Global induced pluripotent stem cells market is expected to grow with a CAGR of 8.6% over the forecast period from 2019-2025 – GlobeNewswire

New York, March 13, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Market: Global Industry Analysis, Trends, Market Size, and Forecasts up to 2025" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p05874276/?utm_source=GNW 6% over the forecast period from 2019-2025. The study on induced pluripotent stem cells market covers the analysis of the leading geographies such as North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and RoW for the period of 2017 to 2025.

The report on induced pluripotent stem cells market is a comprehensive study and presentation of drivers, restraints, opportunities, demand factors, market size, forecasts, and trends in the global induced pluripotent stem cells market over the period of 2017 to 2025. Moreover, the report is a collective presentation of primary and secondary research findings.

Porters five forces model in the report provides insights into the competitive rivalry, supplier and buyer positions in the market and opportunities for the new entrants in the global induced pluripotent stem cells market over the period of 2017 to 2025. Further, IGR- Growth Matrix gave in the report brings an insight into the investment areas that existing or new market players can consider.

Report Findings1) Drivers Increased government fundings and rising industry focus on the development of novel therapies Rising interest in stem cell therapy2) Restraints High the cost associated with storage3) Opportunities Growing applications of iPS cells in several biopharmaceutical applications provides extensive potential to the key players in the market

Research Methodology

A) Primary ResearchOur primary research involves extensive interviews and analysis of the opinions provided by the primary respondents. The primary research starts with identifying and approaching the primary respondents, the primary respondents are approached include1. Key Opinion Leaders associated with Infinium Global Research2. Internal and External subject matter experts3. Professionals and participants from the industry

Our primary research respondents typically include1. Executives working with leading companies in the market under review2. Product/brand/marketing managers3. CXO level executives4. Regional/zonal/ country managers5. Vice President level executives.

B) Secondary ResearchSecondary research involves extensive exploring through the secondary sources of information available in both the public domain and paid sources. At Infinium Global Research, each research study is based on over 500 hours of secondary research accompanied by primary research. The information obtained through the secondary sources is validated through the crosscheck on various data sources.

The secondary sources of the data typically include1. Company reports and publications2. Government/institutional publications3. Trade and associations journals4. Databases such as WTO, OECD, World Bank, and among others.5. Websites and publications by research agencies

Segment CoveredThe global induced pluripotent stem cells market is segmented on the basis of derived cell type, application, and end user.

The Global Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Market by Derived Cell Type Fibroblasts Amniotic Cells Hepatocytes Keratinocytes Others

The Global Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Market by Application Drug Development Regenerative Medicine Toxicity Testing Academic Research

The Global Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Market by End User Research Organizations Hospitals Biopharma Industries

Company Profiles Astellas Pharma Inc. Fate Therapeutics Inc. FUJIFILM Holdings Corporation Evotec SE Japan Tissue Engineering Co., Ltd ViaCyte, Inc. Vericel Corporation Bristol-Myers Squibb Company Aastrom Biosciences, Inc. Acelity Holdings, Inc.

What does this report deliver?1. Comprehensive analysis of the global as well as regional markets of the induced pluripotent stem cells market.2. Complete coverage of all the segments in the induced pluripotent stem cells market to analyze the trends, developments in the global market and forecast of market size up to 2025.3. Comprehensive analysis of the companies operating in the global induced pluripotent stem cells market. The company profile includes analysis of product portfolio, revenue, SWOT analysis and latest developments of the company.4. IGR- Growth Matrix presents an analysis of the product segments and geographies that market players should focus to invest, consolidate, expand and/or diversify.Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05874276/?utm_source=GNW

About ReportlinkerReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place.

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Global induced pluripotent stem cells market is expected to grow with a CAGR of 8.6% over the forecast period from 2019-2025 - GlobeNewswire

‘I’m aware I could die, but you can’t live in fear’: Living with cancer amid coronavirus – The Age

Ms Chapman's immune system has been severely suppressed since she started treatment for myeloma, a type of blood cancer, 10 years ago.

Coronavirus has spread to at least 200 cases and three deaths in Australia, the country bracing for the full impact of what the World Health Organisation on Friday declared a pandemic.

Whatever protections wary Australians have taken up against coronavirus in the last month, Ms Chapman has been doing since 2010 when she was told she had three to five years to live.

Now, while she isn't letting fear rule her life, her usual precautions are even more critical.

About 110,000 people in Australia currently live with blood cancers or blood-related disorders such as leukemia, myeloma and lymphoma, with 41 new cases diagnosed every day.

Blood cancers in particular suppress the immune system, while chemotherapy and medication for any cancer heighten the danger of viruses.

