a reflection of the growth of the field of regenerative medicine, said Michael D. West, Ph.D., BioTimes Chief Executive Officer. And the pace of this research is currently exponential, not linear. As a result, the scientific community today is very dependent on such relational databases. The LifeMap team is dedicated to building a quality resource in order to speed stem cell-based therapies to the clinic.

David Warshawsky, Ph.D., LifeMap Sciences Chief Executive Officer, who also founded XenneX, Inc. in 2003, stated By marketing GeneCards and PanDaTox, and the newly licensed MalaCards human disease database, alongside its LifeMap stem cell database and discovery platform, LifeMap Sciences will be the leading source of online database research tools for genetic, biological, and stem cell research and development. We are confident that our products will enhance research and provide life-saving cures in the future.

About LifeMap Sciences, Inc.

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StemCells, Inc. Reports Positive Interim Safety Data From Spinal Cord Injury Trial

NEWARK, Calif., May 17, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- StemCells, Inc. (Nasdaq:STEM - News) today announced completion of the first planned interim safety review of the Company's Phase I/II spinal cord injury clinical trial, which indicated that the surgery, immunosuppression and the cell transplants have been well-tolerated. The trial, which is designed to evaluate the safety and preliminary efficacy of the Company's proprietary HuCNS-SC(R) cells (purified human neural stem cells), represents the first time that neural stem cells have been transplanted as a potential therapeutic agent for spinal cord injury. A summary of the data will be presented by Armin Curt, M.D., principal investigator for the clinical trial, at the Interdependence 2012 Global SCI Conference, which is being held in Vancouver, British Columbia, from May 15 to 17, 2012.

The interim data is from the first cohort of patients, all of whom suffered a complete spinal cord injury in which there is no neurological function below the level of the injury. All patients enrolled were transplanted with a dose of 20 million cells at the site of injury in the thoracic spinal cord. There were no abnormal clinical, electrophysiological or radiological responses to the cells, and all the patients were neurologically stable through the first four months following transplantation of the cells. Changes in sensitivity to touch were observed in two of the patients. The data from multiple evaluations of the patients during this four month period have been reviewed by an independent Data Safety Monitoring Committee, which has recommended that the study advance to enrollment of patients with incomplete neurological injury. Enrollment is now underway and is open to patients in Europe, the United States and Canada with incomplete spinal cord injury. The trial, which is being conducted at Balgrist University Hospital, Zurich, Switzerland, is the only ongoing clinical trial evaluating neural stem cell transplantation in spinal cord injury.

"We are very encouraged by the interim safety outcomes for the first cohort," said Dr. Curt, who is Professor and Chairman of the Spinal Cord Injury Center at the University of Zurich, and Medical Director of the Paraplegic Center at Balgrist University Hospital. "The patients in the trial are being closely monitored and undergo frequent clinical examinations, radiological assessments by MRI and sophisticated electrophysiology testing of spinal cord function. The comprehensive battery of tests provides important safety data and is very reassuring as we progress to the next stage of the trial."

The Interdependence 2012 Global SCI Conference is intended to bring together international healthcare and research facilities to showcase their work through presentations, workshops and exhibits and to discuss how to advance research, implement new best practices and shape the next generation of spinal cord injury research. Interdependence 2012 is jointly organized by the Rick Hansen Institute, a Canadian not-for-profit organization committed to accelerating the translation of discoveries and best practices into improved treatments for people with spinal cord injuries, and the Rick Hansen Foundation.

About the Spinal Cord Injury Clinical Trial

The Phase I/II clinical trial of StemCells, Inc.'s HuCNS-SC(R) purified human adult neural stem cells is designed to assess both safety and preliminary efficacy. Twelve patients with thoracic (chest-level) neurological injuries at the T2-T11 level are planned for enrollment. The Company has dosed the first three patients all of whom have injuries classified as AIS A, in which there is no neurological function below the injury level. The second and third cohorts will be patients classified as AIS B and AIS C, those with less severe injury, in which there is some preservation of sensory or motor function. The injuries are classified according to the American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale (AIS). In addition to assessing safety, the trial will assess preliminary efficacy based on defined clinical endpoints, such as changes in sensation, motor and bowel/bladder function.

