PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 13-Aug-2014 Contact: Lucy Handford media@monash.edu Monash University A cure for a range of blood disorders and immune diseases is in sight, according to scientists who have unravelled the mystery of stem cell generation. The Australian study, led by researchers at the Australian Regenerative Medicine Institute (ARMI) at Monash University and the Garvan Institute of Medical Research, is published today in Nature. It identifies for the first time mechanisms in the body that trigger hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) production. Found in the bone marrow and in umbilical cord blood, HSCs are critically important because they can replenish the body's supply of blood cells. Leukemia patients have been successfully treated using HSC transplants, but medical experts believe blood stem cells have the potential to be used more widely. Lead researcher Professor Peter Currie, from ARMI explained that understanding how HSCs self-renew to replenish blood cells is a "Holy Grail" of stem cell biology. "HSCs are one of the best therapeutic tools at our disposal because they can make any blood cell in the body. Potentially we could use these cells in many more ways than current transplantation strategies to treat serious blood disorders and diseases, but only if we … Continue reading →

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE: 13-Aug-2014 Contact: Dana Smith dana.smith@gladstone.ucsf.edu 415-734-2532 Gladstone Institutes Researchers at the Gladstone Institutes have shown that reducing brain levels of the protein tau effectively blocks the development of disease in a mouse model of Dravet syndrome, a severe intractable form of childhood epilepsy. This therapeutic strategy not only suppressed seizure activity and premature death, but also improved cognitive and behavioral abnormalities that can accompany this syndrome. Previous studies from this group have shown that lowering tau levels reduces abnormal brain activity in models of Alzheimer's disease, but this is the first demonstration that tau reduction may also be beneficial in intractable genetic epilepsy. "It would really be wonderful if tau reduction turned out to be useful not only in Alzheimer's disease, but also in other disabling neurological conditions for which there currently are no effective treatments," said senior author Lennart Mucke, MD, the director of the Gladstone Institute of Neurological Disease and a professor of Neurology and Neuroscience at the University of California, San Francisco. "We suspected that this approach might be beneficial in Dravet, but we couldn't be sure because of the severity of this syndrome and the corresponding model. We are thrilled that our strategy … Continue reading →

TREATMENT has ended but the recovery trail will continue for Toowoomba reverse stroke patient Joel Shepherd. The 26-year-old and his family are back in Australia after Mr Shepherd received three rounds of perispinal Etanercept at a Los Angeles medical institute. His mother Coralie Graham said the results of the third treatment were not as dramatic as the first two rounds. However, improvements were noticed in his swallowing, speech and tongue movement. WHAT'S ONLINE TODAY: "He was just more relaxed," Ms Graham said. A lengthy flight home from the US and a lack of sleep caused Mr Shepherd's behaviour to revert to the level before his brain injury treatment. "We saw him slip back and that was heartbreaking." But after some rest the improvements returned. Ms Graham said her son was happy and relaxed. "He can hold on to a conversation and continue a conversation." The rest is here: Reverse stroke therapy gets results … Continue reading →

Contact Information Available for logged-in reporters only Newswise LOS ANGELES (Aug. 12, 2014) Regenerative medicine experts at the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute have opened a new clinic to evaluate heart and vascular disease patients for participation in stem cell medical studies. Led by Eduardo Marbn, MD, PhD, director of the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute, and Timothy Henry, MD, director of the Heart Institutes Cardiology Division, the doctors and researchers at the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute Regenerative Medicine Clinic use a scientific approach to assess the possible benefits of stem cells to repair damaged or diseased cardiovascular tissues. The clinic is believed to be the first at a major U.S. academic medical center dedicated to matching patients with appropriate stem cell clinical trials, whether those research interventions are available at the medical center or at other institutions. The Heart Institute Regenerative Medicine Clinic offers consultative services for patients with heart and vascular disease who may qualify for investigative stem cell therapy. The goal is to provide research options to patients who remain symptomatic on their current management regimen, or for patients with stable heart disease who are concerned about disease progression. Over the past decade, medical experts have predicted that in the future, stem … Continue reading →

The UC San Diego Health System put out a call Monday for eight spinal cord injury patients to take part in a five-year test of the safety of a new treatment involving neural stem cells. The researchers are looking for people who suffered an injury to the middle or lower levels of the spine's thoracic vertebrae between one and two years ago. According to UCSD, the injury must be between the seventh and 12th thoracic vertebrae. "The goal of this study is to evaluate the safety of transplanting neural stem cells into the spine for what one day could be a treatment for spinal cord injuries," said Dr. Joseph Ciacci, the study's principal investigator and a neurosurgeon at UC San Diego Health System. "The study's immediate goal, however, is to determine whether injecting these neural stem cells into the spine of patients with spinal cord injury is safe." The doctors also want to know how long the transplanted stem cells will last, and whether drugs designed to prevent rejection by the immune system are effective, according to UCSD Health. The researchers will also look for possible changes in motor and sensory function, bowel and bladder function, and pain levels. The … Continue reading →