Category Archives: Michigan Stem Cells

GREENVILLE, Mich., Looking at Bree Town these days, its hard to believe how far shes come in just a year.

Last November, the 11-year-old received the devastating news that her acute myeloid leukemia (AML) had returned and that she needed a bone marrow transplant to survive. After hundreds turned out for community bone marrow drives around West Michigan, Bree and her family learned the perfect match had been found overseas.

Her donor, an unidentified man in his early 20s from Germany, was able to provide lifesaving stem cells to the Baldwin Heights fifth grader.

Just weeks after receiving the transplant, Bree was able to return home in March. Against doctors expectations, she was also able to return to school at the beginning of the year.

Watch the video above to see what Bree is up to now and what she thinks about possibly meeting her donor one day.

FOX 17 first introduced you to Bree in June 2012 as she worked to pay it forward to other kids at DeVos Childrens Hospital in Grand Rapids, despite being diagnosed with AML. She captured the hearts of many in West Michigan and around the world who follow her progress on Facebook.

To learn more, visit her We Bree-Lieve page here.

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Reason to Bree-Lieve: Greenville girl continues to beat the odds

ST-elevation is a measurement on an electrocardiogram, in which the trace in the ST segment is very high above the isoelectric line. An electrocardiogram, or electrocardiograph, is an evaluation of the electrical activity of the heart over a period of time. It is captured and recorded by external skin electrodes.

The ST segment is related to a period of ventrical systolic depolarization, which means the cardiac muscle is contracted. Relaxation then subsequently occurs during diastolic repolarization. Normally the ST segment displays a particular order of muscular layers that repolarize at set times.

However, if the cardiac muscle becomes damaged or inflamed, its electrical properties transform. This can lead to premature repolarization, or the systole ending earlier than usual.

ST elevation can be present in several conditions including acute pericarditis, which is an acute inflammation of the sac surrounding the heart, left ventricular aneurysm, which is a complication that can occur after a heart attack and myocardial infarction (MI), another word for heart attack.

Undifferentiated adult stem cells can transform into the cells of countless organs and tissues within the human body. Used in many therapies, they restore impaired fibers and renew failing cells through cell division, a process in which they multiply indefinitely. Stem cell science has seen vast improvements in recent years and many new developments and discoveries have been made.

Angeles Health developed the Adult Autologous Stem Cell (A-ASC) Therapy program to manage a variety of diseases, including ST-elevation. ST-elevation is treated using autologous adult stem cells, which come from the patient themselves. This means there is very little possibility of a patients body rejecting the stem cells.

Angeles hospital uses stem cells that come from the patients bone marrow and adipose tissue, or fat. As adipose tissue extraction is more effective than bone marrow extraction, because the tissue can yield up to ten times more stem cells, it is much more commonly used. Bone marrow extraction is also a more difficult procedure to carry out.

The innovative therapeutic endovascular placement of adipose-derived adult autologous stem cells in the Stem Cell Therapy treatment program at Hospital Angeles means organs or tissues can be targeted directly.

The specialized catheterization procedure is not invasive but easy on the patient. Stem cells can be delivered throughout the body, there is no need for an anesthetic and it is completed in less than an hour.

Angeles Health International is a Center of Excellence and offers patients with SI-elevation the most innovative therapies of the highest quality and confidence. Collaborative medical practitioners work to promote and define best practices. They measure results, learn together and establish treatment protocols. The Center of Excellence works with groups of licensed medical professionals who adhere to formally appointed bodies of expertise. This upholds the highest standards of treatment and investigative research.

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ST-elevation MI treatment with Stem Cell Therapy | Stem ...

BERKELEY

A surprise discovery that overturns decades of thinking about how the body fixes proteins that come unraveled greatly expands opportunities for therapies to prevent diseases such as Alzheimers and Parkinsons, which have been linked to the accumulation of improperly folded proteins in the brain.

This finding provides a whole other outlook on protein-folding diseases; a new way to go after them, said Andrew Dillin, the Thomas and Stacey Siebel Distinguished Chair of Stem Cell Research in the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology and Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator at the University of California, Berkeley.

Dillin, UC Berkeley postdoctoral fellows Nathan A. Baird and Peter M. Douglas and their colleagues at the University of Michigan, The Scripps Research Institute and Genentech Inc., will publish their results in the Oct. 17 issue of the journal Science.

