Stem Cell Clinic

Research on Stem Cell Therapy | Liveyon Regenerative Medicine

Liveyon LLC is the exclusive worldwide distributor of a regenerative medicine product that is derived from umbilical cord. This product contains cells, stem cells and growth factors which may serve as a therapy for various degenerative diseases/disorders.

Stem cells and cell based therapies have shown tremendous promise; yet controlled studies are still needed in order to confirm its efficacy. Professional judgment and expertise is needed in using these therapies for any therapeutic use, and we urge anyone embarking on the use of stem cell therapies or any regenerative medicine product to consult the national health data bases to evaluate current information from clinical trials. The FDA websites on human tissue should also be consulted to get its current evaluation of any regenerative therapy.

Stem cells, like other medical products that are intended to treat, cure or prevent disease, generally require FDA approval before they can be marketed. FDA has not approved any stem cell-based or regenerative medicine products for use, other than cord blood-derived hematopoietic progenitor cells (blood forming stem cells) for certain indications.

http://www.fda.gov/AboutFDA/Transparency/ Basics/ucm194655.htm

844-548-3966 support@liveyon.com

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Research on Stem Cell Therapy | Liveyon Regenerative Medicine

Squeezing innovation out of the NASA Twins study: Pipetting and cell isolation in space – Phys.Org

July 11, 2017 NASA immunologist Hawley Kunz performs a microgravity evaluation of the pipetting steps necessary for terrestrial purification of cells. Credit: NASA

Just like early explorers, NASA Twins Study investigators are venturing into new territory. Conducting human omics research on twin astronauts as part of the One Year Mission that took place aboard the International Space Station is one such venture. As technology evolves so does the research. NASA is evaluating more efficient and innovative research techniques to prepare for the journey to Mars.

Innovative thinking could improve the way biological samples are processed and transported from space back to research labs on Earth for future studies. This thinking was prompted by researchers in NASA's Human Research Program (HRP) and Twins Study investigators at Johns Hopkins Medicine.

Freshly isolated samples yield better results than cells isolated from frozen samples returned to Earth from the orbiting laboratory. Pipetting fresh samples at ambient temperature and performing cell isolation on the space station also eliminates the need for expeditious transportation logistics, and allows for more frequent sampling. Once cells are isolated, the samples can be viably frozen and return on any transfer vehicle at any time for further analysis.

On an aircraft that is used as a parabolic flight analog to create short periods of simulated microgravity, Twins Study Investigators Dr. Andrew Feinberg and Lindsay Rizzardi of Johns Hopkins Medicine tested a theory that liquids could be transferred safely in microgravity using a pipettor, which is a slender, graduated measurement tube. Previously researchers thought transferring biological fluids in space could pose risks to precisely controlling the sample.

"This analog demonstrated that pipetting of open fluids is relatively simple and easily controlled and that all fluid transfer steps associated with centrifugation can be replicated in microgravity," Feinberg said. "When dealing with genetic material, research requires precise transfer of liquids among different types of tubes in order to purify DNA, RNA or protein from biological samples to perform molecular analyses."

Coinciding with the fluid transfer research was cell isolation research being conducted by NASA immunologists Brian Crucian, Clarence Sams, Hawley Kunz and NASA astronaut and molecular biologist Kate Rubins. NASA researchers tested terrestrial protocols for cell purification in microgravity using the parabolic flight analog. They found that cell isolation and purification could both be performed in microgravity. Rubins also confirmed some of these findings in space. They published their research with Feinberg and Rizzardi in the July 2016 issue of NPJ Microgravity.

Crucian said, "Laboratory procedures for isolating and purifying cells typically require sensitive gradient centrifugation, careful extraction of isolated cells, and general open pipetting of liquids for washing and transferring the isolated cells."

Being able to transfer fluids and isolate cells in space is significant for a variety of reasons. Mars is a challenging distance from Earth if diagnostics are ever needed of a crewmember. Enabling astronauts to conduct more human research independently could help diagnose an illness more quickly, possibly saving a life in a medical emergency.

As NASA prepares for its journey to Mars, the way researchers handle and processes biological samples in space could change. The protocols validated by the Johns Hopkins and NASA investigators demonstrate that standard cell isolation protocols may indeed be performed in space, something which may enable certain types of genetic, or 'omics', research onboard the space station. Molecular biology technologies such as hand-held sequencers continue to evolve pushing the boundaries of scientific research. HRP will continue to adapt its methodologies to support novel research that protects and ensures the safety of future crews on long-duration missions while opening the door for innovative opportunities.

