Category Archives: Virginia Stem Cells

Robert Bruno and Patrick Sachs, professors in ODUs School of Medical Diagnostic and Translational Sciences. (ODU News)

NORFOLK Robert Bruno and Patrick Sachs, professors in the School of Medical Diagnostic and Translational Sciences, recently received a $100,000 grant from the Jeffress Research Grants Program to further their efforts using biofabrication in stem cell-related research.

The grant is a first of its kind for Old Dominion University researchers in the College of Health Sciences.

Biofabrication, which allows scientists to create three-dimensional environments to study cellular interaction, has been a goal of Bruno and Sachs since they received a 3-D printer in 2013. The scientists along with doctoral student John Reid used the device to create its own attachments, converting it into a bioprinter. They then used the device to further develop their vision.

Understanding the basic mechanisms behind how stem cells develop into different cell types is critical for the generation of new therapies for cancer, tissue repair, and developmental disorders.

This proposal will adapt newly developed three-dimensional bioprinting technology to advance our understanding of this issue by carefully examining how cells confer different information to daughter cells during divisions, Bruno said.

The grant for Three-Dimensional Bioprinting for High-Throughput In-Vitro Modeling of Asymmetric Stem Cell Divisions was announced in late June.

We have received good feedback about the concepts of this approach for studying stem cell biology, however, the consistent critique was the development of preliminary experiments, Sachs said. This grant will be a critical stepping stone to help us establish this technique and secure larger federal funding.

The Jeffress Memorial Trust was founded in 1981 by Robert M. Jeffress in memory of his parents and is awarded to top schools in Virginia for research in chemical, medical or other scientific fields. The Jeffress Trust awards support high impact, innovative one-year projects that integrate computational and quantitative scientific methodologies across a broad range of scientific disciplines, according to its website.

Receiving such an award takes dogged determination, said Professor Roy Ogle, chair of the School of Medical Diagnostic and Translational Sciences. Its the type of grant that can require applicants to apply several times to receive.

Ogle was a Jeffress grant recipient while studying at the University of Virginia.

Im proud of Patrick and Robert for their persistence and thankful that the Jeffress Foundation, which was so instrumental in helping my career get started, is supporting these excellent scientists, he said.

In 2015, Bruno and Sachs received a prestigious Commonwealth Health Research Board (CHRB) grant in their study of cellular mutations that can lead to the increased risk of breast cancer in women and men. Bruno says that the stem cell will fuel the breast cancer research and vice versa.

The (breast cancer) project is about how the micro-environment controls cancer cells, Bruno said. This latest research deals with how the micro-environment controls stem cells. Two sides of the same coin.

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Original post:
Grant supports 3D innovation in stem cell-related cancer research at ODU - Southside Daily

Researchers in Roanoke are developing ways to halt the insidious onslaught of the type of brain tumor affecting Arizona Sen. John McCain.

Brain cancers come in a lot of types and flavors. They go from benign and quite fixable to the very malignant and unfixable. The type that Sen. McCain has is unfortunately the very unfixable type, said Michael Friedlander, executive director of the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute and Techs vice president for health sciences and technology.

McCain was diagnosedlast month with glioblastoma, the type of brain cancer that scientists at VTCRI are specializing in. Their research is part of the institutes Center for Glial Biology in Health, Disease and Cancer. Glia were once considered the understudy to the brains star cells, neurons or nerve cells, and their role relegated to holding together the neurons. But more is being discovered about the role they play in brain health and diseases, including being the source of most malignant brain tumors.

When glial cells turn cancerous, they take on a unique property: the ability to shrink and slither elsewhere in the brain.

There are a big group of nerve fibers that connect the two halves of our brains called the corpus callosum, Friedlander explained. Its a bunch of white matter and fibers. And they will hop on that and cross over from one side of the brain to another. So the surgeon is over here, and he sees a tumor on an MRI, and he takes it out and does great surgery, getting every bit you can see.