All patients will receive HuCNS-SC cells through direct transplantation into the spinal cord and will be temporarily immunosuppressed. Patients will be evaluated regularly in the post-transplant period in order to monitor and assess the safety of the HuCNS-SC cells, the surgery and the immunosuppression, as well as to measure any recovery of neurological function below the injury site. The Company intends to follow the effects of this therapy long-term, and a separate four-year observational study will be initiated at the conclusion of this trial.

The trial is being conducted at Balgrist University Hospital, University of Zurich, a world leading medical center for spinal cord injury and rehabilitation, and is open for enrollment to patients in Europe, Canada and the United States. If you believe you may qualify and are interested in participating in the study, please contact the study nurse either by phone at +41 44 386 39 01 or by email at stemcells.pz@balgrist.ch.

Additional information about the Company's spinal cord injury program can be found on the StemCells, Inc. website at http://www.stemcellsinc.com/Therapeutic-Programs/Clinical-Trials.htm and at http://www.stemcellsinc.com/Therapeutic-Programs/Spinal-Cord-Injury.htm, including video interviews with Company executives and independent collaborators.

About Balgrist University Hospital

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Cardio3 BioSciences Has Been Selected to Present C3BS-CQR-1 Trial Data in Late Breaking Clinical Trial Session at …

MONT-SAINT-GUIBERT, Belgium, May 18, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

The Belgian biotechnology company, Cardio3 BioSciences (C3BS), a leader in the discovery and development of regenerative and protective therapies for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases, today announces that the final results of its Phase II clinical trial of C3BS-CQR-1 is will be presented at the late breaking clinical trial session at the European Society of Cardiology 2012 Heart Failure Congress in Belgrade, Serbia taking place on May 19-22.

Andr Terzic, M.D., Ph.D, Director at Center of Regenerative Medicine, Mayo Clinic, the co-lead investigator on the trial, will present new final follow up data on the Company's stem cell therapy for heart failure, C3BS-CQR-1, which is based on "Cardiopoiesis" proprietary technology. The presentation will be held on Sunday, May 20th in Belgrade, Serbia.

Dr. Christian Homsy, CEO of Cardio3 BioSciences, said: "Being selected to present the final follow-up data in the late breaking clinical trial session at this prestigious cardiology congress highlights the quality of our technology and reiterates our belief in C3BS-CQR-1 as a potential treatment for patients with heart failure, a condition with a significant unmet medical need. We look forward to advancing the product into Phase III."

About Cardio3 BioSciences

Cardio3 BioSciences is a Belgian leading biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of regenerative and protective therapies for the treatment of cardiac diseases. The company was founded in 2007 and is based in the Walloon region of Belgium. Cardio3 BioSciences leverages research collaborations in the US and in Europe with Mayo Clinic and the Cardiovascular Center Aalst, Belgium.

The Company's lead product candidate C3BS-CQR-1 is an innovative pharmaceutical product consisting of autologous cardiac progenitor stem cells. C3BS-CQR-1 is based on ground breaking research conducted at Mayo Clinic that allowed discovery of cardiopoiesis, a process to mimic in adult stem cells the natural signals triggered in the early stages of life during the cardiac tissue development. Cardio3 BioSciences has also developed C-Cath, the next-generation injection catheter with superior efficiency of delivery of bio therapeutic agents into the myocardium.

C3BS-CQR-1, C-Cure, C-Cath, Cardio3 BioSciences and the Cardio3 BioSciences and C-Cath logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cardio3 BioSciences SA, in Belgium, other countries, or both. Mayo Clinic holds equity in Cardio3 BioSciences as a result of intellectual property licensed to the company. In addition to historical facts or statements of current condition, this press release contains forward-looking statements, which reflect our current expectations and projections about future events, and involve certain known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and assumptions could adversely affect the outcome and financial effects of the plans and events described herein. These forward-looking statements are further qualified by important factors, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements, including timely submission and approval of anticipated regulatory filings; the successful initiation and completion of required Phase III studies; additional clinical results validating the use of adult autologous stem cells to treat heart failure; satisfaction of regulatory and other requirements; and actions of regulatory bodies and other governmental authorities. As a result, of these factors investors and prospective investors are cautioned not to rely on any forward-looking statements. We disclaim any intention or obligation to update or review any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