Ms Chapman, an author, has to pick the events she attends carefully and be aware at all times - but doesn't let fear rule her life.Credit:Luis Enrique Ascui

Myeloma patients never fully recover; while in remission they know the cancer, which weakens your bones and causes extreme fatigue, could return at any time.

"Our patients are always susceptible it's just whether it's high risk or ultra high risk," said Steve Roach, chief executive of Myeloma Australia.

The average age of myeloma onset is 65, placing many patients in a double-risk group.

Ms Chapman, 64, takes a taxi or drives everywhere at the moment. She's avoiding shopping centres and restaurants that are too busy.

She had decided to skip the Melbourne Comedy Festival, which normally brings her great joy, even before it was cancelled. If she goes to the cinema, she'll sit in an aisle seat at the back for a "speedy exit if I hear coughing or spluttering".

Ms Chapman, an author, takes 11 medications every day and has stocked up on supply for the next few weeks - but she still planned to attend a fun run on Sunday, until it was cancelled due to coronavirus fears.

"I'm not pretending these things aren't happening. I'm aware if I catch coronavirus I could be very sick and die from it. But you can't live your life in fear," she said.

"I could stay home, not go out, just go to my appointments. But that's not living either. I'm just being as cautious as I can. That might be really silly, but I'm inclined to just get on with things."

Ms Chapman had stem cell treatment soon after her diagnosis intense chemotherapy that tries to blast as much of the cancer out of your body as possible.

"If that was now, I would be incredibly vulnerable. You actually feel that you're dying, the lethargy is incredible. I would not be going out at all," she said.

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Research on coronavirus' impact on cancer patients is limited, however one study from China found that of 18 coronavirus cases with a history of cancer, almost half had a higher risk of requiring ventilation or of death.

Professor Simon Harrison from the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre says his current advice to cancer patients, along with good hygiene and avoiding close contact with others in closed spaces, is to assess the risk in every scenario.

"What are the risks? How important is it to you? As with any virus, it needs a community response. We should all ask: if I have an infection, can I stay home for the benefit of others?" Professor Harrison said.

The social impact is unavoidable: Myeloma Australia runs 52 support groups for patients that will now run online for the foreseeable future.

"The challenge for us now is how do we keep the community engaged with each other and feeling supported," Mr Roach said.

"A big thing for us is the bonds that are created in our groups. This coronavirus situation is only going to isolate people even more."

Cancer Council Australia's information and support line is available on 13 11 20.

Michael is a reporter for The Age.

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'I'm aware I could die, but you can't live in fear': Living with cancer amid coronavirus - The Age

Toxicity minimal with novel transplantation approach for transfusion-dependent thalassemia – Healio

ORLANDO Nonmyeloablative conditioning in combination with post-transplant cyclophosphamide and thiotepa appeared feasible for patients with severe transfusion-dependent thalassemia undergoing bone marrow transplantation, according to results of a phase 1 study presented at TCT | Transplantation & Cellular Therapy Meetings.

Researchers noted the need for a phase 2 study to identify the optimal regimen to balance improved thalassemia-free survival with the least toxicity.

We hypothesized that post-transplant cyclophosphamide would overcome the engraftment barrier, reduce rejection and improve transplant and thalassemia-related outcomes for patients with different platforms, Dilan A. Patel, MD, clinical fellow in the hematology/oncology division at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, told Healio. The most favorable thing we found was minimal acute and chronic graft-versus-host disease, no cases of extensive chronic or grade 3 to grade 4 acute GVHD, and minimal transplant-related toxicities in terms of infectious complications.

Previous studies have shown that post-transplant cyclophosphamide allows for allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation across the HLA barrier. However, allogeneic HSCT can be performed only for some patients with severe transfusion-dependent thalassemia because of limited donor availability, graft rejection and regimen-related toxicities.

Allogeneic HSCT can be performed only for some patients with severe transfusion-dependent thalassemia because of limited donor availability, graft rejection and regimen-related toxicities.

Source: Adobe.

Patel and colleagues analyzed nine patients with severe transfusion-dependent thalassemia who received a common conditioning regimen of anti-thymocyte globulin dosed at 4.5 mg/kg, fludarabine at 150/m2, cyclophosphamide at 29 mg/kg, thiotepa at 10 mg/kg 7 days before transplant, and total body irradiation at 200 cGy.

Additionally, researchers administered GVHD prophylaxis consisting of cyclophosphamide at 50 mg/kg on days 3 and 4 after transplant, mycophenolate mofetil and sirolimus.

To improve engraftment rates, patients underwent preconditioning with hydroxyurea at 30 mg/kg for 60 days.

Two patients received transplants from matched related donors, whereas four received them from haploidentical donors and three received them from matched unrelated donors.

Median follow-up was 371 days.