Meanwhile, a couple hundred of those cells are on their way happily migrating to the other side of the brain. They work their way through these little spaces, take up residence and start dividing again. And now you have 10 brain tumors, and its inoperable at that point.

About 80,000 Americans each year are diagnosed with a primary brain tumor, meaning it originates in the brain and isnt from a cancer migrating from elsewhere in the body. There are 120 types of primary brain tumors, according to the American Brain Tumor Association. The vast majority are noncancerous, but since the brain is protected by a rigid, bony structure, even a benign tumor can cause damage by pressing on the brain.

About 26,000 of the new cases will involve a malignant tumor, with glioblastoma accounting for the majority of them.

Compared to lung cancer with 500,000 [people with the disease], its small, but the outcome is uniformly bad, Friedlander said. With the earliest, best diagnosis, by the time you have any symptoms, its big enough to be pushing on the brain and is already millions and millions of cells. So the cells have already moved out.

Most people live slightly more than a year following diagnosis.

Friedlander said theres no silver bullet under development. Rather, researchers are working on a cocktail of strategies.

Harald Sontheimer, the director of the institutes glial center, is working on a therapy that could freeze the migrating cells and another that would keep them from killing neurons, Friedlander said.

Researchers Rob Gourdie, Zhi Sheng and Samy Lamouille teamed up to see if they could make the glioblastoma cells receptive to temozolmide, the standard drug treatment, once it is no longer effective.

Sheng is a cancer researcher who discovered that one of the compounds Gourdie developed for heart disease and for healing bed sores appears to re-sensitize the cancer cells to the drug.

Gourdie said encouraging results in the lab have led them to begin trials on dogs at the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine. Dogs also form glioblastoma. The trial will help to determine if the combination is safe and effective enough to seek FDA approval for human trials.

We started last last year and have recruited a half dozen dogs so far. Its a slow process, Gourdie said.

Meanwhile, Lamouille was looking at whether other compounds would work to boost temozolmide, and he pulled from the freezer one Gourdie developed years ago but had set aside.

It had zero effect on the cancer, but something else happened: It killed off the stem cells, the ones that travel and form new tumors.

It was unexpected. We were kind of hoping the drug sensitivity thing would pan out, so you have to readjust your mindset to, 'Hang on, it's killing the cancer stem cells,' Gourdie said. Samy really has to take the credit for noticing that and building on it.

Gourdie and Lamouille formed a new company, Acomhal Research, to pursue development as a therapy for glioblastoma and to see whether the compound also kills stem cells for other types of cancer.

Friedlander said that while the lines of research show promise, it will take much more time, a commodity limited for people with glioblastoma.

The most telling thing in looking at how far behind we are in treating it is to look at some of the high-profile people who have had it and died from it, Friedlander said. Theres Sen. Ted Kennedy, Beau Biden and now Sen. McCain has it. These are people of high capacity, visibility and resources, and you can just imagine they or their families could pick up the phone and go to Mayo Clinic or Johns Hopkins or the best places in the country. The very best care available is woefully inadequate.

Link:
Roanoke researchers pursue treatments for the type of deadly brain cancer affecting McCain - Richmond.com

Spoiler Warning: If you haven't seen "Ease For Idle Millionaires" or don't want to know what happened, turn away now. Or, y'know, go watch and come back so we can talk about it.

First and foremost, let's just acknowledge how much Cophine love there was in this episode. Cosima and Delphine's past is a complicated one and it's a miracle they manage to maintain a relationship at all given the variables involved. There are times I worry Delphine is running the longest con on the show, but this episode was a perfect reminder that the love between these women runs deep. It's real and it's passionate and it seems to surprise even them.

In this case, there's one thing Delphine's known all along that Cosima's never really grokked; how truly dangerous everyone within Neolution is. Of anyone in Clone Club, Delphine has the most information and she's got a better idea of the scope of what's going on and just what the Neo's are willing to do to make it happen. She's willing to do anything to keep Cosima safe, even if it means telling Westmoreland what Cosima's been up to just to earn more of his trust. But you have to admit, it's hard to be Cosima and not feel betrayed and it's hard to see someone being literally manipulated by science and stand idly by.

