Stem Cell Clinic

stem cell treatment for copd – Video

14-10-2012 23:59 - Angeles Health initiated the Adult Autologous Stem Cell (A-ASC) Therapy program to manage a variety of syndromes, including COPD. Like many other conditions COPD is treated using autologous adult stem cells.

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stem cell treatment for copd - Video

Beauty salon ‘offers’ stem cell therapy

With all the publicity about the miraculous effects of stem cell therapy, the Department of Health (DOH) should prepare itself for the possibility that the new procedure would be performed by unqualified, and completely clueless, people.

I passed a beauty parlor recently and saw a huge poster on its door announcing the arrival of stem cell therapy. I was instantly reminded of botched breast enhancement and nose jobs performed by salon personnel who seemed to think it was as easy to learn complicated surgical procedures as it was to train to cut hair or do manicures and pedicures.

The DOH should start warning the public not to fall for these special offers just because they are available at giveaway rates.

Modern lifestyle problem

Experts have repeatedly talked about problems brought about by modern lifestyles. Changing diets and stress are two of the best known. Dr. Jaime G. Ignacio, section chief of gastroenterology at Veterans Hospital and head of the Digestive Malignancy Council of the Philippine Society of Gastroenterology, said constipation could be one of the consequences of the combination of these two factors.

Speaking at an event hosted by Boehringer Ingelheim, maker of Dulcolax (generic name Bisacodyl), a formulation for constipation relief, Ignacio, who, as a gastroenterologist is a specialist in digestive system disorders, defined the problem as having fewer than three bowel movements in a week (normal ranges from three times a week to three times a day).

He said constipation itself was not a disease but it could sometimes be a symptom of something serious, like colorectal cancer. But he said about 95 percent of cases were acuteoccurring suddenly and lasting for only a short periodresulting from some sudden lifestyle or hormonal changes, the taking of medication, lack of exercise, etc.

Ignacio said acute was easy to treat, with products like Dulcolax to solve the problem. But, if left unattended, acute constipation could lead to a chronic or long-term condition, which was the more worrisome, and would need medical attention.

He said constipation should be treated as soon as the problem had lasted for four or more days.

Constipation is part of modern living. [Like other diseases] prevention is the key. Safe and effective treatment is available [if needed], Ignacio stressed.

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Beauty salon ‘offers’ stem cell therapy

Chinese bid to save girl's sight

Chloe Wilson, from Forrester, Edinburgh, was born with septo-optic dysplasia a rare condition which means her pituitary gland has not developed properly.

As a result, the 19-month-old's optic nerve is underdeveloped, leaving her with hormone deficiencies and very little vision.

Her parents, Kayleigh and Scott Wilson, both 22, started a campaign in April to raise 15,000 to take her to the Chinese city of Guangzhou to undergo a controversial stem-cell treatment not available in the UK.

But thanks to the efforts of many other fundraisers and donors, some of whom have never even met the family, the total raised now stands at nearly 25,000.

The total means the young family can afford far more stem- cells, vastly increasing the chance of success.

Mrs Wilson, a nursery assistant, said: "I thought we were looking at a year-and-a-half before we hit our target. Now we've gone nearly ten grand over it in less than half that time.

"We just want to thank everyone who has helped give us this chance. People have been amazing,. Their generosity will stay with us forever, and we'll make sure Chloe knows all about it when she is older."

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Chinese bid to save girl's sight

Stem cell model for hereditary disease developed

ScienceDaily (Oct. 15, 2012) A new method of using adult stem cells as a model for the hereditary condition Gaucher disease could help accelerate the discovery of new, more effective therapies for this and other conditions such as Parkinson's, according to new research from the University of Maryland School of Medicine.

Scientists at the University of Maryland School of Medicine reprogrammed stem cells to develop into cells that are genetically similar to and react to drugs in a similar way as cells from patients with Gaucher disease. The stem cells will allow the scientists to test potential new therapies in a dish, accelerating the process toward drug discovery, according to the paper published online in the journal the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) on Oct. 15.