Cells put a lot of effort into preventing proteins which are like a string of beads arranged in a precise three-dimensional shape from unraveling, since a proteins activity as an enzyme or structural component depends on being properly shaped and folded. There are at least 350 separate molecular chaperones constantly patrolling the cell to refold misfolded proteins. Heat is one of the major threats to proteins, as can be demonstrated when frying an egg the clear white albumen turns opaque as the proteins unfold and then tangle like spaghetti.

Heat shock

For 35 years, researchers have worked under the assumption that when cells undergo heat shock, as with a fever, they produce a protein that triggers a cascade of events that field even more chaperones to refold unraveling proteins that could kill the cell. The protein, HSF-1 (heat shock factor-1), does this by binding to promoters upstream of the 350-plus chaperone genes, upping the genes activity and launching the army of chaperones, which originally were called heat shock proteins.

Injecting animals with HSF-1 has been shown not only to increase their tolerance of heat stress, but to increase lifespan.

Because an accumulation of misfolded proteins has been implicated in aging and in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimers, Parkinsons and Huntingtons diseases, scientists have sought ways to artificially boost HSF-1 in order to reduce the protein plaques and tangles that eventually kill brain cells. To date, such boosters have extended lifespan in lab animals, including mice, but greatly increased the incidence of cancer.

Dillins team found in experiments on the nematode worm C. elegans that HSF-1 does a whole lot more than trigger release of chaperones. An equal if not more important function is to stabilize the cells cytoskeleton, which is the highway that transports essential supplies healing chaperones included around the cell.

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New front in war on Alzheimers, other protein-folding diseases

A surprise discovery that overturns decades of thinking about how the body fixes proteins that come unraveled greatly expands opportunities for therapies to prevent diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, which have been linked to the accumulation of improperly folded proteins in the brain.

"This finding provides a whole other outlook on protein-folding diseases; a new way to go after them," said Andrew Dillin, the Thomas and Stacey Siebel Distinguished Chair of Stem Cell Research in the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology and Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator at the University of California, Berkeley.

Dillin, UC Berkeley postdoctoral fellows Nathan A. Baird and Peter M. Douglas and their colleagues at the University of Michigan, The Scripps Research Institute and Genentech Inc., will publish their results in the Oct. 17 issue of the journal Science.

Cells put a lot of effort into preventing proteins -- which are like a string of beads arranged in a precise three-dimensional shape -- from unraveling, since a protein's activity as an enzyme or structural component depends on being properly shaped and folded. There are at least 350 separate molecular chaperones constantly patrolling the cell to refold misfolded proteins. Heat is one of the major threats to proteins, as can be demonstrated when frying an egg -- the clear white albumen turns opaque as the proteins unfold and then tangle like spaghetti.

For 35 years, researchers have worked under the assumption that when cells undergo heat shock, as with a fever, they produce a protein that triggers a cascade of events that field even more chaperones to refold unraveling proteins that could kill the cell. The protein, HSF-1 (heat shock factor-1), does this by binding to promoters upstream of the 350-plus chaperone genes, upping the genes' activity and launching the army of chaperones, which originally were called "heat shock proteins."

Injecting animals with HSF-1 has been shown not only to increase their tolerance of heat stress, but to increase lifespan.

Because an accumulation of misfolded proteins has been implicated in aging and in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Huntington's diseases, scientists have sought ways to artificially boost HSF-1 in order to reduce the protein plaques and tangles that eventually kill brain cells. To date, such boosters have extended lifespan in lab animals, including mice, but greatly increased the incidence of cancer.

Dillin's team found in experiments on the nematode worm C. elegans that HSF-1 does a whole lot more than trigger release of chaperones. An equal if not more important function is to stabilize the cell's cytoskeleton, which is the highway that transports essential supplies -- healing chaperones included -- around the cell.

"We are suggesting that, rather than making more of HSF-1 to prevent diseases like Huntington's, we should be looking for ways to make the actin cytoskeleton better," Dillin said. Such tactics might avoid the carcinogenic side effects of upping HSF-1.

Dillin is codirector of the Paul F. Glenn Center for Aging Research, a new collaboration between UC Berkeley and UC San Francisco supported by the Glenn Foundation for Medical Research. Center investigators will study the many ways that proteins malfunction within cells, ideally paving the way for novel treatments for neurodegenerative diseases.

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New front in war on Alzheimer's, other protein-linked brain diseases

Pink is the official color of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, but the foods recommended for breast cancer prevention are green, white, red, yellow and brown.