I love Cosima Niehaus more than I can say, but it's true; she does always push too hard, which is why Cosima's locked up in Westmoreland's basement wearing a very dapper tux. The tux was the small push. The rest...too much.

The other main factor for Cosima being in that basement finally has a name; Janus (sp?). He's also dead now and, as much as I hate to say it, that's partly because Cosima pushed too hard, as well. I say partly because the majority of the responsibilitylies with the grand creator himself. P.T. Westmoreland turned a boy into a monster and then put that monster down when his creation and all the secrets that surround him escaped the close confines of his control. Master manipulator that he is, he's also convinced Cosima it's her fault. Ain't he a peach?

That's the overall picture, but let's get into a few details.

Mud

My heart goes out to Mud. More and more we see how damaged she is and how good of heart. Everything the Neo's touch seems to warp, doesn't it?

Susan and Rachel

P.T. does seem to enjoy pitting women against each other, doesn't he? Cosima and Delphine, Susan and Virginia Coady, and now Rachel and Susan. Westmoreland is offering Rachel a home and a cure, which is more than her mother ever did for her, right? Here he is treating Rachel like a peer (and throwing in some bizarre traces of intimacy) while he's also wooing Susan back with the "science". He's got them both fooled and both of them are willing to fight to be the last woman standing. D'you think they'll end up killing each other? That would be interesting.

Ira

Nooooooooooooooo. I don't want Ira to glitch. I want Ira to live. He needs to survive all of this and become a beautiful butterfly of an individual. He's never been allowed to be that and he deserves it.

Sarah, Kira, S, Scott, and Hell Wizard (btw, how did I NOT know his name until now?)

Sarah and Kira getting some quality alone time was so great. I hope it brings those two back together again. I reallllly dislike Rachel having any sway on Kira. Meanwhile, the whole scene back at the comic shop was a whiteboard nerd dream come true. I'd pay money to be able to read that whole thing up close.

LIN28A

The big find. The LIN28A gene got described in the episode, but I went and researched a bit and found a link to the gene in the National Centerfor Biotechnology Information, which is a division of the National Institute of Health. The full description is admittedly wordy, but this part definitely caught my attention: "This gene encodes a LIN-28 family RNA-binding protein that acts as a posttranscriptional regulator of genes involved in developmental timing and self-renewal in embryonic stem cells".

I have a feeling this all comes down to stem cells, more specifically, embryonic stem cells. We know LIN28A is part of the Leda genome and Cosima mentions the "unexpected" second generation.Brightborn, Kira's cells, Helena's babies, they all have their place in this overall plan. Kira's healing ability is one part of this. Aisha's tumor treatment is another.

What if they introduce embryonic stem cells into the body and then manipulate the LIN28A gene to renew them continually, thereby healing any damage or illness.

Isn't that immortality?

Oh, that dinner party.

What can we even say about that whole thing? Creepy is a good word. Let's go with creepy. We're not going to talk about what Westmoreland did to Cosima because that was totally beyond the pale, so let's just ruminate on what kind of person makes people dress up for dinner while tormenting them.

The plan for Kira's eggs.

1300 subjects ready for implantation with eggs from a child. From a child. How do you even process that? Who does that?

Final thought:

Y'know, I thought about it again and, yes, Cosima pushed too hard, but she's also the one getting answers. She's inside Neolution, she knows the plan. She has Westmoreland off kilter. So much so that he's killed his creation and locked her up. For a moment, she had the means to end this. She could have turned the gun on Westmoreland and killed him, but that's not who Cosima is and it's one of the reasons we all love her, right?

From the look of it, the Westmoreland's descent into madness continues next week, but we also get Crystal. Any episode with Krystal is a winner.

Wanna meet back next week so we can figure out how Big Cosmetics is behind all of this?