Results showed one case of graft failure at day 32 after transplantation in the haploidentical group. The other eight patients (89%) successfully engrafted.

Researchers observed two cases each of mild gut and skin acute GVHD, and one case each of limited gut and skin chronic GVHD.

All patients remained alive at the time of reporting, with a thalassemia-free survival rate of 100% for the matched related and matched unrelated donor groups. No statistical differences existed between groups according to neutrophil or platelet engraftment, age, total nucleated cell dose or CD34-positive cell dose.

All patients remained transfusion independent, and none who underwent engraftment needed long-term immunosuppression therapy.

The only way to know if these results apply to more patients is by doing a larger phase 2 study, Patel said. In our cohort, we have pediatric and young adult patients, but we also need to know if this applies to older adults, as well. Gene therapy is being used for thalassemia right now, but on a larger scale I think transplant is the best overall option. by John DeRosier

Reference:

Patel DA, et al. Abstract 329. Presented at: TCT | Transplantation & Cellular Therapy Meetings; Feb. 19-23, 2020; Orlando.

Disclosures:

Patel reports no relevant financial disclosures. Please see the abstract for all other authors relevant financial disclosures.

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Toxicity minimal with novel transplantation approach for transfusion-dependent thalassemia - Healio

Hatteras Island Cancer Foundation Celebrates 20 Years with Upcoming Annual Gala – Island Free Press

Laney Howell

The story of the Hatteras Island Cancer Foundation started 20 years ago with a relative newcomer to the island who was amazed by the generosity and support of her new hometown community.

Laney Howell, who was born and raised in Scotland Neck, N.C., moved to Hatteras village in 1996, and was diagnosed with breast cancer shortly after her arrival. After undergoing surgery in 1997, the next 4.5 years of her life entailed an exhausting regimen of chemotherapy, radiation, and stem cell replacement therapy, and multiple long drives to reach specialized medical facilities off the island.

But Laney said at the time that she was surprised and thrilled that her new friends on Hatteras Island did everything possible to make her life more comfortable. Her Hatteras community continually pitched in to bring her meals, clean her house, care for her family, and drive her to medical appointments in Elizabeth City and Norfolk.

This sparked an idea to pay the communitys kindness forward, and reach more island cancer survivors in need, and not long after, the Hatteras Island Cancer Foundation (HICF) was born.

Island Free Press Co-Founder Irene Nolan was one of ten original locals who agreed to serve on the initial HICF board, and she wrote about the newly launched group as Editor of the now defunct Island Breeze in February of 2001. At this point just a couple months into the endeavor the all-volunteer group already had a board, officers, by-laws, and was ready to start raising money.

And the handful of folks involved in the HICFs first few months already saw the prospect of things to come.

The group has the potential to make a major contribution to the lives of Hatteras cancer patients and their families, Irene wrote in her 2001 article. And she was right.

Now, twenty years later, the organization has more than met their primary goal to raise funds and offer financial support for cancer patients to help them pay for medical bills, travel expenses for themselves and their care givers, and other costs that arent reimbursed by insurance.

To date, the Hatteras Island Cancer Foundation has assisted over 189 islanders with cancer and their families, with grants in excess of $945,000, and the enthusiasm and fundraising efforts have never slowed down in the past 20 years

Residents and visitors familiar with the island community encounter HICF-sponsored initiatives throughout the year. HICF sponsors the annual chowder cook-off at Day at the Docks in September, hosts a 5K race in October, and publishes a tempting cookbook with local recipes plucked from generations of local families.

But one of the cornerstone events that has been ingrained in the HICF since it was founded is the annual HICF Gala in April, and this years event which proudly highlights this 20-year benchmark promises to be bigger and better than ever.

The Hatteras Island Cancer Foundations very first fundraiser was the annual dance, which took place in in March, 2001, and featured live music from the Embers. The $50 tickets for the gala sold out quickly, and the event was such a success that it solidified the groups prominence on the island, and was a recurring fundraiser in the years that followed.

2020 marks the 20th anniversary of the gala, and the events popularity hasnt dwindled in the last two decades.

For this years gala, guests will be treated to live music from the band Trainwreck, heavy hor doeuvres from acclaimed local chef Dee Callahan, a raffle with a basket of gift certificates from area restaurants, and a champagne toast at 7:30 p.m. to celebrate 20 years of hard and dedicated work. Island Hopper will also be providing complimentary taxi service for attendees who want to indulge, and the gala will once again take place at the Hatteras Village Civic Center the hometown of HIFC, and the village where the organization was born.

But the event will also feature a tribute to honor founder Laney Howell, the original HICF board, and everyone who has served since the HICF was founded in November, 2000.

