MedWorm: Stem Cell Therapy

Three-Dimensional Culture of Human Embryonic Stem Cell Derived Hepatic Endoderm and Its Role in Bioartificial Liver Construction

Journal of Biomedicine and Biotechnology — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 16:36:07 +0100

The liver carries out a range of functions essential for bodily homeostasis. The impairment of liver functions has serious implications and is responsible for high rates of patient morbidity and mortality. Presently, liver transplantation remains the only effective treatment, but donor availability is a major limitation. Therefore, artificial and bioartificial liver devices have been developed to bridge patients to liver transplantation. Existing support devices improve hepatic encephalopathy to a certain extent; however their usage is associated with side effects. The major hindrance in the development of bioartificial liver devices and cellular therapies is the limited availability of human hepatocytes. Moreover, primary hepatocytes are difficult to maintain and lose hepatic identity and...

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Transforming human fat into stem cells using virus-free technique

ScienceDaily Headlines — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 16:16:45 +0100

Tiny circles of DNA are the key to a new and easier way to transform stem cells from human fat into induced pluripotent stem cells for use in regenerative medicine, say scientists. Unlike other commonly used techniques, the method, which is based on standard molecular biology practices, does not use viruses to introduce genes into the cells or permanently alter a cell's genome. (Source: ScienceDaily Headlines)

Growing cartilage: bioactive nanomaterial promotes growth of new cartilage

ScienceDaily Headlines — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 13:00:00 +0100

Researchers have designed a bioactive nanomaterial that promotes the growth of new cartilage in vivo and without the use of expensive growth factors. The therapy is minimally invasive, utilizes bone marrow stem cells and produces natural cartilage. Unlike bone, cartilage does not grow back, and it cannot effectively be replaced. Countless people learn this all too well when they bring their bad knees, shoulders and elbows to an orthopedic surgeon. (Source: ScienceDaily Headlines)

Targeting cancer stem cells in the lab

ScienceDaily Headlines — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 13:00:00 +0100

Understanding of the particular cancer cells within a tumour that drive its growth could now advance more rapidly, thanks to new research. Scientisist now show how a crucial class of cancer cell, called cancer stem cells, can be investigated in the lab in ways that should greatly speed their study, and allow the development of drugs targeted against them. (Source: ScienceDaily Headlines)

Novel theory for mammalian stem cell regulation

ScienceDaily Headlines — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 13:00:00 +0100

Researchers propose a model of mammalian adult stem cell regulation that may explain how the coexistence of two disparate stem cell states regulates both stem cell maintenance and simultaneously supports rapid tissue regeneration. (Source: ScienceDaily Headlines)

Gene that improves quality of reprogrammed stem cells identified

ScienceDaily Headlines — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 10:00:00 +0100

Scientists report that Tbx3 significantly improves quality of induced pluripotent stem cells. Stem cells reprogrammed from differentiated cells are known as induced pluripotent stem cells or iPS cells. (Source: ScienceDaily Headlines)

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A 5-HT4-receptor activation-induced neural plasticity enhances in vivo reconstructs of enteric nerve circuit insult

Neurogastroenterology and Motility — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Conclusions & Inferences These results indicate that activation of enteric neural 5-HT4-receptors promotes reconstruction of an enteric neural circuit leading to the recovery of the defecation reflex in the distal gut, and that this reconstruction involves possibly neural stem cells. These findings indicate that treatment with 5-HT4 agonists could be a novel therapy for generating new enteric neurons to rescue aganglionic gut disorders. (Source: Neurogastroenterology and Motility)

Modulation of cytokine and nitric oxide by mesenchymal stem cell transfer in lung injury/fibrosis

Respiratory Research — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Background: No effective treatment for acute lung injury and fibrosis currently exists. Aim of this study was to investigate the time-dependent effect of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BMDMSCs) on bleomycin (BLM)-induced acute lung injury and fibrosis and nitric oxide metabolites and inflammatory cytokine production. Methods: BMDMSCs were transferred 4 days after BLM inhalation. Wet/dry ratio, bronchoalveolar lavage cell profiles, histologic changes and deposition of collagen were analyzed. Results: Nitrite, nitrate and cytokines were measured weekly through day 28. At day 7, the wet/dry ratio, neutrophilic inflammation, and amount of collagen were elevated in BLM-treated rats compared to sham rats (P = 0.05-0.002). Levels nitrite, nitrate, IL-1beta, IL-6, TNF-alpha, TGF- beta...

Therapeutic effect of transplanting [beta]2m-/Thy1+ bone marrow-derived hepatocyte stem cells transduced with lentiviral-mediated HGF gene into CCl4-injured rats

The Journal of Gene Medicine — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

[beta]2m-/Thy1+ bone marrow-derived hepatocyte stem cells (BDHSCs) isolated from the bone marrow of cholestatic rats by magnetic bead cell sorting consistently express characteristics of both stem and liver cells. These stem cells may be good vehicles for gene transfer. Administration of exogenous hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) may be potentially useful for the treatment of liver fibrosis. Because lentiviral vectors integrate stably into the host-cell genome of nondividing and dividing cells, it may efficiently transfect [beta]2m-/Thy1+ BDHSCs in vitro and secrete high-level HGF consistently. Transplantation of [beta]2m-/Thy1+ BDHSCs transduced with lentiviral vectors containing the HGF gene may reduce liver fibrosis in rats.Lentiviral vectors expressing HGF were constructed and used to tr...

