12 September 2012 Last updated at 13:00 ET By James Gallagher Health and science reporter, BBC News UK researchers say they have taken a huge step forward in treating deafness after stem cells were used to restore hearing in animals for the first time. Hearing partially improved when nerves in the ear, which pass sounds into the brain, were rebuilt in gerbils - a UK study in the journal Nature reports. Getting the same improvement in people would be a shift from being unable to hear traffic to hearing a conversation. However, treating humans is still a distant prospect. If you want to listen to the radio or have a chat with a friend your ear has to convert sound waves in the air into electrical signals which the brain will understand. This happens deep inside the inner ear where vibrations move tiny hairs and this movement creates an electrical signal. However, in about one in 10 people with profound hearing loss, nerve cells which should pick up the signal are damaged. It is like dropping the baton after the first leg of a relay race. The aim of researchers at the University of Sheffield was to replace those baton-dropping … Continue reading →

SEOUL, South Korea, Sept. 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --RNL Bio (www.rnl.co.kr) announced on Sep 11, 2012 that it signed the agreement with RST Biomedikal Sanayi A.S. (RST), a Turkish company, to license RNL Bio's stem cell technology. Turkey is the 6th country where RNL Bio's stem cell technology has entered. This is one of the major accomplishments that RNL BIO has long focused on establishing the so-called 'Stem Cell Silk Road' with South Korean stem cell technology to give hope to patients with intractable diseases in the world. RST as a licensee will pay the $5 million fee upfront within 60 days from the agreement and will continue to pay the running royalty of 15% of the revenue, which could be up to $ 200 million. RST will benefit from the geographical advantages of Turkey where Western, Arabic and Oriental cultures are crossed. It plans to establish a GMP facility and invite patients from Europe and Middle East early next year. Ilknur Erdemin, CEO of RST said, "We expect to improve public health and the quality of life in Turkey through stem cell therapy technology imported from RNL BIO in treating various intractable diseases. We will also grow Turkey to one … Continue reading →

Rats once paralyzed from complete surgical cuts through their spinal cords can walk again after stem cells were transplanted into the site of the injury, report researchers today in the journal Cell. The results suggest that stem cells might work as a treatment for patients even if they have completely severed cords, a potential therapy that has been viewed skeptically by many in the field. Neural stem cells, derived from aborted fetal spinal cord tissue, were implanted onto each side of the spinal cord injury in the rats along with a supportive matrix and molecular growth factors. The human stem cells grew into the site of injury and extended delicate cellular projections called axons into the rats spinal cord, despite the known growth-inhibiting environment of the injured spinal cord. The rats' own neurons sent axons into the transplanted material and the rats were able to move all joints of their hind legs. The cells are produced by a Rockville, Maryland company called Neuralstem. The same cells are also being tested in ALS patients (see "New Cells for ALS Patients") where they have shown some promise of stabilizing the progressive disease. Last month, the company announced that it has asked to … Continue reading →

(CBS News) Scientists have restored hearing in gerbils using a stem cell therapy that may hold promise for deaf humans. Using human embryonic stem cells, researchers at the University of Sheffield were able to implant immature nerve cells into gerbils, which then regenerated and were able to improve hearing ability in the animals. The study was published on Sept. 12 in Nature. Scientists restore sense of smell to mice who were born with genetic abnormality Marvel team creates deaf superhero called Blue Ear in honor of boy According to a Nature News article on the study, more than 275 million people have moderate-to-profound hearing loss, many of whom have it caused by a disruption in communication between the inner ear and brain. Senior study author Dr. Marcelo Rivolta, a stem cell researcher at the University of Sheffield told HealthDay that about 80 to 90 percent of deafness is due to problems with cells in the inner ear. There are two types of inner ear cells. Hair cells translate vibrations into electrical signals that are transmitted via the auditory nerve to the brain. Problems with these cells are typically fixed via cochlear implant, a small device which can bypass the hair … Continue reading →

ST. LOUIS More than five years after a radical treatment, a San Francisco man and his German doctor are convinced that he remains the first person cured of infection with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Timothy Ray Brown, who is known as "The Berlin Patient" because of where he was treated, and Dr. Gero Hutter made their first joint appearance in the U.S. on Wednesday when Hutter spoke at a symposium on gene therapy at Washington University in St. Louis. Scientists are studying whether gene therapy can be used to rid the body of HIV. Brown, 46, was diagnosed with HIV in 1995. In 2006, he developed leukemia while living in Germany. Hutter performed a blood stem cell transplant using a donor with a rare gene mutation that provides natural resistance to HIV. Hutter said that resistance transferred to Brown. Brown said he feels great, has not needed HIV medication since the 2007 surgery, and is now active in a foundation that seeks a cure for HIV. Hutter said enough time has passed to say without hesitation that Brown is cured, citing the same five-year standard after which some cancer patients are said to be cured. Brown, who now … Continue reading →

By Ryan Flinn - 2012-09-13T20:06:09Z Neuralstem Inc. (CUR), a biotechnology company with no approved products, gained the most ever after saying its stem cell treatment restored paralyzed rats ability to move in an early study. Neuralstem rose 38 percent to $1.38 at the close of trading in New York, its largest single-day gain since the shares first started trading in December 2006. The Rockville, Maryland-based companys stock has gained 43 percent this year. Researchers severed the spinal vertebrae of 12 rats, then gave half of them Neuralstems stem cells a week after the injury, according to the study published today in the journal Cell. The rats that received the injections gained significant locomotor recovery, according to a company statement. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration placed a hold on Neuralstems proposed human trial to treat spinal cord injury in October 2010, according to a company filing. We think that this paper is the last piece of the puzzle to get the FDA to take our spinal cord injury trial off hold, Richard Garr, chief executive officer, said in an interview. Neuralstem also is testing its therapy in early human clinical trials for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, known as Lou Gehrigs disease, … Continue reading →

A novel treatment using human embryonic stem cells has successfully restored some hearing to previously deaf gerbils, according to a study published this week in the journal Nature. Hearing loss is generally caused by the interruption of two different types of cells: The loss of hair cells in the ear, which transform vibrations into electrical signals, and loss of the auditory nerve, which transmits the signals detected by the hair cells to the brainstem. While cochlear implants have proven effective in restoring hearing in cases of hair cell damage, no such treatment has existed for the roughly 10% cases in which the auditory nerve itself is damaged. The new strategy, designed by Marcelo Rivolta and his team at the University of Sheffield, uses techniques the group has recently developed to coax human embryonic stem cells to differentiate into what are called "otic progenitor cells" -- cells that have the possibility to develop further into either hair cells or auditory nerve cells. The progenitor cells are then transplanted into the ears of gerbils with damaged auditory nerves, and allowed to differentiate further. Gerbils were used in the experiment because they hear a similar range of sounds as humans do. At that … Continue reading →