Explore further: Study examines effects of spaceflight on immune system

More information: Lindsay F Rizzardi et al, Evaluation of techniques for performing cellular isolation and preservation during microgravity conditions, npj Microgravity (2016). DOI: 10.1038/npjmgrav.2016.25

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Squeezing innovation out of the NASA Twins study: Pipetting and cell isolation in space - Phys.Org

Method determines cell age more accurately, could help elderly patients – Medical Xpress

July 11, 2017

Sure, you know how old you are, but what about your cells? Are they the same age? Are they older, younger? Why does it matter?

Led by scientists at the Johns Hopkins University, a team of researchers is reporting progress in developing a method to accurately determine the functional age of cells, a step that could eventually help clinicians evaluate and recommend ways to delay some health effects of aging and potentially improve other treatments, including skin graft matching and predicting prospects for wound healing.

In the current issue of Nature Biomedical Engineering, lead author Jude M. Phillip, who conducted this research while completing his doctorate in chemical and biomolecular engineering at Johns Hopkins, reports success in creating a system that considers a wide array of cellular and molecular factors in one comprehensive aging study.

These results show that the biophysical qualities of cells, such as cell movements and structural features, make better measures of functional age than other factors, including cell secretions and cell energy.

The multidisciplinary team of engineers and clinicians examined dermal cells from just underneath the surface of the skin taken from both males and females between the ages of 2 to 96.

The researchers from Johns Hopkins, Yale University and the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health hoped to devise a system that through computational analysis could take the measure of various factors of cellular and molecular functions. From that information, they hoped to determine the biological age of individuals more accurately using their cells, in contrast to previous studies, which makes use of gross physiology, or examining cellular mechanisms such as DNA methylation.

"We combined some classic biomolecular hallmarks of aging, and sought to further elucidate the role of biophysical properties of aging cells, all in one study," said Phillip, now a post-doctoral fellow at Weill Cornell Medicine.

Researchers trying to understand aging have up to now focused on factors such as tissue and organ function and on molecular-level studies of genetics and of epigenetics, meaning heritable traits that are not traced to DNA. The level in between - cells - has received relatively little attention, the researchers wrote.

This research was meant to correct for that omission by considering the biophysical attributes of cells, including such factors as the cells' ability to move, maintain flexibility and structure. This focus emerges from the understanding that changes associated with aging at the physiological level - such as diminished lung capacity, grip strength and mean pressure in the arteries - "tend to be secondary to changes in the cells themselves, thus advocating the value of cell-based technologies to assess biological age," the research team wrote.

For example, older cells are more rigid and do not move as well as younger cells, which, among other consequences, most likely contributes to the slower wound healing commonly seen in older people, said Denis Wirtz, the senior author, Johns Hopkins' vice provost for research and the Theophilus H. Smoot Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the Whiting School of Engineering. Wirtz and Phillip conducted their research in the Johns Hopkins Institute for NanoBioTechnology.

From the analysis, they were able to stratify individuals' samples into three groups: those whose cells roughly reflected their chronological age, those whose cells were functionally older, and those whose cells were functionally younger. The results also showed that the so-called biophysical factors of cells determined a more accurate measure of age than biomolecular factors such as cell secretions, cell energy and the organization of DNA.

Phillip explained that this better accuracy from the biophysical factors most likely results from the orchestration of many biomolecular factors. He compared it to the more complete picture you get looking at a forest from a distance without binoculars.

"With binoculars you can see details about the individual trees, the color and shapes of the leaves, the roughness of the bark, the type of tree, but without the binoculars you can now see the density of the trees, and whether there is a barren plot, or a group or dying trees," Phillip said. "This is something you may miss with the binoculars, unless you are looking at the correct spot."

The more accurate system could eventually enable clinicians to see aging in cells before a patient experiences age-related health decline. This in turn could allow doctors to recommend treatments or changes in life habits, such as exercise or diet changes, Wirtz said. Phillip said the work could potentially help clinicians produce more successful skin grafts by matching cell characteristics of the donor and the graft site. Other potential applications range from toxicology screening for cosmetics and topical therapeutics to predicting progression of some age-related diseases.

The researchers acknowledge that the system needs further testing with a larger cell sample, but the results are robust and encouraging. Conducted along with clinicians such as Jeremy Walston, the Raymond and Anna Lublin Professor of Geriatric Medicine, and co-director of the Biology of Healthy Aging program at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, this work promises to allow clinicians to measure a person's health in the present and the future.

"It opens the door to finally be able to track how a person is doing at the cellular level," Wirtz said. "This platform is also more than just a cellular age predictor, it has the ability to do so much more in terms of assessing an individual's cellular health," Phillip said.

