PALMYRA -- Gunny, an 8-year-old German shepherd, who has been suffering from painful arthritis in his hips, got a new lease on life Wednesday after receiving an injection of stem cells from his own body. Gunny was the first of two dogs with degenerative joint disease who were treated with a new, faster and less expensive procedure at the Palmyra Animal Clinic, 920 E. Main St. The new process, which is available for dogs, cats and horses, uses stem cells taken from fatty tissue in the animals to combat osteoarthritis to improve their quality of life. The process has been around for a decade, but with new technology, the local clinic is able to do the process in-house, in less time and at less cost. The clinic has been offering stem cell therapy since 2008. While stem cell therapy has been commercially available for about a decade, Dr. Calvin Clements, owner of the clinic, said, "there was a several-day turnaround, multiple anesthesias, and it was considerable expense. With this technique, we have the ability to collect the cells, inject the cells and bank the cells." The cost of the procedure is about $1,300, compared to $3,000 when sent out of … Continue reading →

A microscope image of some of the regenerated esophageal tissue Ordinarily, when patients require a total or partial replacement of their esophagus, tissue from their own stomach or intestine is used. This doesn't always result in a fully-functioning organ, plus it also involves the surgical removal of the needed material. Now, however, scientists have come a step closer to being able to grow a new esophagus from the patient's own stem cells, and in fact have already done so with rats. As part of an international collaboration, researchers at Sweden's Karolinska Institutet started by removing all of the cells from rat esophagi. This just left an empty scaffold of the organ, although one that retained the original's mechanical and chemical properties. Mesenchymal stem cells were then harvested from the bone marrow of the recipient rats, and seeded into those scaffolds. After three weeks, those cells had adhered to the scaffolds, and were starting to spontaneously differentiate into various types of esophageal cells. At this point, the scaffolds were implanted into the rats, replacing segments of their existing esophagi. All of the rats survived the procedure, and after two weeks it was noted that the implanted material had regenerated all the … Continue reading →

Working esophagi from stem cells could be used to aid cancer patients in the future Jason Goldman / Flickr Creative Commons Doctors have implanted bio-engineered tracheas in patients, and researchers have experimented with growing bladders and kidneys. Now, another organ joins that list: the esophagus, which brings food and water to the stomach. An international team of scientists working at Kuban State Medical University in Krasnodar, Russia, has built a working esophagus from stem cells, and implanted the organ into rats, the researchers say. The new esophagus functioned just as well as the rats' natural organs, said the researchers, who detailed their work today (April 15) in the journal Nature Communications. Every year, about 18,000 people in the United States are diagnosed with esophageal cancer, and others suffer from congenital defects, or are injured after medical procedures or swallowing caustic materials. Many of these cases require surgery, which can involve taking a section of the small intestine or the stomach to replace part of the esophagus. Unfortunately, this isn't always the best solution. Patients can suffer complications, and many still have trouble swallowing solid food after surgery. [5 Crazy Technologies That Are Revolutionizing Biotech] Researchers led by Paolo Macchiarini of … Continue reading →