Category Archives: Stem Cell Research

Public release date: 28-Aug-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Charles Casey charles.casey@ucdmc.ucdavis.edu 916-734-9048 University of California - Davis Health System (SACRAMENTO, Calif.) Stem cell technology has long offered the hope of regenerating tissue to repair broken or damaged neural tissue. Findings from a team of UC Davis investigators have brought this dream a step closer by developing a method to generate functioning brain cells that produce myelin a fatty, insulating sheath essential to normal neural conduction. "Our findings represent an important conceptual advance in stem cell research," said Wenbin Deng, principal investigator of the study and associate professor at the UC Davis Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine. "We have bioengineered the first generation of myelin-producing cells with superior regenerative capacity." The brain is made up predominantly of two cell types: neurons and glial cells. Neurons are regarded as responsible for thought and sensation. Glial cells surround, support and communicate with neurons, helping neurons process and transmit information using electrical and chemical signals. One type of glial cell the oligodendrocyte produces a sheath called myelin that provides support and insulation to neurons. Myelin, which has been compared to insulation around electrical wires that helps to prevent short circuits, … Continue reading →

(PRWEB) August 30, 2013 Dr. Ann J Peters, internationally recognized anti-aging specialist, has found significant success utilizing liquid stem cells for both the rejuvenation of damaged organs and for general anti-aging purposes. The liquid stem cells come from a frozen stem cell extract that is consumed orally. This comes as good news to millions of people around the world seeking the latest in medical science to help in the recovery process and to mitigate the negative effects of aging. Stem cells represent probably some of the most promising innovations in medicine today, said Dr. Peters. It is one modality in the emerging medical arsenal towards improved health and regeneration. Anyone can benefit from liquid stem cells, from young children to adults. Stem cell research has expanded exponentially in recent years, as researchers across the globe continue to discover exciting new applications. Entire industries have blossomed around the use of stem cells, notably its use in sports medicine. Clinicians continually discover new uses for stem cells, from the repair of damaged or failing organs, damaged tissue, and diseases, such as Type I diabetes. The list of treatable conditions continues to grow. A growing trend among parents involves the storage of embryonic … Continue reading →

Teachers TV: Stem Cell Research: The Lesson Crown Copyright. Provided by The Academic Grid http://tag.ac/ Further resources available on http://tag.ac Licensed to The Academic Grid formerly The Artis... By: ACLChannel0 … Continue reading →

Public release date: 22-Aug-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: B. D. Colen bd_colen@harvard.edu 617-413-1224 Harvard University In a scientific first, Harvard Stem Cell Institute scientists have successfully grown the cells that line the blood vesselscalled vascular endothelial cellsfrom human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), revealing new details about how these cells function. Using a unique approach, the researchers induced the differentiation of specific cell types by generating mechanical forces on the surface of the iPSC-derived endothelium mimicking the flow of blood. For example, cells that felt a stronger "flow" became artery cells, while those that felt a weaker "flow" became vein cells. "It was especially exciting to us to discover that these cells are basically responding to biomechanical cues," research leader Guillermo Garca-Cardena, PhD, an HSCI Affiliated Faculty member, said. "By exposing cells to 'atheroprone flow,' we can direct differentiation of these cells into cells that are present in areas of the circulatory system that we know are affected by diseases like atherosclerosis." Garca-Cardena is now working on modeling the formation of arterial plaques using human iPSC-derived vascular endothelial cells and identifying potential drugs that might prevent plaque formation. Garca-Cardena's team, which included Harvard School of Engineering and … Continue reading →

Milwaukee, WI (PRWEB) August 21, 2013 The Movement Disorder Societys Scientific Issues Committee has released a brief review of the use of stem cell therapies for Parkinsons disease (PD), ultimately warning patients against treatments performed outside of a recognized academic or clinical setting. In theory, stem cell therapy would be used to replace or repair the cells lost or damaged in the disease process, and restore cell function and improve symptoms. While advances in cell-based research may ultimately provide potential new therapies for patients with PD, this remains in the realm of research. Science has yet to fully establish a number of challenging aspects of stem cell therapy including specific cell type, method of administration, clinical effect and long term safety. Several business enterprises worldwide are offering therapies using stem cells which may not be specifically engineered to repair function of the degenerating neurons in PD. The outcome of these treatments have not been submitted for independent, scientific peer-review or publication, yet many of these business enterprises make unsubstantiated claims of considerable benefit to the patient. Due to the potential for very serious side effects, the Society is urging patients to avoid these treatments carried out without adequate scientific research, … Continue reading →

