Monthly Archives: January 2012

UCD stem cell research battles Huntington's disease

Posted: January 29, 2012 at 3:43 pm

A team of researchers at UC Davis has pioneered a technique to
use stem cells to smother the genetic problem that causes
Huntington's disease.

The findings, due in the journal Molecular and Cellular
Neuroscience, could pave the way for a treatment that stops the
disease's devastating progression.

Huntington's is an inherited disease in which the body produces
a mutant version of a protein, huntingtin, that destroys nerve
cells in the brain.

It causes uncontrolled movements and difficulty walking, plus
dementia that grows progressively worse until the disease
ultimately results in death. It strikes about one in every
10,000 people in this country, according to the Huntington's
Disease Society of America.

There is no known cure. Treatment aims to slow down the
worsening of symptoms and keep the patient comfortable.

Researchers at the UC Davis Institute for Regenerative Cures,
led by Jan A. Nolta, attacked abnormal huntingtin with a
technique called RNA interference.

This is how it works: RNA is a molecule similar to DNA that
occurs naturally in the body and which cells use to produce
proteins.

If a strand of RNA is producing a bad protein, like the mutant
huntingtin, researchers can create another strand that's
essentially an inverted version of the bad one. Inject that new
molecule into a cell, and it locks onto the bad RNA like an
opposite puzzle piece, blocking it from making any protein.

For the first time, Nolta and colleagues were able to generate
huntingtin-blocking RNA in stem cells and inject them straight
into nerve cells – a treatment that significantly reduced the
amount of the mutant protein produced.

The scientists used stem cells derived from the bone marrow of
healthy human donors.

The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine and Team KJ
funded the research.

Nolta said the findings could lead to treatments for genetic
disorders such as ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease) and Parkinson's,
as well.

Now, she said, "Our challenge with RNA interference technology
is to figure out how to deliver it into the human brain in a
sustained, safe and effective manner. We're exploring how to
use human stem cells to create RNAi production factories within
the brain."

Nolta's lab recently received funding from the California
Institute for Regenerative Medicine to develop an RNAi delivery
system for Huntington's disease.

©
Copyright The Sacramento Bee. All rights reserved.

Call The Bee's Grace Rubenstein, (916) 321-1270.

• Read more
articles by Grace Rubenstein

What You Should Know About Comments on Sacbee.com

Sacbee.com is happy to provide a forum for reader interaction,
discussion, feedback and reaction to our stories. However, we
reserve the right to delete inappropriate comments or ban users
who can't play nice. (See our full terms of
service here.)

Here are some rules of the road:

• Keep your comments civil. Don't insult one another or the
subjects of our articles. If you think a comment violates our
guidelines click the "Report Abuse" link to notify the
moderators. Responding to the comment will only encourage bad
behavior.

• Don't use profanities, vulgarities or hate speech. This is a
general interest news site. Sometimes, there are children
present. Don't say anything in a way you wouldn't want your own
child to hear.

• Do not attack other users; focus your comments on issues, not
individuals.

• Stay on topic. Only post comments relevant to the article at
hand.

• Do not copy and paste outside material into the comment box.

• Don't repeat the same comment over and over. We heard you the
first time.

• Do not use the commenting system for advertising. That's spam
and it isn't allowed.

• Don't use all capital letters. That's akin to yelling and not
appreciated by the audience.

• Don't flag other users' comments just because you don't agree
with their point of view. Please only flag comments that
violate these guidelines.

You should also know that The Sacramento Bee does not screen
comments before they are posted. You are more likely to see
inappropriate comments before our staff does, so we ask that
you click the "Report Abuse" link to submit those comments for
moderator review. You also may notify us via email at feedback@sacbee.com. Note the
headline on which the comment is made and tell us the profile
name of the user who made the comment. Remember, comment
moderation is subjective. You may find some material
objectionable that we won't and vice versa.

If you submit a comment, the user name of your account will
appear along with it. Users cannot remove their own comments
once they have submitted them.

