MANILA, Philippines -- The Department of Health (DOH) has announced its plan to regulate stem cell therapy in the country. Stem cell treatment involves the use of adult stem cells to treat a range of diseases. The Health Department believes that because of the complex preparation and invasive procedure involved, there needs to be a regulatory framework to protect Filipino citizens. The regulation of laboratories and practitioners involves five key points. First is a check on the credentials of people involved in the service, as stem cell treatment is a specialized field. The supply of raw materials will also have to be monitored, making sure especially that they do not come from aborted fetuses. Laboratories will be scrutinized for their procedures, sanitation and safety. Therapeutic claims, on the other hand, are also up for strict assessment, to make sure that these are based on solid scientific evidence. Finally, the DOH also wants a report on the possible failure of treatments, to find out if there are negative outcomes to stem cell therapy. "Those who are going to other countries for stem cell treatment should also check if their destination allows stem cell tourism," clarified FDA Acting Director Dr. Kenneth Hartigan-Go. … Continue reading →

April Flowers for redOrbit.com Your Universe Online Conflicting studies were highlighted at this years American Heart Association Scientific Sessions meeting concerning stem cell therapy for heart attack patients. The first study, from the University of Louisville and Brigham and Womens Hospital, reported holy grail results for a Phase I clinical trial: marked sustained improvement in all patients with zero adverse effects. Roberto Bolli, M.D., of the University of Louisville and Piero Anversa, M.D., of Brigham and Womens Hospital presented data from their groundbreaking research in the use of autologous adult stem cells with patients who had previous heart attacks in a Late-Breaking Clinical Trial session. The researchers report that all patients receiving the stem cell therapy showed improved heart function after two years, with an overall 12.9 absolute unit increase in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). LVEF is a standard measure of heart function that shows the amount of blood ejected from the left ventricle during a heartbeat. They saw no adverse effects from the therapy. In fact, nine patients showed evidence of myocardial regeneration new tissue replacing formerly dead tissue killed by heart attack in MRI scans. The trial shows the feasibility of isolating and expanding autologous stem cells … Continue reading →

American cardiologist and researcher Dr. Yerem Yeghiazarians is currently on a visit to the Kingdom to gauge interest in setting up a stem-cell research facility here. Leading Saudi businessmen Hamad and Khalid Al-Zamil are interested in advancing the research initiative and invited Dr. Yeghiazarians to meet business leaders, arranged lectures and toured him around various hospitals to garner support for his pioneering project. Dr. Yeghiazarians believes stem cell treatment may be the only hope for thousands of people worldwide who suffer from heart problems. "It would be fantastic if we could set up a research program here. I am trying to monitor the interest among people here. I need to know what facilities are currently available and find out how we can introduce larger facilities to the region to advance the research collaboratively," he told Arab News in an interview. "My mission is to educate people here about stem cell research, heart diseases, heart failure and the potential treatment we can offer our patients," said Dr. Yeghiazarians. In the US alone, he pointed out that there are about 1.5 million heart attacks every year, and one in five people are going to die from heart disease. There are over three … Continue reading →

California's historic Proposition 71 provided big money for stem-cell research after voters approved it eight years ago. The measure helped fund major advances, but some charge that the success has been hampered by cronyism and conflict of interest. Roman Reed has been a paraplegic for more than eighteen years. Ever since a college football injury injured his spine. Reed says he's confident he will walk again. "Stem cells are going to get me out of this chair. I will walk again one day because of stem cell research," said Reed. He campaigned hard for Prop 71 eight years ago. Voters believed stem cells might help find cures for paralysis, heart disease, diabetes and more. The proposition won and the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine or CIRM received $3 billion from taxpayers. The bond money was intended to find stem cell cures. Some are starting to question whether they have found any. "We do not have any cures, nor did we expect to have any cures within the time frame that we've funded so far," said CIRM's Chairman Jonathon Thomas. They have spent $1.7 billion dollars to date. The money has been used to build a dozen new laboratories. It has … Continue reading →

(MENAFN - Arab News) American cardiologist and researcher Dr. Yerem Yeghiazarians is currently on a visit to the Kingdom to gauge interest in the establishment of a stem-cell research facility here. Leading Saudi businessmen Hamad and Khalid Al-Zamil are interested in advancing the research initiative and invited Yeghiazarians to meet business leaders, arranged lectures and toured him around various hospitals to garner support for his pioneering project. Dr. Yeghiazarians believes stem cell treatment may be the only hope for thousands of people worldwide who suffer from heart problems. Dr. Yeghiazarians speaks to Arab News journalist Siraj Wahab on the latest developments in the field. Dr. Yeghiazarians, welcome to Saudi Arabia. Is this your first visit? Please tell us more about yourself and your medical background. Yes, this is my first time in Saudi Arabia. It is truly an honor being in the Kingdom. I am a cardiologist. I also do interventional cardiology, meaning I do procedures in patients who have blockages in their arteries or who have heart attacks. I did my training mostly in the United States. My medical school training was at Johns Hopkins Medical School in Maryland. After that I spent eight years at Harvard Medical School … Continue reading →

ScienceDaily (Nov. 8, 2012) Canadian and Italian stem cell researchers have discovered a new "master control gene" for human blood stem cells and found that manipulating its levels could potentially create a way to expand these cells for clinical use. The findings, published November 8 online ahead of print in Cell Stem Cell, usher in a new paradigm for the regulation of human blood stem cells, says co-principal investigator Dr. John Dick, who holds a Canada Research Chair in Stem Cell Biology and is a Senior Scientist at University Health Network's McEwen Centre for Regenerative Medicine and Ontario Cancer Institute (OCI), the research arm of the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. He is also a Professor in the Department of Molecular Genetics, University of Toronto. "For the first time in human blood stem cells, we have established that a new class of non-coding RNA called miRNA represents a new tactic for manipulating these cells, which opens the door to expanding them for therapeutic uses," says Dr. Dick. In 2011, Dr. Dick isolated a human blood stem cell in its purest form -- as a single stem cell capable of regenerating the entire blood system -- paving the way for clinical uses. … Continue reading →

NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire - Nov 8, 2012) - Stem cell stocks have been gaining popularity among investors in 2012 as new and promising research continues to propel the industry forward. A study performed earlier this year at Johns Hopkins University has shown that stem cells from patients' own cardiac tissue can be used to heal scarred tissue after a heart attack. Five Star Equities examines the outlook for companies in the Biotechnology Industry and provides equity research on Aastrom Biosciences, Inc. ( NASDAQ : ASTM ) and Neostem Inc. ( NYSE : NBS ). Access to the full company reports can be found at: http://www.FiveStarEquities.com/ASTM http://www.FiveStarEquities.com/NBS A more recent study, also conducted at Johns Hopkins University, has showed that stem cells donated by strangers were as safe and as effective as the patient's own cells in repairing heart tissue. This is a key advancement for the treatment of heart attack with stem cells, as this possibly means stem cells could be stored for use just as blood is now. "You could have the cells ready to go in the blood bank so when the patient comes in for a therapy -- there's no delay," said Dr. Joshua Hare of the … Continue reading →