Stem Cell Clinic

ChoiceCenter’s Garrett Tanner: 1 Year after Stem Cell Treatments 2012 – Video

04-06-2012 21:49 In November 2007, gymnast Garrett Tanner had an accident while training that left him a quadriplegic. In 2010, he came to ChoiceCenter Leadership University (LV102) where he met fellow student Maynard Howe (LV100), Vice Chairman of Stemedica, a stem cell company. In May 2011, Garrett received his first stem cell treatment in Moscow. Stemedica donated the cells and ChoiceCenter students donated money for his rehabilitation therapy, transportation, food and housing. This video documents Garrett's progress as of May 2012. He will receive his second treatment later this summer.

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ChoiceCenter's Garrett Tanner: 1 Year after Stem Cell Treatments 2012 - Video

The real culprit behind hardened arteries? Stem cells, says landmark study

BERKELEY

One of the top suspects behind killer vascular diseases is the victim of mistaken identity, according to researchers from the University of California, Berkeley, who used genetic tracing to help hunt down the real culprit.

Zhenyu Tang (seated at microscope) examines vascular stem cells in culture along with Aijun Wang (left) and Song Li. The UC Berkeley researchers say that these newly discovered stem cells contribute to artery-hardening vascular diseases that can lead to heart attacks and strokes. (Photo courtesy of Song Li)

The guilty party is not the smooth muscle cells within blood vessel walls, which for decades was thought to combine with cholesterol and fat that can clog arteries. Blocked vessels can eventually lead to heart attacks and strokes, which account for one in three deaths in the United States.

Instead, a previously unknown type of stem cell a multipotent vascular stem cell is to blame, and it should now be the focus in the search for new treatments, the scientists report in a new study appearing June 6 in the journal Nature Communications.

For the first time, we are showing evidence that vascular diseases are actually a kind of stem cell disease, said principal investigator Song Li, professor of bioengineering and a researcher at the Berkeley Stem Cell Center. This work should revolutionize therapies for vascular diseases because we now know that stem cells rather than smooth muscle cells are the correct therapeutic target.

The finding that a stem cell population contributes to artery-hardening diseases, such as atherosclerosis, provides a promising new direction for future research, the study authors said.

This is groundbreaking and provocative work, as it challenges existing dogma, said Dr. Deepak Srivastava, who directs cardiovascular and stem cell research at the Gladstone Institutes in San Francisco, and who provided some of the mouse vascular tissues used by the researchers. Targeting the vascular stem cells rather than the existing smooth muscle in the vessel wall might be much more effective in treating vascular disease.

It is generally accepted that the buildup of artery-blocking plaque stems from the bodys immune response to vessel damage caused by low-density lipoproteins, the bad cholesterol many people try to eliminate from their diets. Such damage attracts legions of white blood cells and can spur the formation of fibrous scar tissue that accumulates within the vessel, narrowing the blood flow.

Within the walls of blood vessels are smooth muscle cells and newly discovered vascular stem cells. The stem cells are multipotent and are not only able to differentiate into smooth muscle cells, but also into fat, cartilage and bone cells. UC Berkeley researchers provide evidence that the stem cells are contributing to clogged and hardened arteries. (Song Li illustration)

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The real culprit behind hardened arteries? Stem cells, says landmark study

Stem cells are identified as real culprit behind heart attacks after case of mistaken identity that could …

Scientists previously thought heart attacks and strokes were caused by smooth muscle cells Stem cells multiply and caused arteries to harden Heart attacks affect 90,000 and strokes 150,000 in Britain every year

By Emma Reynolds

PUBLISHED: 11:17 EST, 6 June 2012 | UPDATED: 11:17 EST, 6 June 2012

The real culprit behind heart attacks and strokes is stem cells, researchers have claimed in a landmark study that could revolutionise treatment.

Until now, scientists thought vascular health problems were triggered by smooth muscle cells.

Now a team from the University of California in Berkeley have found a previously unknown stem cell, which causes the arteries to harden when it multiplies.

Real hope: The cells can multiply and cause arteries to harden, blocking the blood's route to the heart or brain

The groundbreaking work is set to completely change how heart attacks and strokes are treated, dramatically cutting the number of deaths, according the study published today in the journal Nature Communications.

Heart attacks are the most common reason for people to need emergency treatment. Around 90,000 people in Britain have one each year - of whom around a third will die as a result.

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Stem cells are identified as real culprit behind heart attacks after case of mistaken identity that could ...

Neuralstem Updates ALS Stem Cell Trial Progress; Emory University Institutional Review Board Approves Amendment

ROCKVILLE, Md., June 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --Neuralstem, Inc. (NYSE MKT: CUR) announced that the Emory University Institutional Review Board (IRB) approved the amendment to the ongoing Phase I trial evaluating Neuralstem's spinal cord stem cells in the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease). The amendment permits the return of three previously-treated patients to the trial to receive additional injections of cells. This modification to the protocol was approved earlier by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Implementation was contingent upon IRB approval, which has now been secured.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20061221/DCTH007LOGO )

"Bringing patients back for a second set of injections should they meet the inclusion requirements at the time of surgery, or giving new patients both lumbar and cervical injections, is a major step forward toward testing the maximum safe dosing of our cell therapy," said Richard Garr, Neuralstem President & CEO. "We have been encouraged by the results of the trial to date, and are eager to commence treating patients with this increased dosage."