With hundreds of supporters over the year, the 2020 gala is particularly special, simply because it marks a time to look back and give thanks to everyone in the community who has made a contribution towards making the lives of their fellow islanders just a little bit easier.

Sadly, Laney had a recurrence of her cancer shortly after the HICF was founded, and she passed away on July 5, 2001, surrounded by her family and friends, at the age of 48.

But with the success of the first fundraising dance, Laney and her friends saw a spark of what their new group could accomplish, and that spark has certainly ignited into one of the most dedicated and recognized non-profit organizations on the island.

The legacy of Laney and the original boards dream definitively lives on. And this years gala is an opportunity to take stock, give gratitude, and look ahead to many more years of helping Hatteras Islands cancer survivors in need.

Cant make the dance but would still like to donate? Click here.

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Hatteras Island Cancer Foundation Celebrates 20 Years with Upcoming Annual Gala - Island Free Press

New drugs are costly and unmet need is growing – The Economist

Mar 12th 2020

BEING ABLE to see all the details of the genome at once necessarily makes medicine personal. It can also make it precise. Examining illness molecule by molecule allows pharmaceutical researchers to understand the pathways through which cells act according to the dictates of genes and environment, thus seeing deep into the mechanisms by which diseases cause harm, and finding new workings to target. The flip side of this deeper understanding is that precision brings complexity. This is seen most clearly in cancer. Once, cancers were identified by cell and tissue type. Now they are increasingly distinguished by their specific genotype that reveals which of the panoply of genes that can make a cell cancerous have gone wrong in this one. As drugs targeted against those different mutations have multiplied, so have the options for oncologists to combine them to fit their patients needs.

Cancer treatment has been the most obvious beneficiary of the genomic revolution but other diseases, including many in neurology, are set to benefit, too. Some scientists now think there are five different types of diabetes rather than two. There is an active debate about whether Parkinsons is one disease that varies a lot, or four. Understanding this molecular variation is vital when developing treatments. A drug that works well on one subtype of a disease might fail in a trial that includes patients with another subtype against which it does not work at all.

Thus how a doctor treats a disease depends increasingly on which version of the disease the patient has. The Personalised Medicine Coalition, a non-profit advocacy group, examines new drugs approved in America to see whether they require such insights in order to be used. In 2014, it found that so-called personalised medicines made up 21% of the drugs newly approved for use by Americas Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In 2018 the proportion was twice that.

Two of those cited were particularly interesting: Vitrakvi (larotrectinib), developed by Loxo Oncology, a biotech firm, and Onpattro (patisiran), developed by Alnylam Pharmaceuticals. Vitrakvi is the first to be approved from the start as tumour agnostic: it can be used against any cancer that displays the mutant protein it targets. Onpattro, which is used to treat peripheral-nerve damage, is the first of a new class of drugssmall interfering RNAs, or siRNAsto be approved. Like antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs), siRNAs are little stretches of nucleic acid that stop proteins from being made, though they use a different mechanism.

Again like ASOs, siRNAs allow you to target aspects of a disease that are beyond the reach of customary drugs. Until recently, drugs were either small molecules made with industrial chemistry or bigger ones made with biologynormally with genetically engineered cells. If they had any high level of specificity, it was against the actions of a particular protein, or class of proteins. Like other new techniques, including gene therapies and anti-sense drugs, siRNAs allow the problem to be tackled further upstream, before there is any protein to cause a problem.

Take the drugs that target the liver enzyme PCSK9. This has a role in maintaining levels of bad cholesterol in the blood; it is the protein that was discovered through studies of families in which congenitally high cholesterol levels led to lots of heart attacks. The first generation of such drugs were antibodies that stuck to the enzyme and stopped it working. However, the Medicines Company, a biotech firm recently acquired by Novartis, won approval last year for an siRNA called inclisiran that interferes with the expression of the gene PCSK9thus stopping the pesky protein from being made in the first place. Inclisiran needs to be injected only twice a year, rather than once a month, as antibodies do.

New biological insights, new ways of analysing patients and their disease and new forms of drug are thus opening up a wide range of therapeutic possibilities. Unfortunately, that does not equate to a range of new profitable opportunities.

Thanks in part to ever better diagnosis, there are now 7,000 conditions recognised as rare diseases in America, meaning that the number of potential patients is less than 200,000. More than 90% of these diseases have no approved treatment. These are the diseases that personalised, precision medicine most often goes after. Nearly 60% of the personalised medicines approved by the FDA in 2018 were for rare diseases.

Zolgensma is the most expensive drug ever brought to market.

That might be fine, were the number of diseases stable. But precision in diagnosis is increasingly turning what used to be single diseases into sets of similar-looking ones brought about by distinctly different mechanisms, and thus needing different treatment. And new diseases are still being discovered. Medical progress could, in short, produce more new diseases than new drugs, increasing unmet need.