Theyre all - no surprise - the foods of the earth: fruits, vegetables, herbs, spices, nuts, seeds. October is, conveniently, also Vegetarian Awareness Month. This is not a matter of overbooking; health and plant-based food go together.

Behold, your cancer-fighting all-stars:

Broccoli: A 2011 University of Michigan study found the plant sterols in broccoli reduce breast cancer stem cells. Broccolis just coming into season here, so buy local and eat up.

Coffee: Java junkies and cold-brew fiends, this ones for you. A 2011 Breast Cancer Research report shows the antioxidants in 2 cups a day protects cells from cancer growth.

Parsley: This ubiquitous garnish is high in vitamin C and apigenin, another phytonutrient we never knew about before. Apigenin may be cancers WMD, according to findings by the University of Missouri. Celebrate with some parsley-rich tabbouli.

Pomegranate: In season now, these sweet-tart beauties can arrest cancer cell growth and destroy existing cancer cells, according to a University of California study. The fine print: You need to consume a lot of pomegranate, about 3 cups a day, for the goodness to kick in.

Soy: Organic whole soy, the way they eat it in Asia - tempeh, tofu, edamame and miso - has received the blessing from the American Institute for Cancer Research. Choose that rather than the GMO soy isolates present in much American processed food.

Turmeric: Gold dust. Antiseptic, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant, this wonderful warming spice seems to inhibit or erase cancer cell growth, according to a 2011 Cancer Prevention Research study.

Walnuts: High in omega-3s, the same awesome anti-inflammatory amino acid in salmon. A joint study by the journal Nutrition and Cancer and the American Institute for Cancer Research found walnut consumption reduces breast cancer risk and retards cancer cell growth.

Excerpt from:
Healthy recipes with plant-based foods are weapons against cancer

Pink is the official color of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, but the foods recommended for breast cancer prevention are green, white, red, yellow and brown.

They're all foods of the earth: fruits, vegetables, herbs, spices, nuts, seeds. October is, conveniently, also Vegetarian Awareness Month. This is not a matter of overbooking; health and plant-based food go together.

Behold, your cancer-fighting all-stars:

- Broccoli: A 2011 University of Michigan study found the plant sterols in broccoli reduce breast cancer stem cells.

- Coffee: Java junkies and cold-brew fiends, this one's for you. A 2011 Breast Cancer Research report shows the antioxidants in 2 cups a day protects cells from cancer growth.

- Parsley: This ubiquitous garnish is high in vitamin C and apigenin, another phytonutrient we never knew about before. Apigenin may be cancer's WMD, according to findings by the University of Missouri. Celebrate with some parsley-rich tabbouli.

- Pomegranate: In season now, these sweet-tart beauties can arrest cancer cell growth and destroy existing cancer cells, according to a University of California study. The fine print: You need to consume a lot of pomegranate, about 3 cups a day, for the goodness to kick in.

- Soy: Organic whole soy, the way they eat it in Asia -- tempeh, tofu, edamame and miso -- has received the blessing from the American Institute for Cancer Research. Choose that rather than the GMO soy isolates present in much American processed food.

- Turmeric: Gold dust. Antiseptic, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant, this wonderful warming spice seems to inhibit or erase cancer cell growth, according to a 2011 Cancer Prevention Research study.

- Walnuts: High in omega-3s, the same awesome anti-inflammatory amino acid in salmon. A joint study by the journal Nutrition and Cancer and the American Institute for Cancer Research found walnut consumption reduces breast cancer risk and retards cancer cell growth.

See more here:
Plant-based foods fight cancer

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

30-Sep-2014

Contact: Laura Bailey baileylm@umich.edu 734-647-1848 University of Michigan @umich

ANN ARBORThe discovery of a gene mutation that causes a rare premature aging disease could lead to the development of drugs that block the rapid, unstoppable cell division that makes cancer so deadly.

Scientists at the University of Michigan and the U-M Health System recently discovered a protein mutation that causes the devastating disease dyskeratosis congenita, in which precious hematopoietic stem cells can't regenerate and make new blood. People with DC age prematurely and are prone to cancer and bone marrow failure.

But the study findings reach far beyond the roughly one in 1 million known DC patients, and could ultimately lead to developing new drugs that prevent cancer from spreading, said Jayakrishnan Nandakumar, assistant professor in the U-M Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology.