About the Study

The ongoing Phase I study is designed to assess the safety of Neuralstem's spinal cord stem cells (HSSC's) and transplantation technique in up to 18 patients with ALS.

The first twelve patients were all transplanted in the lumbar (lower back) region of the spine. Of these, the initial six (Cohort A) were all non-ambulatory with permanent paralysis. The first patient was treated on January 20, 2010. Successive surgeries have followed at the rate of one every one-to-two months. The first three patients (Cohort A1) were each treated with five unilateral HSSC injections in L2-L4 lumbar segments, while the next three patients (Cohort A2) received ten bilateral injections (five on each side) in the same region. The next six patients (Cohort B and C) were all ambulatory. Of these, the first three (Cohort B) received five unilateral injections in the L2-L4 region. The last three patients (Cohort C) in this study group received ten bilateral injections in the same region.

The trial was then approved to progress to cervical transplantations, with two cohorts of three patients (Cohort D and Cohort E). Cohort D has received five injections in the cervical region of the spinal cord. Cohort E will receive a total of fifteen injections, five in the cervical region and ten in the lumbar region.

About Neuralstem

Neuralstem's patented technology enables the ability to produce neural stem cells of the human brain and spinal cord in commercial quantities, and the ability to control the differentiation of these cells constitutively into mature, physiologically relevant human neurons and glia. Neuralstem is in an FDA-approved Phase I safety clinical trial for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), often referred to as Lou Gehrig's disease, and has been awarded orphan status designation by the FDA.

In addition to ALS, the company is also targeting major central nervous system conditions with its cell therapy platform, including spinal cord injury, ischemic spastic paraplegia and chronic stroke. The company has submitted an IND (Investigational New Drug) application to the FDA for a Phase I safety trial in chronic spinal cord injury.

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Neuralstem Updates ALS Stem Cell Trial Progress; Emory University Institutional Review Board Approves Amendment

Mature liver cells may be better than stem cells for liver cell transplantation therapy

Public release date: 4-Jun-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: David Eve celltransplantation@gmail.com Cell Transplantation Center of Excellence for Aging and Brain Repair

Tampa, Fla. (June 4, 2012) After carrying out a study comparing the repopulation efficiency of immature hepatic stem/progenitor cells and mature hepatocytes transplanted into liver-injured rats, a research team from Sapporo, Japan concluded that mature hepatocytes offered better repopulation efficiency than stem/progenitor cells.

Until day 14 post-transplantation, the growth of the stem/progenitor cells was faster than the mature hepatocytes, but after two weeks most of the stem/progenitor cells had died. However, the mature hepatocytes continued to survive and proliferate one year after their implantation.

The study is published in Cell Transplantation (21:1), now freely available on-line at http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/cog/ct/.

"Cell-based therapies as an alternative to liver transplantation to treat liver disease have shown promise," said study corresponding author Dr. Toshihiro Mitaka of the Cancer Research Institute of the Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan. "However, the repopulation efficiency of two candidate cell sources - hepatic progenitor/stem cells and mature hepatocytes - had not been comprehensively assessed and questions concerning the efficiency of each needed to be resolved."

The researchers noted that the shortage of cell sources and the difficulties of cryopreservation have limited the clinical application of cell based therapies. Stem or progenitor cells have been considered candidate cells because they can expand in vitro and can be cryopreserved for a long time.

However, after transplantation into liver injured rats, the researchers found that stem/progenitor cells did not survive well and most of the transplanted cells had disappeared within two months. In contrast, the mature hepatocytes gradually repopulated the rat livers and continued doing so past one year.

The researchers noted that the sizes of the hepatocytes were not uniform.

"Unexpectedly, the small hepatocytes repopulated significantly less well than the larger ones," explained Dr. Mitaka. "We also found that serial transplantation did not enhance nor diminish the repopulation capacity of the cells to any significant degree."

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Mature liver cells may be better than stem cells for liver cell transplantation therapy

Cell transplantation of lung stem cells has beneficial impact for emphysema

Public release date: 4-Jun-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: David Eve Celltransplantation@gmail.com Cell Transplantation Center of Excellence for Aging and Brain Repair

Tampa, Fla. (June 4, 2012) When autologous (self-donated) lung-derived mensenchymal stem cells (LMSCs) were transplanted endoscopically into 13 adult female sheep modeled with emphysema, post-transplant evaluation showed evidence of tissue regeneration with increased blood perfusion and extra cellular matrix content. Researchers concluded that their approach could represent a practical alternative to conventional stem cell-based therapy for treating emphysema.