The rest is here:
Everything's a hustle in Orphan Black episode 5.5 - SYFY WIRE (blog)

Two-year-old Nathan DeAndrea who underwent two stem cell transplants to treat neuroblastoma is free of cancer, according to his mother.

Testing last week that included a CT scan and a full-body scan showed no evidence of cancer, Shannon DeAndrea said during an interview at her home Monday morning.

No more cancer! said Nathans sister, 4-year-old Kailynn.

However, the DeAndreas are awaiting the results of a bone marrow biopsy performed on Nathan last week, Shannon said. Everyone is optimistic.

The doctor said he has never seen a bone marrow biopsy come back positive when everything else is clear, she said.

Results are expected this week, Shannon said.

Nathan was diagnosed with stage 4 neuroblastoma on Aug. 23, 2016. He had a tumor in his abdomen that spread to his bone marrow. He had spots on his skull, ribs and spine. He has had several rounds of chemotherapy, radiation and two stem cell transplants.

Neuroblastomas are cancers that begin in early nerve cells of the sympathetic nervous system, according to the American Cancer Society.

The scans results brought relief to Shannon and her family.

Its like I could breathe, she said.

As Kailynn put it, We said, hooray!

The next phase of treatment will include strengthening Nathans immune system. He will be in the hospital one week a month for six months, Shannon said.

Its to keep it [the cancer] from coming back, she said.

His immune system is still compromised. The genetic makeup of Nathans tumor put him at a higher risk of relapse, Shannon said.

Nathans first transplant included four or five days of chemo. The new stem cells following the chemo that killed off his old stem cells from the transplant were like a rescue, she said.

Its wiping you out and then giving you your cells back to restart your immune system, DeAndrea said.

A second round of heavy chemo was to try to kill what was left of the cancer and replenish cells, she said.

Nathans stem cell transplants were from his own cells, Shannon said.

Two types of stem cell transplants include autologous, which uses stem cells from the patients own body, and allogeneic using stem cells from another person.

The procedure is used for conditions including multiple myeloma, lymphoma, sickle cell anemia and leukemia, and other blood and immune disorders.

Stem cell transplants began in the late 50s/early 60s with the first successful procedure done in an identical twin. However, stem cell transplants were limited until medicines that prevent rejections became available.

The number of procedures increased in the 1980s.

Betsie Letterle, community engagement representative with BeTheMatch in Burlington, North Carolina, said there are more than 14 million bone marrow/stem cell donors in the BeTheMatch registry.

Bone marrow transplants traditionally involved taking the marrow from the back of the donors hip. But since then, weve progressed tremendously, Letterle said.

The newest way is to take stem cells from a vein in the donors arm, Letterle said. The donor receives an injection of medication to help their body manufacture a large amount of stem cells, she said.

Those are taken from the vein, similar to a plasma donation. Letterle said.

Anyone aged 18-44 can join the registry, but commitment is paramount among donors, she said.

Commitment is important because patients depend on us, Letterle said. We dont want anyone whos not really sure they could donate if called.

Only about one in 540 registered donors end up donating, she said. Everyone is an active donor until they turn 61, Letterle said.

Younger donors are healthier and make the most stem cells, she said.

We want to give the patient the optimum opportunity to get the best stem cells they can, she said.

If a donor comes up as a match, they will be asked for about 20-30 hours of their time over several weeks, Letterle said.

We work around the donors schedule, she said.

They get blood work done, and a physical to make sure theyre healthy enough to donate, Letterle said.

The donor never pays for anything, she said.

The doctor determines whether the procedure would be a stem cell or a traditional bone marrow transplant. That depends on the patients or recipients age and condition, Letterle said.

About 80 percent of registered donors are Caucasian, and BeTheMatch is looking for more minority donors, Letterle said. Many minority patients have trouble finding a match, she said.

The recipients blood type becomes whatever blood type the donor has, Letterle said.

Dr. William Clark with the Massey Cancer Center at Virginia Commonwealth University will speak about bone marrow and stem cell transplants from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. July 11 at Ballou Recreation Center. A bone marrow/stem cell donor drive will also be held that day.