The DC-causing mutation occurs in a protein called TPP1. The mutation inhibits TPP1's ability to bind the enzyme telomerase to the ends of chromosomes, which ultimately results in reduced hematopoietic stem cell division. While telomerase is underproduced in DC patients, the opposite is true for cells in cancer patients.

"Telomerase overproduction in cancer cells helps them divide uncontrollably, which is a hallmark of all cancers," Nandakumar said. "Inhibiting telomerase will be an effective way to kill cancer cells."

The findings could lead to the development of gene therapies to repair the mutation and start cell division in DC patients, or drugs to inhibit telomerase and cell division in cancer patients. Both would amount to huge treatment breakthroughs for DC and cancer patients, Nandakumar said.

Nandakumar said that a major step moving forward is to culture DC patient-derived cells and try to repair the TPP1 mutation to see if telomerase function can be restored. Ultimately, the U-M scientist hopes that fixing the TPP1 mutation repairs telomerase function and fuels cell division in the stem cells of DC patients.

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Disease decoded: Gene mutation may lead to development of new cancer drugs

Frequently Asked Questions Michigan Law and President Obamas Executive Order Embryonic, Adult, and IPS (induced Pluripotent) Stem Cells Benefits of Stem Cell Research Embryo and Fetus Definitions Cloning Public Opinions Ethics Federally Approved Stem Cell Lines Stem Cells: Myth Vs. Fact

On Nov. 4, 2008, Michigan voters approved Proposal 2 by a margin of 53 percent to 47 percent. The ballot measure amended the state constitution, overturning a 1978 Michigan law that prohibited the use of human embryos for research, even if those embryos were to be discarded.

The law change enables Michigan researchers to derive new embryonic stem lines, using procedures already employed in laboratories around the world. The new state law allows the use of human embryos for research that is already permitted under federal law, provided that the embryos:

The new law makes Michigan one of just three states that protect stem cell research in the state constitution, while also enshrining specific restrictions. In addition to the restrictions listed above, the new law prohibits the buying or selling of embryos, as well as removing stem cells from embryos more than 14 days after cell division begins. It also requires the informed, written consent of embryo donors.

Michigans ban on human cloning was not altered by Proposal 2 and remains in full effect.

All human embryonic stem cell research at the University of Michigan will fully conform to the provisions of the new state constitutional amendment. In addition, U-M scientists will strictly adhere to the guidelines for the conduct of human embryonic stem cell research issued by the International Society for Stem Cell Research.

All stem cell research involving human subjects, including research in which embryos are donated for the derivation of stem cell lines, must be reviewed and approved by the University of Michigans Institutional Review Board. The board is a committee of ethicists, physicians, scientists and attorneys who review all aspects of the proposed research to ensure that is beneficial and ethically conducted.

All stem cell research must also be reviewed by the U-M Pluripotent Stem Cell Research Oversight Committee to independently ensure that all stem cell research projects are performed ethically.

On March 9, 2009, President Obama signed an executive order lifting the Bush administrations strict limits on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research. As a result, the federal government is expected to invest millions of dollars in new embryonic stem cell research.

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University of Michigan Stem Cell Research | Frequently ...

Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest types of cancer. It is the fourth most common cause of cancer deaths in the United States. More than 43,000 people are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer each year and about the same number die each year from the disease. Only about 3% of people with pancreatic cancer live more than five years after diagnosis.

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There are several reasons why this type of cancer is so lethal

Scientists at the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center are studying pancreatic cancer in an effort to find new and more effective treatments for patients with this deadly disease. In 2007, Cancer Center scientists were the first to identify a small group of cells, called cancer stem cells, in tumors from patients with pancreatic cancer. Researchers believe these stem cells are the key to finding an effective treatment and possibly someday a cure for pancreatic cancer.

U-M research shows that just a few cancer stem cells are responsible for the growth and spread of pancreatic cancer. Unless these stem cells are destroyed, the cancer will return. The goal of U-M scientists is to develop a new therapy targeted directly at cancer stem cells. If successful, it will be a major step forward in the treatment of pancreatic cancer.

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Since pancreatic cancer is resistant to chemotherapy and radiation, new treatments are needed that can kill the small number of cancer stem cells within the tumor. Studying pancreatic cancer stem cells will help researchers identify targets for new drugs or therapies, which can then be tested in animals and eventually in human clinical trials.

For more information about clinical trials, please contact our Cancer Answerline at 800-865-1125.

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Pancreatic Cancer Stem Cell Research | University of ...