Continue reading here:
UCD stem cell research battles Huntington's disease

Posted in Stem Cell Research | Comments Off on UCD stem cell research battles Huntington's disease

World-Renowned Cell-Therapy Researcher, Doris Taylor, PhD, Joins Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital

Posted: January 29, 2012 at 5:46 am

HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Officials at the Texas Heart Institute
(THI) at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital (St. Luke’s) announced
today that Doris
Taylor, PhD, FAHA, FACC, one of the world’s leading cell
therapy and cardiac regeneration scientists, will join THI
beginning March 1, 2012.

Dr. Taylor’s research includes: Cell and gene therapy for
treatment of cardiovascular disease; tissue
engineering of bioartificial organs and vasculature; cell-based
prevention of disease; stem cells and cancer; and holistic
approaches to using cell therapy for treating chronic disease.

Most recently, Dr. Taylor and her team garnered international
recognition for work involving “whole organ decellularization”
by showing they were able to remove existing cells from hearts
of laboratory animals and even humans leaving a framework to
build new organs. They repopulated the framework with other
adult stem cells then provided a blood supply, and the heart
regenerated with the characteristics and functions of a
revitalized beating heart.

The hope is that this research is an early step toward being
able to grow a fully functional human heart in the laboratory.
Dr. Taylor has demonstrated that the process works for other
organs as well – opening a door in the field of organ
transplantation.

It is significant in that the need for transplants continues to
grow, while the supply of donor organs remains critically low.

“Dr. Taylor is certainly one of the stars in the adult human
stem cell field, and we feel extremely fortunate to have her
join our team,” said Dr. James T. Willerson, THI’s President
and Medical Director. “Her work fits very well with our mission
and goals, and she certainly helps to solidify THI as a leader
in cell therapy, which is one of the most promising hopes for
treating cardiovascular disease.”

“The chance to work with Dr. Willerson and the THI team as
colleagues is very exhilarating. From molecules, to cells, to
organs and tissues, we want to create solutions for people with
disease,” said Dr. Taylor. “I am confident that I am joining a
regenerative medicine program that is unparalleled. And, given
the breadth of innovation and science in Houston, I have every
confidence that building solutions for heart diseases not only
has a long history, but a bright future.”

The move to Houston will also bring her closer to her family,
notes Dr. Taylor.

Dr. Taylor has been serving as director of the Center for
Cardiovascular Repair and Medtronic Bakken Chair in Integrative
Biology and Physiology at the University of Minnesota. Prior to
that she was on the faculty as Associate Professor in
Cardiology at Duke University Medical Center.

A native of Mississippi, Dr. Taylor holds a B.S. in biology
from Mississippi University for Women and a Doctorate in
pharmacology from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical
School in Dallas.

About the Texas Heart® Institute

The Texas Heart Institute (www.texasheart.org),
founded by world-renowned cardiovascular surgeon Dr. Denton A.
Cooley in 1962, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to
reducing the devastating toll of cardiovascular disease through
innovative and progressive programs in research, education and
improved patient care. Together with its clinical partner, St.
Luke’s Episcopal Hospital, it has been ranked among the top 10
cardiovascular centers in the United States by U.S. News &
World Report’s annual guide to “America’s Best Hospitals” for
the past 21 years. The Texas Heart Institute is also
affiliated with the University of Texas (UT) System, which
promotes collaboration in cardiovascular research and education
among UT and THI faculty at the Texas Heart Institute and other
UT components.

About St. Luke’s Episcopal Health System

St. Luke’s Episcopal Health System (StLukesTexas.com)
includes St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital in the Texas Medical
Center, founded in 1954 by the Episcopal Diocese of Texas; St.
Luke’s The Woodlands Hospital; St. Luke’s Sugar Land Hospital;
St. Luke’s Lakeside Hospital; St. Luke’s Patients Medical
Center; St. Luke’s Hospital at The Vintage; and St. Luke’s
Episcopal Health Charities, a charity devoted to assessing and
enhancing community health, especially among the underserved.
St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital is home to the Texas
Heart®Institute, which was founded in
1962 by Denton A. Cooley, MD, and is consistently ranked among
the top 10 cardiology and heart surgery centers in the country
by U.S. News & World Report. Affiliated with several
nursing schools and three medical schools, St. Luke’s Episcopal
Hospital was the first hospital in Texas named a Magnet
hospital for nursing excellence, receiving the award three
times.

