Category Archives: Stem Cell Research

Two men in landmark heart stem cell study tell their stories. Jim Dearing of Louisville, Ky., one of the first men in the world to receive heart stem cells, might have helped start a medical revolution that could lead to a cure for heart failure. Three years after getting the experimental stem cell procedure, following two heart attacks and heart failure, Dearings heart is working normally. 2012 WebMD, LLC. All rights reserved. The difference is clear and dramatic -- and it's lasting, according to findings now being made public for the first time. Dearing first showed "completely normal heart function" on an echocardiogram done in 2011, says Roberto Bolli, MD, who is leading the stem cell trial at the University of Louisville. Those results have not been published before. That was still true in July 2012, when Dearing again showed normal heart function on another echocardiogram. Based on those tests, Bolli says, "Anyone who looks at his heart now would not imagine that this patient was in heart failure, that he had a heart attack, that he was in the hospital, that he had surgery, and everything else." It's not just Dearing who has benefited. His friend, Mike Jones, who … Continue reading →

Newswise ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- How do stem cells preserve their ability to become any type of cell in the body? And how do they decide to give up that magical state and start specializing? If researchers could answer these questions, our ability to harness stem cells to treat disease could explode. Now, a University of Michigan Medical School team has published a key discovery that could help that goal become reality. In the current issue of the prestigious journal Cell Stem Cell, researcher Yali Dou, Ph.D., and her team show the crucial role of a protein called Mof in preserving the stem-ness of stem cells, and priming them to become specialized cells in mice. Their results show that Mof plays a key role in the epigenetics of stem cells -- that is, helping stem cells read and use their DNA. One of the key questions in stem cell research is what keeps stem cells in a kind of eternal youth, and then allows them to start growing up to be a specific type of tissue. Dou, an associate professor of pathology and biological chemistry, has studied Mof for several years, puzzling over the intricacies of its role in stem … Continue reading →

The Sutter Neuroscience Institute in Sacramento plans to launch groundbreaking research today to discover whether infusing umbilical cord stem cells into the bloodstreams of autistic children will help them overcome debilitating characteristics of the condition. The clinical trial is the first of its kind to be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, said Dr. Michael Chez, the principal investigator and Sutter's director of pediatric neurology. One of the world's foremost autism experts at the institute, which is recognized for its practice of pediatric neuroscience, Chez said the research may help identify a valuable new tool in the struggle against autism spectrum disorders, which now affect about one in 88 children nationwide, and one in 54 boys. "This is an exciting trial, because it's exposing us to the new frontier of stem cells and whether they may have some positive effect on this disease," Chez said. "This is the start of a new age of research in stem cell therapies for chronic diseases such as autism." Recent research has revealed robust new uses for stem cells. Stem cells, for example, can now be developed from heart muscle in cardiac patients and injected back into the heart for improved functioning. … Continue reading →

CARLSBAD, CA--(Marketwire -08/16/12)- International Stem Cell Corporation (ISCO) (www.internationalstemcell.com) ("ISCO" or "the Company") a California-based biotechnology company focused on therapeutic and research products, today announced the addition of Professor Evan Snyder* and Dr. Rosasio Snchez-Pernaute as scientific advisors on our Parkinson's disease program. Evan Snyder, MD, PhD is a Professor at the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute and director of Sanford-Burnham's stem cell program and research center. Prof. Snyder is regarded as one of the pioneers of stem cell research, particularly with regard to regenerative medicine applications. He is an expert on Parkinson's disease (PD), one of the first scientists to identify neural stem cells and to document the ability of stem cells to migrate to injured or diseased regions of the brain. Prof. Snyder is a recipient of an Early Translational Award from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) to research into cell based therapies for PD. Rosario Snchez-Pernaute, MD, PhD is an internationally recognized expert on the use of stem cells to treat Parkinson's disease. While Assistant Professor in Neurology at Harvard Medical School Dr. Snchez-Pernaute was one of the first scientists to demonstrate the possibility of using parthenogenetic stem cells to treat the causes of PD in … Continue reading →

EPALINGES, Switzerland, Aug. 14, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via PRWEB - Stemedica International, SA (Epalinges, Switzerland), a wholly owned subsidiary of Stemedica Cell Technologies, Inc. ("Stemedica"), a leader in adult stem cell research and manufacturing, announced today that it has been granted a series of licenses by Swissmedic (the Swiss equivalent of the United States Food and Drug Administration). These licenses specifically authorize the Company to import and export its Stemedyne(TM) stem cell products worldwide for human use in approved clinical trials. Granting of the license by Swissmedic marks the culmination of a two-year inspection process of Stemedica's United States and Swiss operations. The Swiss government's rigorous inspection and approval process has included: (1) a comprehensive, in-depth audit of Stemedica's processes and procedures; (2) the examination of Stemedica's quality systems; and (3) interviews with facility management and onsite inspections of the facilities. Stemedica currently produces two lines of ischemia-tolerant adult allogeneic stem cell products. These include Stemedyne(TM)-MSC, bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells and Stemedyne(TM)-NSC, neural stem cells. A third product, Stemedyne(TM) Retinal Pigment Epithelium (RPE) stem cells is currently in development. Stemedica now has full regulatory approval from the Swiss government to provide these cells to countries that can … Continue reading →