Some of it will, eventually, be met. For one thing, there are government incentives in America and Europe for the development of drugs for rare diseases. And, especially in America, drugs for rare diseases have long been able to command premium prices. Were this not the case, Novartis would not have paid $8.7bn last year to buy AveXis, a small biotech firm, thereby acquiring Zolgensma, a gene therapy for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). Most people with SMA lack a working copy of a gene, SMN1, which the nerve cells that control the bodys muscles need to survive. Zolgensma uses an empty virus-like particle that recognises nerve cells to deliver working copies of the gene to where it is needed. Priced at $2.1m per patient, it is the most expensive drug ever brought to market. That dubious accolade might not last long. BioMarin, another biotech firm, is considering charging as much as $3m for a forthcoming gene therapy for haemophilia.

Drug firms say such treatments are economically worthwhile over the lifetime of the patient. Four-fifths of children with the worst form of SMA die before they are four. If, as is hoped, Zolgensma is a lasting cure, then its high cost should be set against a half-century or more of life. About 200 patients had been treated in America by the end of 2019.

But if some treatments for rare diseases may turn a profit, not all will. There are some 6,000 children with SMA in America. There are fewer than ten with Jansens disease. When Dr Nizar asked companies to help develop a treatment for it, she says she was told your disease is not impactful. She wrote down the negative responses to motivate herself: Every day I need to remind myself that this is bullshit.

A world in which markets shrink, drug development gets costlier and new unmet needs are ceaselessly discovered is a long way from the utopian future envisaged by the governments and charities that paid for the sequencing of all those genomes and the establishment of the worlds biobanks. As Peter Bach, director of the Centre for Health Policy and Outcomes, an academic centre in New York, puts it with a degree of understatement: if the world needs to spend as much to develop a drug for 2,000 people as it used to spend developing one for 100,000, the population-level returns from medical research are sharply diminishing.

And it is not as if the costs of drug development have been constant. They have gone up. What Jack Scannell, a consultant and former pharmaceutical analyst at UBS, a bank, has dubbed Erooms lawEroom being Moore, backwardsshows the number of drugs developed for a given amount of R&D spending has fallen inexorably, even as the amount of biological research skyrocketed. Each generation assumes that advances in science will make drugs easier to discover; each generation duly advances science; each generation learns it was wrong.

For evidence, look at the way the arrival of genomics in the 1990s lowered productivity in drug discovery. A paper in Nature Reviews Drug Discovery by Sarah Duggers from Columbia University and colleagues argues that it brought a wealth of new leads that were difficult to prioritise. Spending rose to accommodate this boom; attrition rates for drugs in development subsequently rose because the candidates were not, in general, all that good.

Today, enthused by their big-science experience with the genome and enabled by new tools, biomedical researchers are working on exhaustive studies of all sorts of other omes, including proteomesall the proteins in a cell or body; microbiomesthe non-pathogenic bacteria living in the mouth, gut, skin and such; metabolomessnapshots of all the small molecules being built up and broken down in the body; and connectomes, which list all the links in a nervous system. The patterns they find will doubtless produce new discoveries. But they will not necessarily, in the short term, produce the sort of clear mechanistic understanding which helps create great new drugs. As Dr Scannell puts it: We have treated the diseases with good experimental models. Whats left are diseases where experiments dont replicate people. Data alone canot solve the problem.

Daphne Koller, boss of Insitro, a biotech company based in San Francisco, shares Dr Scannells scepticism about the way drug discovery has been done. A lot of candidate drugs fail, she says, because they aim for targets that are not actually relevant to the biology of the condition involved. Instead researchers make decisions based on accepted rules of thumb, gut instincts or a ridiculous mouse model that has nothing to do with what is actually going on in the relevant human diseaseeven if it makes a mouse look poorly in a similar sort of way.

But she also thinks that is changing. Among the things precision biology has improved over the past five to 10 years have been the scientists own tools. Gene-editing technologies allow genes to be changed in various ways, including letter by letter; single-cell analysis allows the results to be looked at as they unfold. These edited cells may be much more predictive of the effects of drugs than previous surrogates. Organoidsself-organised, three-dimensional tissue cultures grown from human stem cellsoffer simplified but replicable versions of the brain, pancreas, lung and other parts of the body in which to model diseases and their cures.

Insitro is editing changes into stem cellswhich can grow into any other tissueand tracking the tissues they grow into. By measuring differences in the development of very well characterised cells which differ in precisely known ways the company hopes to build more accurate models of disease in living cells. All this work is automated, and carried out on such a large scale that Dr Koller anticipates collecting many petabytes of data before using machine learning to make sense of it. She hopes to create what Dr Scannell complains biology lacks and what drug designers need: predictive models of how genetic changes drive functional changes.

