Category Archives: Stem Cell Treatments

Public release date: 15-Oct-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Kat Snodgrass 202-962-4090 Society for Neuroscience NEW ORLEANS New animal studies provide additional support for investigating stem cell treatments for Parkinson's disease, head trauma, and dangerous heart problems that accompany spinal cord injury, according to research findings released today. The work, presented at Neuroscience 2012, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience and the world's largest source of emerging news about brain science and health, shows scientists making progress toward using stem cell therapies to repair neurological damage. The studies focused on using stem cells to produce neurons essential, message-carrying cells in the brain and spinal cord. The loss of neurons and the connections they make for controlling critical bodily functions are the chief hallmarks of brain and spinal cord injuries and of neurodegenerative afflictions such as Parkinson's disease and ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. Today's new findings show that: Other recent findings discussed show that: "As the fields of developmental and regenerative neuroscience mature, important progress is being made to begin to translate the promise of stem cell therapy into meaningful treatments for a range of well-defined neurological problems," said press conference … Continue reading →

A beautiful, fresh face, Sabrina Cohen can stun you with her charm. But she is far more. This 24-year-old, who has spent 10 years in a wheelchair as a result of a car accident, is battling to raise money for research and therapies that may eventually reverse paralysis and treat central nervous system impairments. A native of Miami Beach, she is one of five leaders being honored by the Palm Beach-based Genetic Policy Institute at its eighth annual World Stem Cell Summit Dec. 4 at the Palm Beach County Convention Center in West Palm Beach. She is receiving the Inspirational Award. This award brings a lot of meaning to my life and the path I have chosen to follow, she says of her founding of the nonprofit Sabrina Cohen Foundation. This provides a platform for my foundation to inspire others and to share my hope for (stem cell) regeneration. Other honorees include CBS 60 Minutes for its hard-hitting programs on unproven stem cell treatments; Susan Solomon, CEO of the New York Stem Cell Foundation; Alliance for Regenerative Medicine; and the Nebraska Coalition for Lifesaving Cures. We recognize the dedicated individuals and organizations that positively impact the cause of stem-cell advancement … Continue reading →

OCEANSIDE, Calif., Oct. 1, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --Health Link Medical Center, a national leader in regenerative interventional orthopedics and advanced biological cell therapies, today announced the planned opening of their new location in Mill Valley, California in October 2012. Health Link Medical Center's Oceanside, California clinic is currently California's only provider of Regenexx orthopedic platelet and autologous stem cell procedures. Regenexx Procedures offer non-surgical treatment options for common joint injuries and degenerative conditions, such as osteoarthritis. The procedures utilize a patient's own stem cells to help heal damaged tissues, tendons, ligaments, bone, or cartilage. Regenexx patients experience less downtime and avoid the lengthy and painful rehabilitation periods that follow surgery. "We're excited for the opportunity to bring Regenexx Procedures to the San Francisco area," said Dr. Norman Deitch, CEO of Health Link Medical Center. "Patients regularly travel across the country for the opportunity to receive these leading non-surgical treatments. This expansion makes them conveniently accessible to the millions of individuals in northern California." The Mill Valley Center will include a biological cell laboratory, capable of the advanced laboratory processing of platelets and stem cells required for the same-day procedures. Paul Handleman, D.O., has joined Health Link with an extensive interventional orthopedic … Continue reading →

September 16, 2012 Christine Wood/Staff Writer Five-year-old Rylan Johnstone will be heading to China in just two weeks with his mom and grandma, who hope the stem cell treatments he gets there might cure his blindness. The family leaves on Sept. 23, bound for the Beike Biotech Centre in Guangzhou. During a three-week stay at the centre, Rylan will receive three packets of stem cells by intravenous. Then the family will wait to see what happens. Beike claims the stem cells help the body repair itself, resulting in cures for things like brain injuries, cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy and optic nerve damage in some patients. It varies. Some people dont see any real improvement while theyre there. Other parents have said their kids suddenly start pointing at something, and they realize its light, Rylans grandma Alison Johnstone said. And its supposed to keep working for up to two years so it varies. Ive heard people whose kids have excelled at everything but sight. So we dont have any expectations, and we know theres that 20 to 25 per cent that really wont see a lot so we have to be prepared for that. But in saying that, if we didnt … Continue reading →

Scientists in England say they have successfully restored hearing in deaf gerbils using stem cell treatments that could eventually help people with certain types of hearing disorders. "We have the proof of concept that we can use human embryonic stem cells to repair the damaged ear," said the lead researcher, Marcelo Rivolta, a stem-cell biologist at the University of Sheffield, in a study published in the journal Nature. More than 275 million people have moderate-to-profound hearing loss according to Nature, and many of those cases are due to a breach in the connection between the inner ear and the brain. In this study, Rivolta and his team were able to make the first real link between the inner ear and the central nervous system using stem cells implanted in 18 gerbils with complete hearing loss in one ear. The gerbils were made deaf with a drug that killed nerve cells transmitting information from the ear to the brain. With further research, experts say the treatment used on the gerbils could be applied to cases of deafness in humans, but not before much more research is conducted. "I think [applying this treatment to humans] is a ways down the line," said … Continue reading →