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available:
http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=50147362&lang=en

MULTIMEDIA AVAILABLE:http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=50147362&lang=en

More here:
World-Renowned Cell-Therapy Researcher, Doris Taylor, PhD, Joins Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital

Posted in Cell Therapy | Comments Off on World-Renowned Cell-Therapy Researcher, Doris Taylor, PhD, Joins Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital

Alzheimers Neurons Created from Pluripotent Stem Cells

Posted: January 28, 2012 at 8:10 pm

First-ever feat provides new method to understand cause of
disease, develop drugs

Newswise — Led by researchers at the University of California,
San Diego School of Medicine, scientists have, for the first
time, created stem cell-derived, in vitro models of sporadic
and hereditary Alzheimer’s disease (AD), using induced
pluripotent stem cells from patients with the much-dreaded
neurodegenerative disorder.

“Creating highly purified and functional human Alzheimer’s
neurons in a dish – this has never been done before,” said
senior study author Lawrence Goldstein, PhD, professor in the
Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Howard Hughes
Medical Institute Investigator and director of the UC San Diego
Stem Cell Program. “It’s a first step. These aren’t perfect
models. They’re proof of concept. But now we know how to make
them. It requires extraordinary care and diligence, really
rigorous quality controls to induce consistent behavior, but we
can do it.”

The feat, published in the January 25 online edition of the
journal Nature, represents a new and much-needed method
for studying the causes of AD, a progressive dementia that
afflicts approximately 5.4 million Americans. More importantly,
the living cells provide an unprecedented tool for developing
and testing drugs to treat the disorder.

“We’re dealing with the human brain. You can’t just do a biopsy
on living patients,” said Goldstein. “Instead, researchers have
had to work around, mimicking some aspects of the disease in
non-neuronal human cells or using limited animal models.
Neither approach is really satisfactory.”

Goldstein and colleagues extracted primary fibroblasts from
skin tissues taken from two patients with familial AD (a rare,
early-onset form of the disease associated with a genetic
predisposition), two patients with sporadic AD (the common form
whose cause is not known) and two persons with no known
neurological problems. They reprogrammed the fibroblasts into
induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) that then differentiated
into working neurons.

The iPSC-derived neurons from the Alzheimer’s patients
exhibited normal electrophysiological activity, formed
functional synaptic contacts and, critically, displayed
tell-tale indicators of AD. Specifically, they possessed
higher-than-normal levels of proteins associated with the
disorder.

With the in vitro Alzheimer’s neurons, scientists can more
deeply investigate how AD begins and chart the biochemical
processes that eventually destroy brain cells associated with
elemental cognitive functions like memory. Currently, AD
research depends heavily upon studies of post-mortem tissues,
long after the damage has been done.

“The differences between a healthy neuron and an Alzheimer’s
neuron are subtle,” said Goldstein. “It basically comes down to
low-level mischief accumulating over a very long time, with
catastrophic results.”

The researchers have already produced some surprising findings.
“In this work, we show that one of the early changes in
Alzheimer’s neurons thought to be an initiating event in the
course of the disease turns out not to be that significant,”
Goldstein said, adding that they discovered a different early
event plays a bigger role.

The scientists also found that neurons derived from one of the
two patients with sporadic AD exhibited biochemical changes
possibly linked to the disease. The discovery suggests that
there may be sub-categories of the disorder and that, in the
future, potential therapies might be targeted to specific
groups of AD patients.

Though just a beginning, Goldstein emphasized the iPSC-derived
Alzheimer’s neurons present a huge opportunity in a desperate
fight. “At the end of the day, we need to use cells like these
to better understand Alzheimer’s and find drugs to treat it. We
need to do everything we can because the cost of this disease
is just too heavy and horrible to contemplate. Without
solutions, it will bankrupt us – emotionally and financially.”