For more information contact:

Cardio3 BioSciences: http://www.c3bs.com Dr Christian Homsy, CEOTel : +32-10-39-41-00 Anne Portzenheim, Communication Manager aportzenheim@c3bs.com

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Multipotent Stromal Stem Cells from Normally Discarded Human Placental Tissue Demonstrate High Therapeutic Potential

Newswise May 17, 2012 - Oakland, Calif. Scientists at Childrens Hospital Oakland Research Institute (CHORI) led by Vladimir Serikov, MD, PhD, and Frans Kuypers, PhD, report in the current Epub issue of Stem Cells Translational Medicine (1) that placental stem cells with important therapeutic properties can be harvested in large quantities from the fetal side of human term placentas (called the chorion). The chorion is a part of the afterbirth and is normally discarded after delivery, but it contains stem cells of fetal origin that appear to be pluripotent -- i.e., they can differentiate into different types of human cells, such as lung, liver, or brain cells. Since these functional placental stem cells can be isolated from either fresh or frozen term human placentas, this implies that if each individuals placenta is stored at birth instead of thrown away, these cells can be harvested in the future if therapeutic need arises. This potential represents a major breakthrough in the stem cell field.

In previous work, Drs. Serikov and Kuypers reported a novel technology to harvest blood-forming stem cells from the placenta to augment cord blood cells (2). These cells are siblings of the cord blood derived stem cells. Cord blood stem cells, unlike embryonic stem cells, have been used for many hundreds of successful bone marrow transplants. These transplants are mainly performed in children, as the amount of cells that can be harvested from cord blood is usually not sufficient for a successful transplant in adults. Adding placental-derived stem cells to the cord blood stem cells could make successful adult bone marrow transplants routinely possible.

The current report (1) demonstrates that placental stem cells have much broader therapeutic potential than bone-marrow transplants, because they are pluripotent i.e. able to differentiate into many different cell types -- and they also generate growth factors that help in tissue repair. These cells are shown to integrate into different tissues when transplanted into mice, but like cord blood stem cells, and in contrast to embryonic pluripotent stem cells, they do not form tumor-like structures in mice.

Placental-derived stem cells are often viewed as adult stem cells in contrast to embryonic stem cells, which are the dominant focus in the stem cell research field. However, this report shows that these fetal stem cells can be harvested in large numbers, and without the ethical concerns attached to the use of embryonic stem cells. These stem cells may thus be a more practical source for regenerative medicine, particularly since, if placentas are routinely saved instead of thrown away, each individual will be able to draw on their own fetal stem cells if future therapeutic needs arise.

Placental stem cells are only 9 months old, and in contrast to adult stem cells, do not need to be reprogrammed to become pluripotent. Placental-derived stem cells have characteristics of young and vigorous cells, including young mitochondria. Future research will be aimed to bring this to the clinic and to test their efficacy in translational therapeutic applications.

Childrens Hospital Oakland Research Institute (CHORI), is known internationally for state-of-the-art basic and clinical research and translating it into interventions for treating and preventing human diseases. CHORI has 300 members of its investigative staff, a budget of about $50 million, and is ranked among the nations top 10 research centers in National Institutes of Health funding to childrens hospitals. For more information, go to http://www.childrenshospitaloakland.org and http://www.chori.org.

References 1. Nazarov I, Lee J, Soupene E, Etemad S, Knapik D, Green W, Bashkirova E, Fang X, Matthay MA, Kuypers FA, Serikov VB. Multipotent Stromal Stem Cells from Human Placenta Demonstrate High Therapeutic Potential. Stem Cells Translational Medicine :2012;2011:2000 2000 http://www.StemCellsTM.com : Link to Abstract: http://stemcellstm.alphamedpress.org/content/early/2012/05/08/sctm.2011-0021.abstract, 2012. To appear in the June 2012 print issue. 2. Serikov V, Hounshell C, Larkin S, Green W, Ikeda H, Walters MC, Kuypers FA. Human Term Placenta as a Source of Hematopoietic Cells. Exp Biol Med (Maywood) 234:813-823, 2009.

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Multipotent Stromal Stem Cells from Normally Discarded Human Placental Tissue Demonstrate High Therapeutic Potential