"We have created a model for all three types of Gaucher disease, and used stem cell-based tests to evaluate the effectiveness of therapies," says senior author Ricardo Feldman, Ph.D., associate professor of microbiology and immunology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, and a research scientist at the University of Maryland Center for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine. "We are confident that this will allow us to test more drugs faster, more accurately and more safely, bringing us closer to new treatments for patients suffering from Gaucher disease. Our findings have potential to help patients with other neurodegenerative diseases as well. For example, about 10 percent of Parkinson's disease patients carry mutations in the recessive gene for Gaucher disease, making our research possibly significant for Parkinson's disease as well."

Gaucher disease is the most frequent lipid-storage disease. It affects 1 in 50,000 people in the general population. It is most common in Ashkenazi Jews, affecting 1 in 1,000 among that specific population. The disease occurs in three subtypes -- Type 1 is the mildest and most common form of the disease, causing symptoms such as enlarged livers and spleens, anemia and bone disease. Type 2 causes very serious brain abnormalities and is usually fatal before the age of two, while Type 3 affects children and adolescents.

The condition is a recessive genetic disorder, meaning that both parents must be carriers for a child to suffer from Gaucher. However, said Dr. Feldman, studies have found that people with only one copy of a mutated Gaucher gene -- those known as carriers -- are at an increased risk of developing Parkinson's disease.

"This science is a reflection of the mission of the University of Maryland School of Medicine -- to take new treatments from bench to bedside, from the laboratory to patients, as quickly as possible," says E. Albert Reece, M.D., Ph.D., M.B.A., vice president for medical affairs at the University of Maryland and John Z. and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor and dean of the University of Maryland School of Medicine. "We are excited to see where this research goes next, bringing new hope to Gaucher patients and their families."

Dr. Feldman and his colleagues used the new reprogramming technology developed by Shinja Yamanaka in Japan, who was recognized with this year's Nobel Prize for Medicine or Physiology. Scientists engineered cells taken from the skin of Gaucher patients, creating human induced pluripotent stem cells, known as hiPSC -- stem cells that are theoretically capable of forming any type of cell in the body. Scientists differentiated the cells to form white blood cells known as macrophages and neuronal cells.

A key function of macrophages in the body is to ingest and eliminate damaged or aged red blood cells. In Gaucher disease, the macrophages are unable to do so -- they can't digest a lipid present in the red blood cell membrane. The macrophages become engorged with lipid and cannot completely clear the ingested red blood cells. This results in blockage of membrane transport pathways in the macrophages lodged in the bone marrow, spleen and liver. The macrophages that the scientists created from the reprogrammed stem cells exhibited this characteristic hallmark of the macrophages taken from Gaucher patients.

To further test the stem cells, the scientists administered a recombinant enzyme that is effective in treating Gaucher patients with Type 1 disease. When the cells were treated with the enzyme, the function of the macrophages was restored -- they completely cleared the red blood cells.

"The creation of these stem cell lines is a lovely piece of stem cell research," said Curt Civin, M.D., professor of pediatrics and physiology, associate dean for research and founding director of the Center for Stem Cell Biology & Regenerative Medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. "Dr. Feldman is already using these Gaucher patient-derived macrophages to better understand the disease fundamentals and to find novel medicines for Gaucher disease treatment. A major goal of our Center for Stem Cell Biology & Regenerative Medicine is to translate our fundamental discoveries into innovative and practical clinical applications that will enhance the understanding, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of many human diseases. Clinical applications include not only transplantation of stem cells, but also the use of stem cells for drug discovery as Dr. Feldman's studies so beautifully illustrate."