There are also reasons to hope that the new upstream drugsASOs, siRNAs, perhaps even some gene therapiesmight have advantages over todays therapies when it comes to small-batch manufacture. It may also prove possible to streamline much of the testing that such drugs go through. Virus-based gene-therapy vectors and antisense drugs are basically platforms from which to deliver little bits of sequence data. Within some constraints, a platform already approved for carrying one message might be fast-tracked through various safety tests when it carries another.

One more reason for optimism is that drugs developed around a known molecule that marks out a diseasea molecular markerappear to be more successful in trials. The approval process for cancer therapies aimed at the markers of specific mutations is often much shorter now than it used to be. Tagrisso (osimertinib), an incredibly specialised drug, targets a mutation known to occur only in patients already treated for lung cancer with an older drug. Being able to specify the patients who stand to benefit with this degree of accuracy allows trials to be smaller and quicker. Tagrisso was approved less than two years and nine months after the first dose was given to a patient.

With efforts to improve the validity of models of disease and validate drug targets accurately gaining ground, Dr Scannell says he is sympathetic to the proposal that, this time, scientific innovation might improve productivity. Recent years have seen hints that Erooms law is being bent, if not yet broken.

If pharmaceutical companies do not make good on the promise of these new approaches then charities are likely to step in, as they have with various ASO treatments for inherited diseases. And they will not be shackled to business models that see the purpose of medicine as making drugs. The Gates Foundation and Americas National Institutes of Health are investing $200m towards developing treatments based on rewriting genes that could be used to tackle sickle-cell disease and HIVtreatments that have to meet the proviso of being useful in poor-country clinics. Therapies in which cells are taken out of the body, treated in some way and returned might be the basis of a new sort of business, one based around the ability to make small machines that treat individuals by the bedside rather than factories which produce drugs in bulk.

There is room in all this for individuals with vision; there is also room for luck: Dr Nizar has both. Her problem lies in PTH1R, a hormone receptor; her PTH1R gene makes a form of it which is jammed in the on position. This means her cells are constantly doing what they would normally do only if told to by the relevant hormone. A few years ago she learned that a drug which might turn the mutant receptor off (or at least down a bit) had already been characterisedbut had not seemed worth developing.

The rabbit, it is said, outruns the fox because the fox is merely running for its dinner, while the rabbit is running for its life. Dr Nizars incentives outstrip those of drug companies in a similar way. By working with the FDA, the NIH and Massachusetts General Hospital, Dr Nizar helped get a grant to make enough of the drug for toxicology studies. She will take it herself, in the first human trial, in about a years time. After that, if things go well, her childrens pain may finally be eased.

This article appeared in the Technology Quarterly section of the print edition under the headline "Kill or cure?"

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New drugs are costly and unmet need is growing - The Economist

Sit, stay forever: Americans willing to pay top dollar to … – Thomson Reuters Foundation

By Barbara Goldberg

PHILADELPHIA, March 12 (Reuters) - On a follow-up visit after Sophie Cortellino's life-saving cardiac procedure, Dr. Anna Gelzer was delighted and family members were relieved to see her responding so well. Sophie agreed, her tail wagging excitedly.

As the 9-year-old boxer lay on a metal table, Gelzer tried to push up her heart rate as part of a stress test following the procedure in August - a ventricular ablation for an arrhythmia, or irregular heartbeat, the first performed on a dog in the United States.

"You want a cookie?!" Gelzer teased. "Want to go for a walk?!"

The jagged line tracing Sophie's heartbeat on a monitor spiked dramatically but she lay calm and alert, and Gelzer grinned with satisfaction.

Sophie is one of countless aging American dogs undergoing cardiac treatments, stem cell transplants, tracheal stents, pacemakers and other sophisticated, expensive procedures to prolong their lives.

Owners of the dogs, many of whom have been around long enough to watch children grow up and provide support through countless family joys and traumas, are going to great lengths to prolong their lives, paying bills of up to $3,000 for stem cell therapy for arthritis and $7,000 for cardiac procedures like Sophie's.

"Dogs are like a person, a family member," said Gelzer, cardiology professor at the University of Pennsylvania's School of Veterinary Medicine in Philadelphia.

Nearly half of the nation's 77 million pet dogs are aged 6 or older, a 15 percent increase since 1987, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association.

Larger breed dogs are considered geriatric at 6 years old, smaller breeds at 7 years old.

Aging dogs contend with many of the same illnesses as elderly humans, including heart disease, diabetes and senility. Cancer ravages canines at roughly the same rate as humans, striking nearly half of all dogs over age 10, experts say.

In Sophie's case, it was an arrhythmia, a condition that has been treated successfully in humans.

