NEWARK, Calif., April 18, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- StemCells, Inc. (STEM) today announced the addition of the Byers Eye Institute at Stanford, located in Palo Alto, Calif., as a second site for the Company's Phase I/II clinical trial of its proprietary HuCNS-SC(R) product candidate (purified human neural stem cells) in dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD). AMD is the leading cause of vision loss and blindness in people over 55 years of age, and approximately 30 million people worldwide are afflicted with the disease. Approximately 90 percent of AMD patients have the dry form of the disease and there are no approved treatments for dry AMD. The Byers Eye Institute at Stanford, which is part of Stanford Hospital & Clinics, is dedicated to combating blindness and preserving sight. The Institute leverages the research and teaching strengths of Stanford and integrates all vision care services at Stanford into one state-of-the-art facility. Theodore Leng, MD, FACS, clinical assistant professor in ophthalmology at the Stanford University School of Medicine, is the lead investigator at the site. Stanford's Department of Ophthalmology is a nationally acclaimed leader for treatment of retinal diseases, refractive disorders, neuro-ophthalmic disorders and diseases of the vitrea. "We are excited to be … Continue reading →

Controlling the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells is the goal of many laboratories, both to study normal human development and to generate cells for transplantation in treating various diseases and conditions. In a study published in STEM CELLS Translational Medicine, a team of researchers found a way to isolate RPE (retinal pigmented epithelial) cells, a cell type that protects and nourishes the photoreceptors and is vital in maintaining healthy eyesight, as early as 14 days following the onset of differentiation. Durham, NC (PRWEB) April 18, 2013 In fact, the dysfunction and death of RPE is thought to be behind the leading cause of blindness in the Western world age related macular degeneration. Transplantation of RPE cells into the retina to treat AMD has been demonstrated in animals and is now being tested in clinical trials in humans. However, protocols to generate RPE from human pluripotent stem cells are time consuming and relatively inefficient. But a team of scientists at the University of California, Santa Barbara, reports in the latest issue of STEM CELLS Translational Medicine that it has found a way to isolate RPE cells as early as 14 days following the onset of differentiation. "RPE cells are required … Continue reading →

Public release date: 18-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: B. D. Colen bd_colen@harvard.edu 617-413-1224 Harvard University Cambridge, MA, April 18, 2013 - Using a new stem-cell based drug screening technology with the potential to reinvent and greatly reduce the cost of the way new pharmaceuticals are developed, Harvard Stem Cell Institute (HSCI) researchers have found a compound more effective in protecting the neurons killed in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) Lou Gehrig's disease than two drugs that failed in human clinical trials after hundreds of millions of dollars had been invested in them. The new stem cell screening technique developed by Lee Rubin, a member of HSCI's Executive Committee and a professor in Harvard's Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology, successfully predicted that the two drugs that eventually failed in the third and final stage of human testing would, in fact, fail. "It's a deep, dark secret of drug discovery that very few drugs have been tested on human-diseased cells before being tested in a live person," said Rubin, who heads HSCI's program in translational medicine. "We were interested in the notion that we can use stem cells to correct that situation." Rubin's model is built on an … Continue reading →