For more information on stem cell/bone marrow transplants, call Betsie Letterle at BeTheMatch at (877) 601-1926, ext. 7721.

JohnCrane reports for the Danville Register & Bee. Contact him atjcrane@registerbee.comor(434) 791-7987.

More:
Tests show no signs of cancer for Danville 2-year-old - GoDanRiver.com

Scientists at the University of Virginia School of Medicine have overcome one of the greatest challenges in biology and taken a major step toward being able to grow whole organs and tissues from stem cells. By manipulating the appropriate signaling, the U.Va. researchers have turned embryonic stem cells into a fish embryo, essentially controlling embryonic development.

The research will have dramatic impact on the future use of stem cells to better the human condition, providing a framework for future studies in the field of regenerative medicine aimed at constructing tissues and organs from populations of cultured pluripotent cells.

In accomplishing this, U.Va. scientists Bernard and Chris Thisse have overcome the most massive of biological barriers. We have generated an animal by just instructing embryonic cells the right way, said Chris Thisse of the School of Medicines Department of Cell Biology.

The importance of that is profound. If we know how to instruct embryonic cells, she said, we can pretty much do what we want. For example, scientists will be able one day to instruct stem cells to grow into organs needed for transplant.

Directing Embryonic Development

The researchers were able to identify the signals sufficient for starting the cascade of molecular and cellular processes that lead to a fully developed fish embryo. With this study came an answer to the longstanding question of how few signals can initiate the processes of development: amazingly, only two.

The study has shed light on the important roles these two signals play for the formation of organs and full development of a zebrafish embryo. Moreover, the Thisses are now able to direct embryonic development and formation of tissues and organs by controlling signal locations and concentrations.

The embryo they generated was smaller than a normal embryo, because they instructed a small pool of embryonic stem cells, but otherwise he has everything in terms of appropriate development, said Bernard Thisse of the Department of Cell Biology.

Their next steps will be to attempt to reproduce their findings using mice. They expect molecular and cellular mechanisms will be extremely similar in mice and other mammals including humans.

The findings have been published online by Science and will appear in a forthcoming print edition of the prestigious journal. The article was written by U.Va.s Peng-Fei Xu, Nathalie Houssin, Karine F. Ferri-Lagneau, Bernard Thisse and Christine Thisse.

See the rest here:
U.Va. Smashes Barrier to Growing Organs from Stem Cells ...

Stem Cell Therapy share

Painful discs in the neck or low back are common causes of severe back pain and disability. Historically, therapies did not exist to regenerate the degenerative process in a vertebral disc, often leaving surgical intervention as the only option if other non-operative treatment options have failed. In selected patients, we now have hopes of better ways to treat spinal disease. Regenerative therapies for the spine are the future for spinal treatments. We are excited to offer innovative techniques as new and improved ways to try to heal spinal problems without having to undergo surgery. Regenerative therapy options hold wonderful healing potential and represent the future of modern medicine.

In the United States alone, more than 400,000 lumbar discectomies and 500,000 spinal fusions are performed each year for symptoms related to lumbar disc degeneration. The ability to get these to heal without surgery has been a long-term goal of many patients and physicians alike.At Virginia Spine Institute, we are working to promote healing without surgery. Virginia Spine Institute continues to be on the forefront of treatment options and is proud to offer stem cell therapy treatments for patients as part of ourcomprehensive non-operative treatment options.

We obtain a patients own stem cells by aspirating tissue from the patient's hip bone or from their fat cells. These cells are centrifuged down to identify and separate specific primitive cells that will help heal tissues. Stem cells are theninjected into the disc, stimulating healing of the disc by using these primitive blood cells to stimulate regeneration of the collagen within the disc. We are excited to report improvements in our patients treated with stem cells.

What are Stem Cells?