In the procedure, a catheter was snaked through blood vessels into her heart's lower chamber, which pumps oxygen-rich blood to the body, and trouble spots were cauterized. Gelzer was joined in the operation by her counterpart who handles human patients, Dr. Cory Tschabrunn, on the Philadelphia campus.

LOYAL COMPANION

Karen Cortellino, a radiologist, recalled the time nearly a decade ago when she first met Sophie, an 8-month-old puppy who had been rejected by another family. Sophie has since helped celebrate Cortellino's son's college graduation and her daughter's law school commencement, and dressed up as a member of a family wedding party.

When Cortellino's elderly mother moved into their home in Montville, New Jersey, Sophie was her sole companion after others left each morning for work or school.

"They were the best of friends. My mom died last May and Sophie was there for that," Cortellino said. "I would definitely sacrifice what I needed to in order for Sophie to have any procedure that would help her live longer - but well."

When Sophie collapsed last summer and was diagnosed with an arrhythmia, Gelzer had just won a grant for a clinical trial to test canine ventricular ablations, so this procedure was free.

The eventual cost is likely to be $5,000-$7,000, Gelzer said, which Cortellino said she would be "absolutely" willing to pay if Sophie needs another one.

Her exam completed, Gelzer gladly accepted sloppy kisses from her patient.

"There is never a doubt that what we do is meaningful," Gelzer said. "You have to enjoy working with the animals and with the owners. I like both - very much." (Reporting by Barbara Goldberg Editing by Sonya Hepinstall)

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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Sit, stay forever: Americans willing to pay top dollar to ... - Thomson Reuters Foundation

Faculty members receive funding to advance stem cell research – UBC Faculty – UBC Faculty of Medicine

By Stephanie Chow | March 12, 2020

Three Faculty of Medicine researchers Drs. Zachary Laksman, Bruce Verchere and Tim Kieffer have collectively received more than $1.6M from the Stem Cell Network (SCN) to advance their work in stem cell and regenerative medicine research.

The SCN investment, which will advance research collaborations across the country, aims to translate stem cell-based therapies from bench to bedside for the benefit of all Canadians.

Dr. Zachary Laksman, Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiology

UBC Collaborators: Dr. Glen Tibbits, Dr. Liam Brunham, Dr. Francis Lynn, Dr. Shubhayan Sanatani

Project: Pipeline Towards Stem Cell Driven Personalized Medicine for Atrial Fibrillation

Dr. Bruce Verchere, Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine

UBC Collaborators: Dr. Francis Lynn, Dr. Megan Levings, Tim Kieffer, Dr. Dina Panagiotopoulos, Dr. Brad Hoffman

Project: Genetic Manipulation of hES-derived Insulin-producing Cells to Improve Graft Outcomes

Dr. Tim Kieffer, Department of Cellular & Physiological Sciences

UBC Collaborators: Dr. James Piret, Dr. Megan Levings

Project: A Bioprinted Insulin-Producing Device for Diabetes

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Faculty members receive funding to advance stem cell research - UBC Faculty - UBC Faculty of Medicine

New approach to speed up red blood cells generation in the lab – BusinessLine

Transfusion of red blood cells (RBCs) is a life-saving treatment for numerous conditions such as severe anaemia, injury-related trauma, supportive care in cardiovascular surgery, transplant surgery, pregnancy-related complications, solid malignancies and blood-related cancers.

However, blood banks particularly in developing countries often face a severe shortage of whole blood as well as components of blood like red blood cells.

Researchers across the world are exploring possibilities to generate RBCs outside the body (in vitro) from haematopoietic stem cells (HSCs). These HSCs have the capability to give rise to the different types of cells found in the blood. Various groups have been able to produce RBCs in the laboratory from HSCs.

However, the process takes a long time - around twenty-one days. The resources required to grow cells in the laboratory over such a long duration can be very expensive for generation of RBCs on a large scale for clinical purposes.

A team of researchers led by Dr. L. S. Limaye, ex-scientist at the Department of Biotechnologys National Centre for Cell Science (NCCS) at Pune have found a way to tackle the issue.

They have found that the process can be speeded up by adding a very low concentration of a small protein molecule called `transforming growth factor 1 (TGF-1), along with a hormone called `erythropoietin (EPO), to the growth medium. They could cut down the process time by three days.

Dr. Limaye noted that several tests to assess the quality of the cells formed, and examination of many of their characteristics, including physical appearance, revealed that the RBCs formed using this procedure were normal.

The findings are worthy of further exploration. Additional investigations based on the insights gained from these studies could help assess the relevance of using this approach for blood transfusions in the future. The researchers have published a report on their work in the journal, `Stem Cell Research and Therapy.