Explore further: New cellular target may put the brakes on cancer's ability to spread

More information: Jude M. Phillip et al, Biophysical and biomolecular determination of cellular age in humans, Nature Biomedical Engineering (2017). DOI: 10.1038/s41551-017-0093

Most cells can divide only a limited number of times and eventually undergo permanent cell cycle arrest, a state known as cellular senescence. Cellular senescence is mediated by activation of specific cellular signaling pathways ...

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FDA Approves First Sickle Cell Drug in 20 Years – Scientific American

The FDA approved a new medicine Friday to reduce the complications associated with sickle cell disease, a rare blood disorder.

The drug, Endari, is made by privately held Emmaus Medical and is the first new treatment for sickle cell disease to secure FDA approval in almost 20 years. However, the active ingredient in EndariL-glutamineis an old chemical that can be purchased over the counter, which could complicate Emmauss ability to obtain insurance coverage.

In Emmauss pivotal clinical trial, treatment with Endari over 48 weeks reduced the frequency and length of hospital visits for sickle cell pain crises compared to placebo. Commonly reported side effects of the drug included constipation, nausea, and headache.

Sickle cell disease is a rare, inherited disorder characterized by abnormally sickle-shaped red blood cells. These malformed red blood cells clog blood vessels and cut off oxygen to the bodys tissues, leading to episodes of severe pain and organ damage.

Approximately 100,000 people in the U.S. have sickle cell disease, according to the National Institutes of Health.

While Endari focuses on reducing the complications of sickle cell disease, Bluebird Bio is developing a gene therapy to treat the diseases underlying cause and potentially cure patients. Research using the CRISPR gene-editing technology aims to accomplish the same goal.

Other companies working on new, novel drugs targeting sickle cell include Global Blood Therapeutics and Novartis.

Republished with permission fromSTAT. This articleoriginally appearedon July 7, 2017

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FDA Approves First Sickle Cell Drug in 20 Years - Scientific American

Neural stem cells steered by electric fields in rat brain – Medical Xpress

July 11, 2017 Transplants of neural stem cells might be used to treat brain injuries, but how to get them to the right location? UC Davis researcher Min Zhao and Junfeng Feng, a neurosurgeon at Ren Ji Hospital, Shanghai, showed that they can steer transplanted stem cells (green, in inset on right) to one part of a rat's brain using electrical fields. Credit: Junfeng Feng

Electric fields can be used to guide neural stem cells transplanted into the brain towards a specific location. The research, published July 11 in the journal Stem Cell Reports, opens possibilities for effectively guiding stem cells to repair brain damage.

Professor Min Zhao at the University of California, Davis School of Medicine's Institute for Regenerative Cures studies how electric fields can guide wound healing. Damaged tissues generate weak electric fields, and Zhao's research has shown how these electric fields can attract cells into wounds to heal them.

"One unmet need in regenerative medicine is how to effectively and safely mobilize and guide stem cells to migrate to lesion sites for repair," Zhao said. "Inefficient migration of those cells to lesions is a significant roadblock to developing effective clinical applications."

Dr. Junfeng Feng, a neurosurgeon at Ren Ji Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Shanghai Institute of Head Trauma, visited Zhao's lab to study how electric fields might guide stem cells implanted in the brain.

Natural neural stem cellscells that can develop into other brain tissuesare found deep in the brain, in the subventricular zone and hippocampus. To repair damage to the outer layers of the brain (the cortex), they have to migrate some distance, especially in the large human brain. Transplanted stem cells might also have to migrate some way to find an area of damage.

Stem Cells Move "Upstream"

Feng and Zhao developed a model of stem cell transplants in rats. They placed human neural stem cells in the rostral migration stream - a pathway in the rat brain that carries cells towards the olfactory bulb, which governs the animal's sense of smell. Cells move along this pathway partly carried by the flow of cerebrospinal fluid and partly guided by chemical signals.

By applying an electric field within the rat's brain, they found that they could get the transplanted stem cells to swim "upstream" against the fluid flow and natural cues and head for other locations within the brain.

The transplanted stem cells were still in their new locations weeks or months after treatment.

"Electrical mobilization and guidance of stem cells in the brain therefore provides a potential approach to facilitate stem cell therapies for brain diseases, stroke and injuries," Zhao said.

Explore further: Distant brain regions selectively recruit stem cells

More information: Jun-Feng Feng et al, Electrical Guidance of Human Stem Cells in the Rat Brain, Stem Cell Reports (2017). DOI: 10.1016/j.stemcr.2017.05.035

Journal reference: Stem Cell Reports

Provided by: UC Davis

Stem cells from bone marrow or fat improve recovery after stroke in rats, finds a study published in BioMed Central's open access journal Stem Cell Research & Therapy. Treatment with stem cells improved the amount of brain ...