Stem cells are undifferentiated cells that have the potential to become specialized types of cells. Stem cells can be categorized as embryonic stem cells or adult stem cells.Embryonic stem cells are derived from a human fetus; there are many ethical concerns with embryonic stem cells, and these are not used in our practice.

Adult stem cells are derived from adults, sometimes obtained from your very own body! Adult stem cells are further divided into different categories. For example, the types of adult stem cells we use to treat musculoskeletal issues are known as mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). These are multi-potent cells that can differentiate into bone cells, cartilage cells, or fat cells. Its important to note that they cannot differentiate into any other type of cell.

The human body has multiple storage sites for stem cells to repair degenerated and injured structures. We have found that obtaining stem cells from the hip bone (iliac bone) is easily performed within minutes and, in most cases, is a fairly painless procedure for the patient. The stem cells are obtained from your own bone marrow; just minutes later, they are used for treatment.

This procedure is done in our office and starts with the patient lying face down on the examination table. The skin is first numbed with a novocaine solution. After that, the cortex of the hip bone (iliac bone) is numbed. Next, under x-ray (fluoroscopic) guidance, a special needle is advanced through the bone to the cortex of your hip bone into the bone marrow. The liquid marrow - which contains the stem cells - is then withdrawn into a syringe. Finally, the needle is removed, and a small bandage is placed where the needle was inserted.

After the procedure, the syringe of stem cells is taken to the lab and placed in a specialized machine called a centrifuge. The centrifuge spins the bone marrow solution and stem cells are separated from the non-useful cells. The concentrated stem cells are then transferred to a new syringe. Now, the stem cells are ready for the treatment.

Not all patients will be a candidate for these disc regeneration procedures. For those whom are ideal candidates, this provides great hope with reduction in pain and improved quality of life without the need for major surgery. We are excited about these great advances in health care and look forward to helping you live pain free.

Stem cell injections are most commonly used for treatment of the following conditions:

The area of injury is first identified using ultrasound or fluoroscopy. The area is then sterilized, and the skin above the area is numbed with a novocaine-type solution. Using ultrasound or fluoroscopic guidance, the needle is guided to the area of injury, and the stem cell solution is injected. All the regenerative injections performed at our practice are performed under image guidance with ultrasound or fluoroscopy to confirm accurate placement of the stem cells.

The risks depend on the area being treated; however, there is always a potential risk of an injection causing infection, bleeding, or nerve damage. It is important to note that there is no risk of allergic reaction since you are using your own stem cells. At Virginia Spine Institute we always recommended the safest and most efficient procedures for our patients, however, your physician will review any possible risks associated with this treatment prior to administering.

The benefit is usually seen approximately two to three months after the whole treatment protocol has completed; however, you may start to notice the benefit sooner than this.

In most cases, patients respond very well to just one treatment; however, the patient may require two to three injections. We never perform more than three injections within a span of 12 months.

Virginia Spine Institute is part of an ongoing FDA clinical trial study and now also offers stem cell therapy to patients not enrolled in the study. This pioneering cell therapy, currently under investigation by our physicians, shows promise in restoring the structure of degenerating discs and alleviating pain after other non-operative treatments have failed.

The clinical trial uses NuQu (made by ISTO Technologies, Inc) to attempt to restore a damaged disc to save the disc and prevent further degeneration. NuQu is composed of culture-expanded juvenile cartilage cells (stem cells) in a protein-based carrier. These cells have been proven to have far greater regenerative potential than adult cartilage-forming cells based upon preliminary investigations.

After evaluating hundreds of patients for the FDA trial comparing these cartilage forming stem cells to a saline placebo, the spinal experts at Virginia Spine Institute were able to enroll 5 patients in the study. Although early results have been promising, the evaluation will not be complete until a full year passes after the injection.

Although NuQu is an early-stage, cell-based therapy aimed at treating the cause of back pain associated with degenerating discs, we remain optimistic that it has the potential to cure this disease. This pioneering cell therapy, currently under investigation by our physicians, shows promise in restoring the structure of degenerating discs and alleviating pain after other non-operative treatments have failed and before surgery even becomes a consideration.