The study is published in Cell Transplantation (21:1), now freely available on-line at http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/cog/ct/.

"Mensenchymal stem cells are considered for transplantation because they are readily available, highly proliferative and display multi-lineage potential," said study corresponding author Dr. Edward P. Ingenito of the Brigham and Women's Hospital Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine. "Although MSCs have been isolated from various adult tissues - including fat, liver and lung tissues - cells derived from bone marrow (BM) have therapeutic utility and may be useful in treating advanced lung diseases, such as emphysema."

However, according to the authors, previous transplantation studies, many of which used an intravenous delivery method, have shown that BM-MSCs have been only marginally successful in treating lung diseases. Further, therapeutic responses in those studies have been limited to animal models of inflammatory lung diseases, such as asthma and acute lung injury.

To try and answer the questions surrounding the utility of BM-MSCs for treating advanced emphysema, a disease characterized by tissue destruction and loss of lung structural integrity, for this study the researchers isolated highly proliferative, mensenchymal cells from adult lung parenchyma (functional tissue) (LMSCs) and used an endoscopic delivery system coupled with a scaffold comprised of natural extracellular matrix components.

"LMSCs display efficient retention in the lung when delivered endobronchially and have regenerative capacity through expression of basement membrane proteins and growth factors," explained Dr. Ingenito.

However, despite the use of autologous cells, only a fraction of the LMSCs delivered to the lungs alveolar compartment appeared to engraft. Cell death likely occurred because of the failure of LMSCs to home to and bind within their niche, perhaps because the niche was modified by inflammation or fibrosis. These cells are attachment-dependent and failure to attach results in cell death."

Their findings did suggest, however, that LMSCs were capable of contributing to lung remodeling leading to documented functional improvement rather than scarring 28 days post transplantation.

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Cell transplantation of lung stem cells has beneficial impact for emphysema

Medistem Achieves Important ERC Stem Cell Clinical Trial Milestone

SAN DIEGO, CA--(Marketwire -06/04/12)- Medistem Inc. (MEDS) announced today positive safety data from the first 5 patients enrolled in the Non-Revascularizable IschEmic Cardiomyopathy treated with Retrograde COronary Sinus Venous DElivery of Cell TheRapy (RECOVER-ERC) trial. The clinical trial uses the company's "Universal Donor" Endometrial Regenerative Cells (ERC) to treat Congestive Heart Failure (CHF).

According to the study design, after 5 patients enter the trial, they must be observed for a two month time period before additional patients are allowed to enter the study. Patient data was analyzed by the study's independent Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB), which concluded that based on lack of adverse effects, the study be allowed to continue recruitment.

"Medistem is developing a treatment for CHF that uses a 30-minute catheter-based procedure to administer the ERC stem cell into the patients' hearts. The achievement of 2 month patient follow-up with no adverse events is a strong signal for us that our new approach to this terrible condition is feasible," said Thomas Ichim, CEO of Medistem.

The RECOVER-ERC trial will treat a total of 60 patients with end-stage heart failure with three concentrations of ERC stem cells or placebo. The clinical trial is being conducted by Dr. Leo Bockeria, Chairman of the Backulev Centre for Cardiovascular Surgery, in collaboration with Dr. Amit Patel, Director of Clinical Regenerative Medicine at University of Utah.

"As a professional drug developer, I am very optimistic of a stem cell product that can be used as a drug. The ERC stem cell can be stored frozen indefinitely, does not need matching with donors, and can be injected in a simple 30-minute procedure into the heart," said Dr. Sergey Sablin, Vice President of Medistem and co-founder of the multi-billion dollar NASDAQ company Medivation.

Currently patients with end-stage heart failure, such as the ones enrolled in the RECOVER-ERC study, have no option except for heart transplantation, which is limited by side effects and lack of donors. In contrast to other stem cells, ERC can be manufactured inexpensively, do not require tissue matching, and can be administered in a minimally-invasive manner. Animal experiments suggest ERC are more potent than other stem cell sources at restoring heart function. The FDA has approved a clinical trial of ERC in treatment of critical limb ischemia in the USA.

About Medistem Inc. Medistem Inc. is a biotechnology company developing technologies related to adult stem cell extraction, manipulation, and use for treating inflammatory and degenerative diseases. The company's lead product, the endometrial regenerative cell (ERC), is a "universal donor" stem cell being developed for critical limb ischemia and heart failure. A publication describing the support for use of ERC for this condition may be found at http://www.translational-medicine.com/content/pdf/1479-5876-6-45.pdf.

Cautionary Statement This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of our securities. This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties, some of which cannot be predicted or quantified. Future events and actual results could differ materially from those set forth in, contemplated by, or underlying the forward-looking information. Factors which may cause actual results to differ from our forward-looking statements are discussed in our Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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Medistem Achieves Important ERC Stem Cell Clinical Trial Milestone