Cambridge stem cell research company Stemgent Inc. has taken $11.3 million in equity, the largest round to date for the four-and-a-half year old company, according to federal filings. The 40-plus employee company, headquartered in Kendall Square with another research and development site in San Diego, Calif., has filed for more than $40 million in debt and equity investment to date. Most recent is a $6.3 million round in February, which came from eight investors who were not listed on the filing. At the time, CEO Ian Ratcliffe told Mass High Tech that the company would use the new funding to expand its licensed intellectual property around stem cell reagents, as well as expanding its existing operations and product lines. The current filing indicates that the $11.3 million comes from eight backers, with related persons listed as board members Stefan Miltenyi, founder of German biotech; Harold Werner and Augustine Lawlor of HealthCare Ventures LLC of Cambridge; and Ralph Christofferson of Morganthaler Partners of Ohio. No one from the company was available for comment Monday. The companys mission is to support cellular reprogramming research by producing products being designed by stem cell researchers. In January 2010, it launched a custom cell line … Continue reading →

NEW YORK & PETACH TIKVAH, Israel--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics (BCLI), a leading developer of adult stem cell technologies and CNS therapeutics, announced that Rasheda Ali Walsh, daughter of the legendary Muhammad Ali, visited the Companys laboratories as well as its cleanrooms at Hadassah Medical Center, where she received a briefing on the companys clinical trial conducted there. Ms. Ali Walsh, an internationally known advocate for promoting research and awareness of neurodegenerative diseases, is a member of the Advisory Board of BrainStorm. BrainStorms President, Mr. Chaim Lebovits, and CEO Dr. Adrian Harel accompanied Ms. Ali Walsh for a meeting with Prof. Dimitrios Karussis, Principal Investigator of the Companys ongoing Phase I/II clinical trial at Hadassah, and Prof. Tamir Ben-Hur, Head of the Neurology Department. The group discussed the latest innovative treatments for neurodegenerative diseases and BrainStorms leading role in this area. Having heard so much about the recent positive interim safety report and the outstanding progress being made by BrainStorm at Hadassah, I felt the need to actually meet the team in person, commented Ms. Ali. The amazing work being done here gives a ray of hope to patients and families worldwide that autologous stem cell transplants may be the … Continue reading →

Toronto, ON (PRWEB) August 13, 2012 1DegreeBio Inc. today launched its Stem Cell Portal, where stem cell researchers can find antibodies and product data specific to their research. The portal also provides a venue where scientists can read and submit reviews of these products, and see quality ratings from the community. The portal is the second in a series of 1DegreeBio portals targeted at specific research areas which will be released in the coming year, and follows the June launch of the 1DegreeBio Epigenetics Portal. 1DegreeBio is the largest independent review website for custom research services, antibodies and related life science products. Stem cells are an extremely promising avenue in medical research, with new breakthroughs every day, said Alex Hodgson, Managing Director, 1DegreeBio. 1DegreeBio is excited to provide a free, specialized resource to support stem cell researchers, and help them find the best products for their work. Commercial antibodies are often an essential component in stem cell research, but inconsistency in antibody quality often slows the research process. The new 1DegreeBio Stem Cell Portal is designed to address this issue, as researchers can find validation data and community reviews of stem cell antibodies, helping them identify the right product for … Continue reading →

TORONTO To arthritis patients, they still seem like wonders of modern medicine: artificial hip and knee implants that curb chronic pain. In fact, 14,000 Canadians a year receive hip replacements and more than 21,000 undergo knee replacements, the numbers soaring over the last decade. If Dr. Nizar Mahomed and colleagues at the University Health Network (UHN) in Toronto succeed with fascinating new research, however, such surgery will eventually become a thing of the past. The operations are, in fact, anything but panaceas, never really restoring people to their healthiest state, and often requiring replacement when the implant wears out, acknowledges Dr. Mahomed, head of orthopedics at the UHNs Toronto Western Hospital. With those limitations in mind, the UHN is pursuing research that aims to find a biological cure for joints decimated by osteo-arthritis, the most common form of the disease. Most dazzling among several experiments is a project that uses stem cells to create bone and cartilage, which researchers hope can be turned into a sort of organic joint implant that would fuse with existing tissue and regenerate diseased knees and hips. Theoretically, the limits imposed on artificial joint-replacement patients would be forgotten. If we can find biological repair options, … Continue reading →

Listen Now [4 min 28 sec] Listen Now [4 min 28 sec] For many Southern California high school students, summer is synonymous with surf, sand and sun. But, for some of Los Angeles' top math and science students, the lure of the beach and traditional summer fun fizzles fast when compared to microscopes, slide kits and real-life stem cell research. Armed with little more than protective gear and enthusiasm, 20 overachieving teenagers have been clocking 40-hour weeks in the lab at USC's Eli and Edythe Broad Center for Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research. Among them is 17-year-old Brian Tom of Lincoln Heights. Its fascinating because stem cells have all this potential to heal these degenerative diseases like Multiple Sclerosis and Alzheimer's," says Tom, a senior at Bravo Medical Magnet in Los Angeles. "It's amazing how you can create multiple tissues from one cell." Stem cells offer promise as a treatment or cure for many diseases because they can be can induced to morph into other cell types such as brain, muscle or skin cells. Stem cells can also divide without limit, which gives them the potential to repair and replace damaged tissue. You can just imagine the possibilities," says … Continue reading →