Read more:
Stem Cell Therapy for Neck & Back Pain - DC Metro Area

Ready to rid yourself of pain and discomfort without undergoing surgery? Find out if youre a candidate for regenerative procedures.

Are You A Candidate?

Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) uses excessive bioactive proteins to help regenerate and heal bone and initiate connective tissue repair.

More About PRP

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Home - StemCell ARTS

Breakthroughs in cancer treatment

High-dose chemotherapy (HDC) and bone marrow or blood stem cell transplantation (SCT) are the best treatments available for many kinds of cancer. To deliver high-dose chemotherapy, stem cells must be collected before treatment for infusion into the patient to support the recovery of the patients bone marrow.

The SCT procedure was developed more than 35 years ago and was considered such a major development of biomedical science that the individuals responsible were awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1989. Continued refinement has made SCT safer and widely available. In order to determine the role of HDC and SCT for the treatment of cancer, it is important to understand the terminology associated with this increasingly utilized treatment strategy.

Chemotherapy drugs and radiation therapy are used to treat cancer. Higher doses of therapy kill more cancer cells than lower doses of therapy in certain types of cancer. When higher doses of therapy kill more cancer than lower doses, doctors say there is a dose response effect. The delivery of higher doses of therapy is referred to as dose-intensive or high-dose therapy. Unfortunately, the higher doses of therapy used to destroy cancer cells also cause damage to normal cells. The bodys normal cells that are most sensitive to destruction by high-dose therapy are the blood-producing stem cells in the bone marrow.

Stem cells are early blood-forming cells that grow and mature in the bone marrow, but can circulate in the blood. When high-dose therapy is used to treat cancer, one of the major side effects is destruction of the stem cells living in the bone marrow. It is important to collect stem cells prior to treatment with high-dose chemotherapy so that the stem cells can then be infused to rescue bone marrow and hasten blood cell production and immune system recovery.

Stem cell transplants are classified based on which individual donates the stem cells and from where the stem cells are collected. Stem cells may be collected from the bone marrow, peripheral blood or umbilical cord. Therefore, the terms bone marrow transplantation, peripheral blood stem cell transplantation and umbilical cord transplantation are utilized. There are important advantages and disadvantages to utilizing stem cells collected from these different sources. The second part of stem cell transplant classification is determined by who donates the stem cells. Stem cells may come from the patient (autologous), an identical twin (syngeneic) or someone other than the patient (allogeneic). Allogeneic stem cells are further classified by whether the individual donating the stem cells is related or unrelated to the patient.

Read the rest here:
Stem Cell Transplantation - Virginia Cancer

About our Program

Regenerative Medicine is a medical approach that seeks to restore both structure and function of tissues lost to injury, disease, or congenital defects.

Researchers at our Blacksburg and Leesburg facilities are conducting regenerative medicine research on topics ranging from blood vessels to tendon, ligament, and cartilage healing to traumatic brain injuries, and turning promising ideas into innovative treatments for a variety of conditions.

Our Equine Medical Center's Regenerative Medicine Service takes laboratory findings into the clinic where regenerative therapies promote healing in both horses and dogs.

The center is using a wide range of techniques such as extracting stem cells from bone marrow to regrow tissue, injecting concentrated levels of platelets from a patients blood to start the healing process, and performing surgery to stimulate the bodys own ability to regenerate.

Learn more about how regenerative medicine at our Equine Medical Center is helping horses and dogs.

Our Regenerative Medicine Interdisciplinary Graduate Education Program (IGEP) at Virginia Tech provides students the opportunity to conduct specialized research in stem cell biology, biomaterials, modeling and experimental design, business and public policy, or science studies as related to regenerative medicine.

Our program trains scholars in the pursuit of translational research that will have a maximal impact on human and veterinary patient care and disease management.

Learn more about the Regenerative Medicine IGEP.

