Comments on Spinal Muscular Atrophy Research News: Repligen Provides Update on the Phase I Trial for ...

FOX MEDICAL TEAM: ALS Stem Cell Surgery ATLANTA ...

2011-11-14T12:01:43.149-06:00

FOX MEDICAL TEAM: ALS Stem Cell Surgery

ATLANTA - It's been almost 19 months since John Conley underwent a dangerous, first-of-its kind operation. Surgeons at Emory opened up his spinal cord and injected it with stem cells.

Conley is part of a study to determine whether the surgery and the cells are safe.

http://www.myfoxatlanta.com/dpp/health/FOX-MEDICAL-TEAM%3A-ALS-Stem-Cell-Surgery-20111109-pm-pk

Wonder what century it will be available? Periphe...

2011-11-08T12:19:21.170-06:00

Wonder what century it will be available?

Peripheral therapy for SMA
by Lev Osherovich, Senior Writer

Researchers at Cold Spring Harbor and Isis Pharmaceuticals have shown that peripheral delivery of antisense therapeutics improved survival in a mouse model of spinal muscular atrophy. The results suggest delivering these therapeutics on both sides of the blood brain barrier could address the systemic effects of SMA.
http://www.nature.com/scibx/journal/v4/n43/full/scibx.2011.1197.html

Not SMA related but if you have a disease or know ...

2011-11-08T09:41:06.946-06:00

Not SMA related but if you have a disease or know someone with one..you might want to view.

Subject: Dr Burzyinski Cures Cancer - And They Don't Like It by DC

http://www.thenewsburner.com/2011/11/06/dr-burzynski-cured-cancer-and-they-dont-like-it/

They have the cure but lack the will...if this was...

2011-11-06T13:27:22.044-06:00

They have the cure but lack the will...if this was needed for war it be done tomorrow,,,

Human Stem Cells Used to Treat Parkinson's in Mice

Some scientists are experimenting with cell-transplantation. They have used stem cells from mouse embryos to make dopamine-producing cells and treat Parkinson's in the animals. But until now, a similar approach in mice using human embryonic cells hasn't worked well. Not only have human-derived dopamine cells not perform efficiently when transplanted into animals, they have also triggered the growth of unwanted tumor-like structures.

In those past experiments, scientists typically added two specialized proteins, known as growth factors, that turned embryonic stem cells into dopamine-producing nerve cells. Now, by adding a third substance, Dr. Studer and his colleagues were able activate a vital biological pathway in the embryonic cells, thus making human dopamine cells that worked much better. Crucially, their approach didn't lead to tumor-like structures

"This is a big leap" in the effort to use cell-transplantation to one day treat Parkinson's patients, said Tilo Kunath, a stem-cell scientist at the University of Edinburgh, who read the study but wasn't involved in it. "To see a complete rescue, and a lasting rescue, is unheard of in these animal models."

Millions of such cells would be needed to conceivably treat a person. Could Dr. Studer's technique could be scaled up to produce vast numbers of dopamine-releasing cells? The Nature study suggests it may be possible.

As a final experiment, Dr. Studer's team produced, and then injected, seven million human-derived dopamine cells into each of two rhesus monkeys. The month-long test showed that the mass-produced cells could survive in the monkeys and also properly interact with the animal's existing cells.

Dr. Studer says he now plans to manufacture the human embryo-derived dopamine cells in a specialized facility under clinical-grade conditions and conduct longer-term animal experiments. If it all works out, in three to four years the cells could potentially be ready for human trials, he said.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204621904577018133476441946.html

Gene Therapy Shows Promise as Hemophilia Treatment...

2011-11-05T15:31:47.096-05:00

Gene Therapy Shows Promise as Hemophilia Treatment in Animal Studies

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Nov. 3, 2011– For the first time, researchers have combined gene therapy and stem cell transplantation to successfully reverse the severe, crippling bleeding disorder hemophilia A in large animals, opening the door to the development of new therapies for human patients.

Researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center’s Institute for Regenerative Medicine, collaborating with other institutions, report in Experimental Hematology that a single injection of genetically-modified adult stem cells in two sheep converted the severe disorder to a milder form. The journal is a publication of the Society for Hematology and Stem Cells

There is currently no cure for the rare bleeding disorder hemophilia. People with this genetic disorder lack a protein, known as a clotting factor, needed for normal blood clotting.

http://www.wakehealth.edu/News-Releases/2011/Gene_Therapy_Shows_Promise_as_Hemophilia_Treatment_in_Animal_Studies.htm

CALIFORNIA STEM CELL’S HANS S. KEIRSTEAD, PH.D. ON...

2011-11-02T07:38:29.292-05:00

CALIFORNIA STEM CELL’S HANS S. KEIRSTEAD, PH.D. ONE OF SIX LEADING INNOVATORS IN THE HEALTH INDUSTRY

IRVINE, Calif. (November 02, 2011)

California Stem Cell (CSC)’s Hans S. Keirstead, Ph.D., has recently been recognized as one of the top innovators in global health. This praise came in an article by genConnect highlighting six medical professionals making a difference in their respective sectors of the health industry. Dr. Keirstead was interviewed by genConnect’s creative director, Kelly Hayes, at the 2011 Aspen Ideas Festival.

The Aspen Ideas Festival is a week-long conference designed to promote intellectual exchange among some of the world’s most remarkable minds. Dr. Keirstead was invited to take part in the conference, which featured such distinguished speakers as Bill Gates, David Axelrod, Madeleine Albright, Lance Armstrong, and Alan Greenspan.

Dr. Keirstead will deliver a keynote address today at the Translational Strategies for Tissue Engineering conference in Boston, MA. His presentation will cover recent developments in cell-based treatments for otherwise incurable diseases. This presentation comes on the heels of CSC’s announcement last week that the company has acquired a cancer stem cell program for treatment of late stage metastatic melanoma, currently showing promising results in phase II clinical trials.

Later in the month, Dr. Keirstead will fly to Beijing, China to take part in the BIT’s 4th Annual World Congress of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell 2011, one of six conferences that CSC management and senior scientists will be speaking at in November.

Watch the genConnect video here: http://soc.li/i9iSEWM

http://www.californiastemcell.com/cgi-bin/pressrel

Stem-cell pioneer takes aim at M.S. The decades-l...

2011-11-01T07:47:40.183-05:00

Stem-cell pioneer takes aim at M.S.

The decades-long dream of treating debilitating injury and illness with stem cells is quickly becoming reality.

Q. Where does the scarring occurr in M.S.?

A. Multiple places, various areas. Random areas. It would also be advantageous in the treatment of brain injuries and stroke, which also accumulate scars. The spinal cord tissue itself scars.

Q. You've also worked on a treatment for spinal muscular atrophy, which typically kills children in their first years of life.

A. It's beyond the university now (an Irvine company called California Stem Cell is now working to prepare the treatment for its first clinical trial). The university is a place for innovation and invention; companies are a place for commercial development.

http://www.ocregister.com/news/spinal-324725-stem-cord.html

Where are the cures? "Deadly Monopolies"...

2011-10-31T12:29:05.322-05:00

Where are the cures?

"Deadly Monopolies": Medical Ethicist Harriet Washington on How Firms are Taking Over Life Itself

One of the major themes raised by the Occupy movement is the increasing power of large corporations over more and more aspects of our lives. We spend the hour looking into the issue of the corporate control of life itself. Our guest, Harriet Washington, is a medical ethicist and has just published a book that examines the extent to which what she calls the medical-industrial complex has come to control human life. In the past 30 years, more than 40,000 patents have been granted on genes alone—many more patents are pending. Washington argues that the biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies patenting these genes are more concerned with profit than with the health or medical needs of patients. Her new book is called "Deadly Monopolies: The Shocking Corporate Takeover of Life Itself—And the Consequences for Your Health and Our Medical Future." [includes rush transcript–partial]

http://www.democracynow.org/2011/10/31/deadly_monopolies_medical_ethicist_harriet_washington