Rumble.21: Shwetha Shekar - Stem cell research using umbilical cords - 2/3 Rumbling with Shwetha Shekar, a genetic engineer who moved into acting in Kollywood. Stem cell research using umbilical cords. Can also save a life. Hosted b... By: Suresh Menon … Continue reading →

Is Stem Cell Research Murder? Clean Cut: Episode Directory http://nameunderheaven.blogspot.com/2013/06/clean-cut-lets-talk-about-truth.html Clean Cut; Episode 95 What is a stem cell? What... By: mytruepower2 … Continue reading →

Cambridge stem cell technology startup Axol Bioscience has made a lightning fast opening to its global commercialisation strategy. Axols proprietary brain stem cells are produced from reprogrammed human blood cells, known as iPS cells, and the new distribution network will manage sales and support in the US, Japan, Scandinavia and several territories in mainland Europe including Germany, Italy and Switzerland. The move marks a strong statement of intent from the young business which is backed by Abcam CEO Jonathan Milner, now also chair of Axol. Axol primed to address a $15 billion dollar global neurobiology research market is regarded as having a significant ethical edge as its products eliminate the need for testing human disease pathologies in animal models. Axol is applying cutting-edge stem cell technologies to generate high quality human neural stem cells and neurons. Cerebral cortical neurons are implicated in numerous neurological diseases including Alzheimers, autism, epilepsy, traumatic brain injury and stroke. Despite growing support for research in these areas, high quality human in vitro cell models for cortical neurophysiology have been unavailable until now. Axol has led the launch of its technology with a focus on providing both healthy and Alzheimers disease relevant human neurons derived from … Continue reading →

EXTON, Penn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Fibrocell Science, Inc. (NYSE MKT:FCSC), announced today positive results from a study demonstrating a potential mechanism for converting research-grade adult skin cells into clinical grade induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. The study, entitled Generation and characterization of transgene-free human induced pluripotent stem cells and conversion to putative clinical-grade status will be published in the peer-reviewed journal Stem Cell Research and Therapy. The provisional paper is available online at http://stemcellres.com/content/4/4/87/abstract. The study was conducted under the guidance of James Byrne, Ph.D., assistant professor, UCLA Department of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology, at the Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research. In addition to providing proof of concept for this reprogramming method of converting adult skin cells to iPS cells, the study confirmed that researchers can effectively remove unwanted non-human contaminants from stem cell populations derived under research-grade conditions. A variety of tests were used to determine whether the converted stem cell population was viable, expressed markers identifying them as stem cells, was free of microorganisms and no longer expressed non-human contaminants. Positive test results proved that these stem cells were free of unwanted non-human factors. The iPS cells generated from the study were also … Continue reading →

Washington A new study shows most Americans view abortion as a moral issue but do not feel as strongly about stem-cell research or in vitro fertilization as moral issues. According to the study, released Aug. 15 by the Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project, 49 percent of adults consider it morally wrong to have an abortion; 22 percent consider embryonic stem-cell research morally wrong; and 12 percent view the use of in vitro fertilization as morally wrong. The findings were based on telephone interviews of 4,006 adults conducted March 21-April 18 with a margin of error of plus or minus 2.1 percentage points. The survey's results show that opinions on the morality of abortion differ widely among religious groups. Seventy-five percent of white evangelical Protestants and 64 percent of Hispanic Catholics consider having an abortion morally wrong. Fifty-eight percent of black Protestants and 53 percent of white Catholics hold this view while 38 percent of white mainline Protestants and 25 percent of religiously unaffiliated adults see abortion as morally wrong. Relatively small percentages of people in all religious groups consider it morally acceptable to have an abortion. However, among the unaffiliated, nearly equal amounts view having an abortion … Continue reading →