Our Stem Cell Initiative is an interdisciplinary program bringing researchers and clinicians together to explore potential benefits of stem cell research and therapies in both animal and human health. The goals of the initiative are to:

Our college entered into a research agreement with the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine in 2011 to form the Virginia Tech-Wake Forest Center for Veterinary Regenerative Medicine (CVRM).

Through the center, we are engaged in ongoing collaborations in translational regenerative medicine research to facilitate the application of cutting-edge treatments in both animal and human patients.

Jennifer G. Barrett, DVM, PhD Theodora Ayer Randolph Professor of Equine Surgery Research focus: Tendon, ligament, and cartilage healing, stem cell and platelet rich plasma therapies, and tissue regeneration.

Linda Dahlgren, DVM, PhD Associate Professor of Large Animal Surgery Research focus: Mesenchymal stem cells and tissue engineering in tendon/wound biology and healing.

Will Eyestone, PhD Research Associate Professor of Reproductive Biology & Biotechnology Research focus: Prion gene expression and disease resistance in murine and bovine models.

Jia-Qiang He, PhD Assistant Professor of Stem Cell Physiology Research focus: Controlled cardiac lineage differentiation of embryonic stem cells, iPSCs & adult cardiac stem cells; iPSC reprograming and characterization; Electrophysiological and functional maturity of stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes.

Bill Huckle, PhD Associate Professor of Cell Biology &Pharmacology Research focus: Angiogenesis and vasculogenesis in tumors and vascular diseases using murine models.

Michelle Theus, PhD Assistant Professor of Molecular and Cellular Neurobiology Research focus: Stem cell therapies for adult central nervous system repair following traumatic injury.

Learn more about the Theus laboratory.

Read this article:
Regenerative Medicine Research - Virginia-Maryland College ...

Charles Limoli will lead effort to see how cosmic radiation affects astronauts' cognition

Irvine, Calif., March 17, 2015 -- With $9 million in NASA funding, UC Irvine professor of radiation oncology Charles Limoli will lead a national effort to understand the early and long-term effects of space radiation on the central nervous system.

Exposure to the dangerous radiation fields in space has been shown to impair the cognitive abilities of rodents, and this data suggests that astronauts who spend extended time in space may suffer similar consequences. Limoli's team will look into the behavioral impairments of rodents attributed to space radiation exposure and the underlying causes of these deficits, including studies to quantify the structural and functional alterations to nerve cells.

This "space brain" project is part of NASA's Human Research Program, which is funding three new NASA Specialized Centers of Research on space radiation. Investigating how such radiation affects astronauts and learning ways to mitigate those effects are critical to further human exploration of space, and NASA has set its sights on exploring an asteroid and, ultimately, Mars.

Collectively, the three NSCOR teams comprise 25 investigators from 13 institutions in eight states and the District of Columbia. Limoli's group includes researchers from UCI, Loma Linda University and the Eastern Virginia Medical School. The radiation exposure studies will take place at the NASA Space Radiation Laboratory, located at the Brookhaven National Laboratory in Long Island, N.Y.

"The space environment poses unique hazards to astronauts, since a range of potential central nervous system complications can result during and after actual space travel," Limoli said. "We plan to conduct a comprehensive series of rodent studies to characterize the neurobiological mechanisms involved with radiation-induced cognitive impairment."

Results will inform efforts to minimize the effects of solar and galactic cosmic radiation on the central nervous system.

As a member of the Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center at UCI, Limoli studies how cranial irradiation triggers DNA damage, oxidative stress and structural alterations to neurons - issues important to not just astronauts but also patients subjected to radiotherapy for brain cancer. In addition, he has advanced preclinical research showing that stem cell treatments can limit cognitive deficits after cranial radiotherapy or systemic chemotherapy.

Fellow UCI investigators on the NASA project are Ivan Soltesz, professor and chair of anatomy & neurobiology; Munjal Acharya, assistant professor of radiation oncology; and Janet Baulch and Vipan Kumar, project scientists in Limoli's research group.

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NASA awards UCI $9 million to study underlying mechanisms of 'space brain'