(India Science Wire)

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New approach to speed up red blood cells generation in the lab - BusinessLine

Animal Stem Cell Therapy Market 2020: Insights, Key Strategies, Innovative Trends and Forecast Research upto 2027 – News Times

The latest research report on the Animal Stem Cell Therapy Market published by Stratagem Market Insights offers a profound awareness of the various market dynamics like trends, drivers, the challenges, and opportunities. The report further elaborates on the micro and macro-economic elements that are predicted to shape the increase of the Animal Stem Cell Therapy market throughout the forecast period (2020-2027).

This study highlights the vital indicators of Market growth which comes with a comprehensive analysis of this value chain, CAGR development, and Porters Five Forces Analysis. This data may enable readers to understand the quantitative growth parameters of this international industry that is Animal Stem Cell Therapy.

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The report also highlights opportunities and future scope in the Animal Stem Cell Therapy market at the global and regional levels. The study encompasses market attractiveness analysis, wherein the service is benchmarked based on market size, growth rate, and general Animal Stem Cell Therapy industry share.

The major manufacturers covered in this report:

Medivet Biologics LLC, VETSTEM BIOPHARMA, J-ARM, U.S. Stem Cell Inc, VetCell Therapeutics, Celavet Inc., Magellan Stem Cells, Kintaro Cells Power

Market Segmentation:

The Animal Stem Cell Therapy Market has been segregated into various crucial divisions including applications, types, and regions. Each market segment is intensively studied in the report contemplating its market acceptance, worthiness, demand, and growth prospects. The segmentation analysis will help the client to customize their marketing approach to have a better command of each segment and to identify the most prospective customer base.

Regional Insights of Animal Stem Cell Therapy Market

In terms of region, this research report covers almost all the major regions across the globe such as North America, Europe, South America, the Middle East, and Africa and the Asia Pacific. Europe and North America regions are anticipated to show an upward growth in the years to come. While Animal Stem Cell Therapy Market in Asia Pacific regions is likely to show remarkable growth during the forecasted period. Cutting edge technology and innovations are the most important traits of the North America region and thats the reason most of the time the US dominates the global markets. Animal Stem Cell Therapy Market in the South, America region is also expected to grow in the near future.

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Animal Stem Cell Therapy Market Report provides future growth drivers and the competitive landscape. This will be beneficial for buyers of the market report to gain a clear view of the important growth and subsequent market strategy. The granular information in the market will help monitor future profitability and make important decisions for growth.

Our Study Report Offers:

The reports conclusion reveals the overall scope of the Global Animal Stem Cell Therapy Market in terms of feasibility of investments in the various segments of the market, along with a descriptive passage that outlines the feasibility of new projects that might succeed in the market in the near future.

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Animal Stem Cell Therapy Market 2020: Insights, Key Strategies, Innovative Trends and Forecast Research upto 2027 - News Times

Flow cytometry market expected to reach $6.36 billion by 2027 – European Pharmaceutical Review

New research suggests the flow cytometry sector will grow at a CAGR of 8.2 percent due to increased adoption and expanding uses.

Research suggests the global flow cytometry market will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.2 percent from 2019 to 2027, with the sector expected to reach a value of $6.36 billion by the end of this period.

The report by ResearchAndMarkets suggests the growth will be driven by increased adoption of flow cytometry techniques in research and academia and the expanding use of these systems for immunology and immuno-oncology research. The report also cites the evolving pipeline of stem cell research and adoption of recombinant DNA technologies for antibody production as other drivers of the growth.

According to the research, the fastest growing technology is expected to be bead-based flow cytometry, because of its procedural advantages over the cell-based techniques (eg, ELSIE or western blot). The primary benefits are that it can detect multiple analytes with high reproducibility, stability and speed.

Reagents and consumables accounted for the largest share of the flow cytometry market in 2019 and the report suggests these will continue to drive growth, with application-specific reagents and assays being essential to the users of flow cytometry.

The report reveals that drug discovery had the largest share of the market in terms of application in 2019, with uses at multiple stages of the process particularly due to the development and implementation of multi-parameter intracellular flow cytometric analysis. The report expects growth in this application will continue, due to its ability to simplifying cell analysis procedures.

Pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies were the largest end users of flow cytometry in 2019. The report indicates the rise of chronic conditions leading to the development of new drugs is driving R&D expenditure and growth of the flow cytometry market.

North America held the largest share of the global flow cytometry market in 2019, followed by Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East & Africa. This trend is likely to continue in the forecast period, says the research.

Key players expected to continue to be influential in the market include: Agilent Technologies, Thermo Fisher Scientific and bioMerieux S.A. (France).

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Flow cytometry market expected to reach $6.36 billion by 2027 - European Pharmaceutical Review