Funding for this research came, in part, from the California
Institute for Regenerative Medicine, the Weatherstone
Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the Hartwell
Foundation, the Lookout Fund and the McDonnell Foundation.

A patent application has been filed on this technology by the
University of California, San Diego. For more information, go
to: http://techtransfer.universityofcalifornia.edu/NCD/22199.html[1]

Co-authors are Mason A. Israel and Sol M. Reyna, Howard Hughes
Medical Institute and UCSD Department of Cellular and Molecular
Medicine and UCSD Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program; Shauna
H. Yuan, Howard Hughes Medical Institute and UCSD Department of
Cellular and Molecular Medicine and UCSD Department of
Neurosciences; Cedric Bardy and Yangling Mu, The Salk Institute
for Biological Studies; Cheryl Herrera, Howard Hughes Medical
Institute and UCSD Department of Cellular and Molecular
Medicine; Michael P. Hefferan, UCSD Department of
Anesthesiology; Sebastiaan Van Gorp, Department of
Anesthesiology, Maastricht University Medical Center,
Netherlands; Kristopher L. Nazor, Department of Chemical
Physiology, The Scripps Research Institute; Francesca S.
Boscolo and Louise C. Laurent, UCSD Department of Reproductive
Medicine; Christian T. Carson, BD Biosciences; Martin Marsala,
UCSD Department of Anesthesiology and Institute of
Neurobiology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Slovakia; Fred H.
Gage, The Salk Institute of Biological Studies; Anne M. Remes,
Department of Clinical Medicine, Neurology and Clinical
Research Center, University of Oulu, Finland; and Edward H.
Koo, UCSD Department of Neurosciences.

About Alzheimer’s disease
An estimated 5.4 million Americans have Alzheimer’s disease,
according to the Alzheimer’s Association. Two-thirds are women.
By 2050, as many as 16 million Americans are projected to have
the disease. In 2011, the economic cost of caring for
Alzheimer’s patients exceeded $183 billion, projected to rise
to $1.1 trillion by 2050. Alzheimer’s is the sixth leading
cause of death in the United States, killing more than 75,000
Americans annually. Currently, there are no drugs to prevent,
alter or cure the disease.

Video: To watch or download video of Goldstein explaining the
challenges of Alzheimer’s disease research and the findings of
this Nature paper, go to http://vmg.ucsd.edu/download/Media%20Release%20Footage/[2] and click
on
“L.Goldstein-StemCellDerivedNeurons.”

###

Comment/Share


Read the original:
Alzheimers Neurons Created from Pluripotent Stem Cells

Posted in Molecular Medicine | Comments Off on Alzheimers Neurons Created from Pluripotent Stem Cells

Need muscle for a tough spot? Turn to fat stem cells

Posted: January 28, 2012 at 12:52 pm


In diseases like [1] or a
[2], “[3]
begins to die and undergoes its normal wounding processes,”
said Engler, a [4]
professor at the Jacobs School of Engineering at UC San Diego.
“This damaged tissue is fundamentally different from a
mechanical perspective” than healthy tissue.

Transplanted [5] might be
able to replace and repair diseased muscle, but up to this
point the transplants haven’t been very successful in muscular
dystrophy patients, he noted. The cells tend to clump into hard
nodules as they struggle to adapt to their new environment of
thickened and damaged tissue.

Engler, postdoctoral scholar Yu Suk Choi and the rest of the
team think their fat-derived stem cells might have a better
chance for this kind of therapy, since the cells seem to thrive
on a stiff and unyielding surface that mimics the damaged
tissue found in people with MD.

In their study in the journal Biomaterials, the
researchers compared the development of bone marrow stem cells
and fat-derived stem cells grown on surfaces of varying
stiffness, ranging from the softness of brain tissue to the
hardness of bone.