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Neural stem cells steered by electric fields in rat brain - Medical Xpress

Scientists discover treatment target for pulmonary fibrosis – Medical Xpress

July 11, 2017 by Anna Williams The figure demonstrates how human pathology (top) can be digitized for precision medicine (bottom). Before, we were limited to histologic analysis of lung tissues. Now we can measure the expression of every gene and every cell within that lung and actually digitize that biology, Budinger said. Credit: Northwestern University

In new research published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine, Northwestern Medicine scientists have demonstrated that a unique population of immune cells plays a key role in the development of pulmonary fibrosis. They also showed that targeting such cells could lead to new treatments for the disease.

The study, a collaboration across multiple divisions, departments and schools at Northwestern, was led by Scott Budinger, MD, chief of Pulmonary and Critical Care in the Department of Medicine, and Harris Perlman, PhD, chief of Rheumatology in the Department of Medicine.

Pulmonary fibrosisincluding idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and scleroderma-associated pulmonary fibrosisis a fatal disease marked by scarring and hardening of lung tissue. The cause is often unknown, and there is currently no effective treatment.

Previously, it was generally accepted in the field that immune cells were unimportant to the development of pulmonary fibrosis. But data from Northwestern's extensive research program in sclerodermaan autoimmune disease closely tied to pulmonary fibrosis that results in hardening of the skinsuggested immune cells may actually play an important role.

To test that hypothesis, the team of scientists utilized next-generation sequencing technologies and novel animal models generated at Northwestern to trace immune cells throughout the progression of pulmonary fibrosis.

They also applied those tools to the analysis of tissue samples collected at Northwestern Medicine hospitals, correlating the animal model data with the patient samples. "One of the strengths of our study is that we go from bench to bedside," Perlman said.

The scientists discovered that a new sub-population of immune cells called monocyte-derived alveolar macrophages were in fact a key driver of disease development in pulmonary fibrosis. Further, the genetic deletion of this population of cells prevented fibrosis in mouse models.

"This will be transformative for the field," said first author Alexander Misharin, MD, PhD, assistant professor of Medicine in the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care. "Pulmonary fibrosis is a complex diseaseit's not driven by a single gene or cell typebut this study now demonstrates that these immune cells play a key role. This will change the current paradigm."

The findings have important implications for the development of future therapies, especially given that targeting such cells may lead to fewer adverse effects. "These cells are attractive for therapy because they don't need to be there. They aren't necessary for normal function or developmental purposes," said Perlman, also the Mabel Greene Myers Professor of Medicine.

The new methods used in the research could also spark future research in the field.

"This is a novel application of genomic technologies to understanding pulmonary fibrosis," said Budinger, also the Ernest S. Bazley Professor of Airway Diseases and a professor of Cell and Molecular Biology. "By showing that these technologies can be directly applied to patient samples, we offer the promise of incorporating them into personalized medicine approaches. It creates a resource for the research community to develop novel therapies."

The team is now actively deploying these technologies to examine lungs from patients with pulmonary fibrosis, fibrotic skins from patients with scleroderma and joints from patients with rheumatoid arthritis to identify other common immune mechanisms in fibrosis that might be targets for new therapies.

Budinger, Perlman and Misharin are also members of the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University.

In a separate finding, the scientists discovered that injury to a mouse early in life permanently altered the immune cell population in the lungs, findings that could have implications for aging research. "Severe injury early in life permanently changes you, in a way that might impact your susceptibility to disease when you get older," Budinger said.

Explore further: Vaccine improves fibrosis in mouse model of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis

More information: Alexander V. Misharin et al. Monocyte-derived alveolar macrophages drive lung fibrosis and persist in the lung over the life span, The Journal of Experimental Medicine (2017). DOI: 10.1084/jem.20162152

A Yale-led research team has identified an important enzyme that could lead to new therapies for a chronic fatal lung disease that affects hundreds of thousands in the United States each year.

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Scientists discover treatment target for pulmonary fibrosis - Medical Xpress

Researchers identify master molecule behind corneal inflammation – Medical Xpress

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Researchers identify master molecule behind corneal inflammation Medical Xpress "We wanted to know why there is still inflammation even after the virus is gone from the eye," said Deepak Shukla, the Marion Schenk Professor of Ophthalmology and professor of microbiology and immunology in the UIC College of Medicine. "We thought ... and more »

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Researchers identify master molecule behind corneal inflammation - Medical Xpress