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Stem cell model for hereditary disease developed

StemCells, Inc. Launches Four New Human Neural Stem Cell Kits Under SC Proven(R) Brand

NEWARK, Calif., Oct. 16, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- StemCells, Inc. (STEM) announced today the launch of four new SC Proven human neural stem cell (NSC) kits for use in neuroscience research. Each kit will contain high purity, multipotent NSCs derived from a different area of the human central nervous system (CNS), and will provide researchers with a reproducible and scalable serum-free platform with which to perform a broad range of assays. With these kits, researchers will now have the ability to compare and contrast the biological, functional and neural differentiation properties of human NSCs isolated from specific CNS regions, as well as to screen for the effects of different compounds on such cells.1,2

"These kits represent the first in a new family of human cell-centric products we are adding to the SC Proven portfolio to provide researchers with a unique set of tools to realize the promise of regenerative medicine," said Stewart Craig, Ph.D., Senior Vice President, Development and Operations at StemCells, Inc. "Stem cell research is flourishing and these kits will enable investigators to derive and characterize human neural lineage cells using published methods, or the ability to customize their own assay formats up to and including scale-up for non-commercial screening applications."

Kits containing multipotent human NSCs derived from Hindbrain (HNS-HIN-001), Cortex (HNS-COR-001), Spinal Cord (HNS-SPI-001), and Mid-forebrain (HNS-MIF-001), and RHB-A(R), StemCells Inc.'s proprietary serum-free cell culture medium, are now available. For a limited time a special discount of 20% can be obtained when placing an online order with the Discount Code JAV66.

References

1 Hook L, et al., Non-immortalized human neural stem cells as a scalable platform for cellular assays. Neurochem Int. 2011 59(3): 432-44.

2 McLaren D, et al., Automated large-scale culture and medium-throughput chemical screen for modulators of proliferation and viability of human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-derived Neuroepithelial-like Stem Cells. J Biomol Screen. Oct 4: 2012 doi:10.1177/1087057112461446.

About SC Proven Products

The SC Proven product portfolio comprises a range of products for the detection, isolation, expansion, differentiation, and characterization of a variety of different human and animal cell types. The entire SC Proven product catalog and online ordering can be found at http://www.scproven.com.

About StemCells, Inc.

StemCells, Inc. is engaged in the research, development, and commercialization of cell-based therapeutics and tools for use in stem cell-based research and drug discovery. The Company's lead therapeutic product candidate, HuCNS-SC(R) cells (purified human neural stem cells), is currently in development as a potential treatment for a broad range of central nervous system disorders, including Pelizaeus-Merzbacher disease (PMD), a fatal myelination disorder, chronic spinal cord injury, and dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD). StemCells also markets a range of stem cell research products under the SC Proven(R) brand (www.scproven.com), and offers contract cell process development and production services (cellservices@stemcellsinc.com). Further information is available at http://www.stemcellsinc.com.

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StemCells, Inc. Launches Four New Human Neural Stem Cell Kits Under SC Proven(R) Brand

Spinal Cord Injury with Residual Quadriparesis Improved After Stem Cell Treatment – Video

09-10-2012 05:40 I met with an accident in 1997.I suffered a spinal cord injury in that accident.3 months go I took stem cell therapy at these 3 months I feel I have improved a lot more than before. My legs feel loose. My back also feels free. While walking my legs used to crossover each other, that has now reduced. All the muscles of my legs were very tight before now it has reduced.Climbing up and down the stairs is also easier than earlier. I can also move my toes know. Earlier while walking my legs used to cross over each other, now that has reduced and I can walk much better. From lying down I can get up much easily and I can do it on my own now.Earlier I used to do bed rolling as an exercise which is much easier now.I get up from bed very easily now, back seems less tight and I can do the movements freely.I can roll, turn and crawl in the bed freely, than before.I can now shift forward and backward in the bed easily and on my own. Earlier while standing and walking the heel of my foot used to lift off the ground, now it touches the ground. I can balance myself on both legs now. I feel I have a good grip while walking , bearing more weight on both the legs. While climbing stairs I can lift my leg up on my own and climb. I can now stand on my own without any support. Earlier both these muscles were very tight Now they have become loose helping me Walk better Earlier I could not do this exercise at all But now I am able to lift my back easily Improvement Adductor spasticity ...

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Spinal Cord Injury with Residual Quadriparesis Improved After Stem Cell Treatment - Video