Cells from the fat lineage were 40 to 50 times better than
their bone marrow counterparts at displaying the proper
proteins involved in becoming muscle. These proteins are also
more likely to “turn on” in the correct sequence in the
fat-derived cells, Engler said.

Subtle differences in how these two types of cells interact
with their environment are critical to their development, the
scientists suggest. The fat-derived cells seem to sense their
“niche” on the surfaces more completely and quickly than
marrow-derived cells. “They are actively feeling their
environment soon, which allows them to interpret the signals
from the interaction of cell and environment that guide
development,” Choi explained.

Perhaps most surprisingly, [6] grown from
the fat stem cells fused together, forming myotubes to a degree
never previously observed. Myotubes are a critical step in
muscle development, and it’s a step forward that Engler and
colleagues hadn’t seen before in the lab.

The fused cells stayed fused when they were transferred to a
very stiff surface. “These programmed cells are mature enough
so that they don’t respond the environmental cues” in the new
environment that might cause them to split apart, Engler says.

Engler and colleagues will now test how these new fused cells
perform in mice with a version of muscular dystrophy. The cells
survive in an environment of stiff tissue, but Engler cautions
that there are other aspects of diseased tissue such as its
shape and chemical composition to consider. “From the
perspective of translating this into a clinically viable
therapy, we want to know what components of the environment
provide the most important cues for these ,” he
said.
[7]


Provided by University of California - San Diego (news[8] :
web[9])


References

  1. ^
    (www.physorg.com)
  2. ^
    (www.physorg.com)
  3. ^
    (www.physorg.com)
  4. ^
    (www.physorg.com)
  5. ^
    (www.physorg.com)
  6. ^
    (www.physorg.com)
  7. ^
    (www.physorg.com)
  8. ^ news
    (www.physorg.com)
  9. ^ web
    (www.ucsd.edu)

See the article here:
Need muscle for a tough spot? Turn to fat stem cells

Posted in Stem Cells | Comments Off on Need muscle for a tough spot? Turn to fat stem cells

Aesthetic Plastic Surgery / Anti Aging Medicine: The Next Generation Symposium Attracts a World Class Faculty to New …

Posted: January 28, 2012 at 12:50 pm

NEW YORK, Jan. 26, 2012 /PRNewswire/
-- The third Aesthetic Plastic Surgery / Anti Aging
Medicine: The Next Generation Symposium will be held on July
20-22, 2012 at the Conrad New York, a new luxury complex
overlooking the Hudson River adjacent to One World Trade Center
tower. This interactive, multidisciplinary conference will
feature a world-class faculty presenting advancements in
aesthetic surgery, cosmetic medicine and anti-aging
therapy from around the globe.

"This year's symposium will
feature groundbreaking technologies from Europe, Latin America
and the U.S. in the emerging fields of regenerative medicine, stem cell
research, dermal fillers and volumizing agents,
neuromodulators, lasers, light, ultrasound and radiofrequency
based technologies and aesthetic plastic surgery. The faculty
we have assembled represents top experts from plastic surgery,
dermatology, facial plastic and oculoplastic surgery, as well
as anti-aging medicine," said Course Chairman Z. Paul Lorenc, M.D.,
F.A.C.S. "We are entirely focused on what is happening now,
what is coming next and what the future will bring."

The prestigious international faculty
includes: William Adams, M.D., Robert Bard, M.D., Cheryl
Burgess, M.D., James Carraway, M.D., Steven Cohen, M.D., Sydney
Coleman, M.D., Joseph Eviatar, M.D., Steven Fagien, M.D.,
Rebecca Fitzgerald, M.D., Roy Geronemus, M.D., Christopher
Godek, M.D., Miles Graivier, M.D., Joseph Gryskiewicz, M.D.,
Geoffrey Gurtner, M.D., Christine Hamori, M.D., David Hidalgo,
M.D., Haideh Hirmand, M.D., Joseph Hunstad, M.D., Nolan Karp,
M.D., Jeffrey M. Kenkel, M.D., Brian Kinney, M.D., Wendy Lewis,
Z. Paul Lorenc, M.D., Alan Matarasso, M.D., Foad Nahai, M.D.,
Ivona Percec, M.D., Joel Pessa, M.D., Jason Pozner, M.D.,
Andrea Pusic, M.D., Sam Rizk, M.D., J. Peter Rubin, M.D., Neil
Sadick, M.D., Anthony Sclafani, M.D., Robert Silich, M.D.,
Henry M. Spinelli, M.D., Arthur Swift, M.D., Heidi Waldorf,
M.D., V. Leroy Young, M.D., and Sabine Zenker,
M.D. 