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued a new report criticizing the Texas company that stored adult stem cells from Texas Gov. Rick Perry for use in an experimental procedure for his back pain, according to a newspaper report Monday. An FDA report obtained by the Houston Chronicle ( http://bit.ly/MwEHjI) said CellTex Therapeutics cannot guarantee the stem cells it takes from patients remain sterile and alive. The nine-page report dated April 27 says the lab, located in the Houston suburb of Sugar Land, does not have procedures to prevent contamination of products that are supposed to be sterile. The report also says the lab didn't have written records of investigations into the failure of a batch of cells. It also says the lab has not marked some lab products properly. "The deficiencies identified reflect significant problems, serious issues," said Paul Knoepfler, an associate professor at the University of California-Davis School of Medicine, in an interview with the newspaper. "If I were a patient, they would scare me off big time." CellTex was thrust into the news last year when Perry, then running for the Republican nomination for president, revealed that he had stem cells taken from fat in his … Continue reading →

Unveilling stem cells LAWRENCE SERETSE Correspondent Cryo-Save, the European company that intends to establish the first stem cell bank in Botswana says stem cells do not have just one function. They can themselves become or create other types of cells such as blood cells, brain cells, tissue cells, muscle cells and the like. Stem cells can be found in every person but they are much more numerous in the body of a foetus. There are three types of stem cell banking namely, the baby stem cell banking which is the preservation and storage of cord blood and umbilical cord tissue. Adult stem cell banking is the preservation and storage of peripheral blood (from blood stream for bone marrow transplants) and fatty tissue stem cells. The reproductive cell banking deals with the preservation and storage of eggs and sperm for future fertility treatments or artificial insemination purposes. Studying stem cells helped humans understand how they transform into the dazzling array of specialised cells that make us what we are. Some of the most serious medical conditions, such as cancer and birth defects, are caused by problems that occur somewhere in this process. A better understanding of normal cell development has allowed … Continue reading →

SILVER SPRING, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Nuvilex, Inc. (OTCQB:NVLX), an emerging biotechnology provider of cell and gene therapy solutions, today pointed out the potential for substantial partnership and licensing opportunities using the companys cell encapsulation technology for applications in stem cell research and medicine. Migration of implanted cells away from the target site and host rejection have been recognized as fundamental challenges faced by the stem cell community regarding their use in therapy, which the companys technology overcomes. The technology being acquired from associate SG Austria is used to place live stem cells into strong, flexible and permeable capsules. These capsules can then be implanted into animals or humans for specific therapies. Stem cells can then exist at the desired location inside the capsules, prevented from migrating and protected from the immune system that aims to eliminate such foreign cells from the body. Stem cell therapy is being used by clinicians throughout the world for treating such diverse diseases as spinal cord injury, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, burns, glioma, multiple myeloma, arthritis, heart disease, stroke, Stargardt's Macular Dystrophy, and age-related macular degeneration, among others, most of which can be found at ClinicalTrials.gov. Historically, researchers have faced numerous difficulties in succeeding with certain stem … Continue reading →

TYLER, TX (KLTV) - A young Tyler mom is doing everything she can to get her young son to China for stem cell treatments -- and she needs your help. Emily Roberts's son, Joel Hilton, was born with two conditions that have left him blind and unable to grow properly. He was born with optic nerve hypoplasia and septo-optic dysplasia, conditions that affect his sight and his pituitary gland, which affect his growth and development. "I just, I never -- I mean, everyone says this -- never thought it would be me. I mean, you don't expect me, especially at 18 years old, I did not expect to have a blind child. It's just, why me," Roberts said. "But it happened. And he's here." Now, Roberts's hope is to raise enough money to take Joel to China. A hospital there has accepted Joel to receive five umbilical cord stem cell treatments, which Roberts hopes will help Joel regain some sight and help restore some of his pituitary gland. "It's not a 100 percent thing. I don't want people thinking that he's going to go and come back and be able to see 20/20. No. Even if he can see a … Continue reading →

WASHINGTON, DC--(Marketwire -03/05/12)- The Alliance for Regenerative Medicine issued the following statement today: "An article about stem cell treatments taking place in Texas published by Nature last week is extremely troubling. The article suggests that patients are being administered stem cell treatments that have not been systematically demonstrated to be safe and effective therapies through the established FDA regulatory process. "Cell therapy treatments, including those using adult stem cells, hold the promise of providing patients with treatments and cures for numerous diseases and disabilities. However, FDA regulation is key to ensuring that the treatments available to patients are safe and effective. "The Alliance for Regenerative Medicine (ARM), a non-profit organization whose mission is to promote increased funding and development of regenerative medicine products, believes cell therapy and regenerative medicine products, including autologous cell therapy products, must go through the rigorous safety testing that is part of the FDA regulatory process before they can be marketed to the public. These regulations are designed to promote safe collection, manufacture, storage, and use of human cells, and cellular and tissue based products. ARM members comply with these rules because they know that FDA oversight helps to prevent patients from exposure to potentially unsafe … Continue reading →