The 2012 program has been expanded to
include innovative workshops led by leading experts on social
media and marketing, laser lipolysis and body shaping, facial
rejuvenation with novel agents, advanced imaging systems, and
new techniques for fat grafting and platelet rich fibrin matrix
(PRFM). Live demonstrations of dermal fillers, volumizing
agents and neuromodulators injection techniques will be
featured.

About Aesthetic Plastic Surgery
& Anti-Aging Medicine: The Next Generation - An
interdisciplinary approach to disseminating, teaching and
promoting the most advanced information and developments in the
fields of aesthetic plastic surgery and anti-aging medicine. In
view of the rapid pace in development of new technology and
techniques employed in these fields, collectively we feel that
it is critical that  new information is shared in an
efficient, unbiased, forward looking manner with the focus of
enhancing patient's safety and level of care.

For information about sponsorship
opportunities and early bird registration,
visit  http://www.nextgenmtg.org[1]

Like us on http://www.facebook.com/apssny[2] and
http://www.twitter.com/nextgenmtg[3] for
daily updates and news

References

  1. ^ http://www.nextgenmtg.org
    (us.lrd.yahoo.com)
  2. ^ http://www.facebook.com/apssny
    (us.lrd.yahoo.com)
  3. ^ http://www.twitter.com/nextgenmtg
    (us.lrd.yahoo.com)

More here:
Aesthetic Plastic Surgery / Anti Aging Medicine: The Next Generation Symposium Attracts a World Class Faculty to New ...

Posted in Cell Medicine | Comments Off on Aesthetic Plastic Surgery / Anti Aging Medicine: The Next Generation Symposium Attracts a World Class Faculty to New …

Ontario’s first cardiac stem cell transplant performed last week

Posted: January 28, 2012 at 12:50 pm


The first patient to receive this type of stem cell therapy,
James Culross, a 67-year-old man from Etobicoke, will be
discharged this week after 2.83 million [1] were
injected into seven sites where his heart had been damaged by a
[2] in November
2011. The stem cells were injected following [3] (CABG)
surgery, by a multi-disciplinary team led by Dr. Terrence Yau,
[4] and
Director of the Cardiac Stem Cell Therapy Program at the Peter
Munk Cardiac Centre. A second patient underwent successful stem
cell implantation and CABG surgery at the Peter Munk Cardiac
Centre this week.

"When a patient suffers a heart attack, part of the [5] dies and is
replaced by scar. The larger the heart attack, the more likely
that patient is to develop [6], in which
the heart becomes progressively weaker. Patients develop
[7], initially
during activity but later at rest as heart failure progresses,
and ultimately die of this disease," says Dr. Yau, who holds
the Angelo & Lorenza DeGasperis Chair in Cardiovascular
Surgery Research.

After a diagnosis of severe heart failure, the average life
expectancy is one and a half years for men and three years for
women, a prognosis worse than most cancers. Current treatments
for heart attacks, including angioplasty, stenting and [8], have saved
many lives and prevented further heart attacks, but they cannot
reverse the effect of heart attacks that have already occurred.
While researchers hope that stem cell therapy will improve the
function of hearts injured by heart attacks, the safety and
efficacy of stem cell therapy must first be clearly
demonstrated in [9] such as the
IMPACT-CABG Trial.

Using a novel process, unique in Canada, in which stem cells
are isolated by means of a rigorously-tested process in the
University Health Network's Organ Regeneration Laboratory,
located entirely within operating room suite, researchers
removed, prepared and injected the stem cells back into the
patient on the same day.

"Manipulating the cells in-house preserves cell viability.
Injecting the stem cells into the heart as soon as possible
after they are isolated from the patient's [10] may
improve their ability to improve heart function," says Dr.
Richard Weisel, Cardiac Surgeon at the Peter Munk Cardiac
Centre and Senior Scientist at the McEwen Centre for
Regenerative Medicine.

Here's how the process works: 100 millilitres of bone marrow is
acquired the morning of the patient's bypass surgery from the
iliac crest – the flat portion of the hip bone located near the
lower back – which is rich in bone marrow. The bone marrow is
then brought to the Organ Regeneration Laboratory, where
research technicians use a clinical-grade magnetic separating
device called the CliniMACS to separate the CD133 stem cells
from other components of the bone marrow. During the stem cell
isolation procedure, which takes four to six hours, the patient
rests until their surgery, which is scheduled to begin in the
early afternoon.

The end result is two millilitres of clear fluid containing
several million stem cells that have been rigorously tested to
ensure that they pass Health Canada-approved release criteria.
The cells are brought in a sterile tube to the [11] where Dr.
Yau's [12] graft
(CABG) surgery is underway. After the bypass grafts have been
completed, Dr. Yau fills a syringe with the stem cells and
injects them into the area of the heart that has been damaged
by a heart attack.

"This intraoperative approach to cardiac [13] is an
important component of the new Organ Regeneration Laboratory at
the University Health Network," says Dr. Shaf Keshavjee,
Surgeon-in-Chief at UHN. "Whether it is repairing hearts or
lungs, the Organ Regeneration Laboratory is at the leading edge
of regenerative medicine."

To date, over 500 heart patients worldwide have been treated
with a variety of stem cell preparations. Eight patients have
been treated at the Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital in Montreal
as part of the IMPACT-CABG Clinical Trial. Toronto and Montreal
researchers will merge their results after each centre performs
stem cell transplants in 20 patients. The objective of the
IMPACT-CABG Trial is to demonstrate the safety of injecting
stem cells into the hearts of patients undergoing CABG surgery,
and to gather information on the feasibility and efficacy of
this approach.

"This clinical trial marks an important milestone in
regenerative medicine therapy at the University Health Network
and paves the way for collaborative studies between scientists
at the McEwen Centre and Dr. Yau and the team at the Peter Munk
Cardiac Centre," says Dr. Gordon Keller, Director of the McEwen
Centre for Regenerative Medicine.

Dr. Barry Rubin, Medical Director of the Peter Munk Cardiac
Centre, commented, "The Peter Munk Cardiac Centre is leading
innovation into new treatments for cardiovascular diseases. We
are very pleased to partner with scientists in the McEwen
Centre and to work together to provide novel stem cell
therapies for our patients."


Provided by University Health Network


References

  1. ^
    (www.physorg.com)
  2. ^
    (www.physorg.com)
  3. ^ (www.physorg.com)
  4. ^
    (www.physorg.com)
  5. ^
    (www.physorg.com)
  6. ^
    (www.physorg.com)
  7. ^
    (www.physorg.com)
  8. ^
    (www.physorg.com)
  9. ^
    (www.physorg.com)
  10. ^
    (www.physorg.com)
  11. ^
    (www.physorg.com)
  12. ^
    (www.physorg.com)
  13. ^
    (www.physorg.com)

Continued here:
Ontario's first cardiac stem cell transplant performed last week

Posted in Cell Therapy | Comments Off on Ontario’s first cardiac stem cell transplant performed last week

Craig Venter: Understanding Our Genes – A Step to Personalized Medicine | CIRM Spotlight on Genomics – Video

Posted: January 28, 2012 at 10:04 am

24-01-2012 10:25 On January 17th, 2012, the CIRM Governing Board heard from scientists and a patient about the essential role of genomics in the development of stem cell based therapies.

View post:
Craig Venter: Understanding Our Genes - A Step to Personalized Medicine | CIRM Spotlight on Genomics - Video

Posted in Cell Medicine | Comments Off on Craig Venter: Understanding Our Genes – A Step to Personalized Medicine | CIRM Spotlight on Genomics – Video

Vet-Stem Announces Milestone of 8,000 Animals Treated With Vet-Stem Cell Therapy

Posted: January 28, 2012 at 3:43 am

POWAY, CA--(Marketwire -01/27/12)- Vet-Stem, Inc. today
announced that over 8,000 animals have now been treated with
Vet-Stem cell therapy.

Vet-Stem began providing stem cells to veterinarians in 2004
and has now provided stem cells for the treatment of over
8,000 animals. Vet-Stem was the first company to introduce
rapid turnaround stem cell services in the US. After
providing stem cells for thousands of horses, Vet-Stem
pioneered stem cell therapy in dogs and cats and is now the
world leader in Regenerative Veterinary Medicine™. The rapid
adoption of stem cell therapy by equine veterinarians and
horse owners provided a springboard for use in small animal
veterinary medicine.

Greater than 75% of horses treated with Vet-Stem cell therapy
for tendon and ligament injuries are able to return to their
previous level of performance. Dog owners report that greater
than 80% of dogs treated with Vet-Stem cell therapy have an
improved quality of life.

"We are proud that so many dog, horse, and cat owners as well
as veterinarians have placed their trust in Vet-Stem cell
therapy. We feel a great sense of accomplishment knowing that
there are now over 8,000 horse and pet owners who have
experienced the benefit of stem cell technology. This
practical and beneficial application of technology puts stem
cell therapy into the present day instead of a future
theoretical concept," said Bob Harman, DVM, MPVM, Founder and
CEO of Vet-Stem.

Vet-Stem is now working with small animal veterinarians to
develop other life-saving uses for stem cell therapy for
injuries and diseases that currently have few treatment
options.

More information about Vet-Stem can be found at http://www.Vet-Stem.com[1]

About Vet-Stem, Inc.:
Vet-Stem, Inc. was formed in
2002 to bring regenerative medicine to the veterinary
profession. This privately held company delivers stem cell
and related services and products to veterinarians to treat
diseases in dogs, cats and horses. These technologies utilize
the natural healing properties inherent in all animals to
reduce pain and improve the quality of life of our animal
companions. Published studies have confirmed that
adipose-derived stem cells can dramatically improve the
healing of injuries and diseases that have had very few
treatment options in the past.

Vet-Stem holds the exclusive worldwide veterinary rights to
the Artecel (University of Pittsburgh) and University of
California adipose stem cell patent portfolio of over 55
issued patents.

References

  1. ^ http://www.Vet-Stem.com
    (us.lrd.yahoo.com)

Read the rest here:
Vet-Stem Announces Milestone of 8,000 Animals Treated With Vet-Stem Cell Therapy

Posted in Stem Cell Videos | Comments Off on Vet-Stem Announces Milestone of 8,000 Animals Treated With Vet-Stem Cell Therapy

StemCellTV Daily Report-January 24, 2012 – Video

Posted: January 27, 2012 at 10:04 pm

24-01-2012 10:19 Stem cells may soon be used in penile reconstruction for men that have erectile dysfunction or Peyronie's disease.

Read more here:
StemCellTV Daily Report-January 24, 2012 - Video

Posted in Stem Cells | Comments Off on StemCellTV Daily Report-January 24, 2012 – Video

Craig Venter: Understanding Our Genes – A Step to Personalized Medicine | CIRM Spotlight on Genomics – Video

Posted: January 27, 2012 at 10:02 pm

24-01-2012 10:25 On January 17th, 2012, the CIRM Governing Board heard from scientists and a patient about the essential role of genomics in the development of stem cell based therapies.

See the original post:
Craig Venter: Understanding Our Genes - A Step to Personalized Medicine | CIRM Spotlight on Genomics - Video

Posted in Cell Medicine | Comments Off on Craig Venter: Understanding Our Genes – A Step to Personalized Medicine | CIRM Spotlight on Genomics – Video