Liver Development, Regeneration, and Carcinogenesis

Journal of Biomedicine and Biotechnology — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 16:19:59 +0100

The identification of putative liver stem cells has brought closer the previously separate fields of liver development, regeneration, and carcinogenesis. Significant overlaps in the regulation of these processes are now being described. For example, studies in embryonic liver development have already provided the basis for directed differentiation of human embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells into hepatocyte-like cells. As a result, the understanding of the cell biology of proliferation and differentiation in the liver has been improved. This knowledge can be used to improve the function of hepatocyte-like cells for drug testing, bioartificial livers, and transplantation. In parallel, the mechanisms regulating cancer cell biology are now clearer, providing fertile soil f...

Preconditioning Promotes Survival and Angiomyogenic Potential of Mesenchymal Stem Cells in the Infarcted Heart via NF-κB Signaling

Antioxidants and Redox Signaling — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 15:42:48 +0100

Antioxidants & Redox Signaling , Vol. 0, No. 0. (Source: Antioxidants and Redox Signaling)

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Successful autologous stem cell transplantation in two patients with juvenile dermatomyositis.

Scandinavian Journal of Rheumatology — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 13:08:03 +0100

We report on two patients with severe progressive JDM who developed contractures and were wheelchair dependent despite therapy including methotrexate (MTX), steroids, immunoglobulins, cyclosporin A, and rituximab. On account of the refractory disease, autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) was performed using a CD3/CD19-depleted graft after immunoablative conditioning with fludarabine, cyclophosphamide, and anti-thymocyte globulin. This induced a dramatic improvement and sustained remission of the disease in both patients. We demonstrate that ASCT is a therapeutic option with low toxicity for patients with severe, refractory JDM. PMID: 20132077 [PubMed - in process] (Source: Scandinavian Journal of Rheumatology)

Autologous stem cell transplantation in autoimmune and rheumatic diseases: from the molecular background to clinical applications.

Scandinavian Journal of Rheumatology — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 13:08:03 +0100

Authors: Szodoray P, Varoczy L, Szegedi G, Zeher M Autoimmune diseases have a multifactorial origin. Because of disturbances of the immune system, autoreactive T and B cells target self-antigens, leading to permanent organ damage. Despite novel therapeutic protocols, the disease course is chronic and in many instances the outcome is lethal. The efficacy of stem cell therapy has been observed in autoimmune animal models and in autoimmune diseases related to haematological abnormalities. Although the therapy is more than 30 years old, its broad spread has been delayed by the serious side-effects due to the conditioning treatments based on oncological protocols. Evaluation of the data of patients who have undergone autologous stem cell therapy reinforced the view that protocols used for c...

Bioheart Launches First US FDA Approved Clinical Trial That Tests Gene-Modified Stem Cell Therapy In Patients With Congestive Heart Failure

Health News from Medical News Today — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 08:00:00 +0100

Bioheart, Inc., (OTCBB:BHRT) announced that the company has commenced work on its REGEN trial, a Phase I Clinical Trial to test genetically modified MyoCell® in patients suffering from Congestive Heart Failure (CHF). Bioheart's MyoCell® is a regenerative cell therapy that uses myoblasts, or muscle stem cells,that are grown from a patient's own muscle. MyoCell® has been tested successfully on patients in four clinical trials... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Bioheart Launches First US FDA Approved Clinical Trial That Tests Gene-Modified Stem Cell Therapy In Patients With Congestive Heart Failure

Cardiovascular / Cardiology News From Medical News Today — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 08:00:00 +0100

Bioheart, Inc., (OTCBB:BHRT) announced that the company has commenced work on its REGEN trial, a Phase I Clinical Trial to test genetically modified MyoCell® in patients suffering from Congestive Heart Failure (CHF). Bioheart's MyoCell® is a regenerative cell therapy that uses myoblasts, or muscle stem cells,that are grown from a patient's own muscle... (Source: Cardiovascular / Cardiology News From Medical News Today)

Virus-free technique enables Stanford scientists to easily make stem cells pluripotent

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 05:00:00 +0100

(Stanford University Medical Center) Tiny circles of DNA are the key to a new and easier way to transform stem cells from human fat into induced pluripotent stem cells for use in regenerative medicine, say scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine. Unlike other commonly used techniques, the method, which is based on standard molecular biology practices, does not use viruses to introduce genes into the cells or permanently alter a cell's genome. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

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Gene that improves quality of reprogrammed stem cells identified by Singapore scientists

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 05:00:00 +0100

(Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore) In Nature, Singapore scientists report that Tbx3 significantly improves quality of induced pluripotent stem cells. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

ABCG5-positivity in tumor buds is an indicator of poor prognosis in node-negative colorectal cancer patients.

World Journal of Gastroenterology : WJG — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 00:26:34 +0100

CONCLUSION: Expression of putative stem cell markers EpCAM and ABCG5 within the tumor buds of colorectal cancer are frequently noted and are associated with poor prognosis. PMID: 20135722 [PubMed - in process] (Source: World Journal of Gastroenterology : WJG)

Tbx3 improves the germ-line competency of induced pluripotent stem cells

Nature AOP — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

This study underscores the intrinsic qualitative differences between iPS cells generated by different methods, and highlights the need to rigorously characterize iPS cells beyond in vitro studies. (Source: Nature AOP)

California Stem Cell And ALS Therapy Development Institute Extend Their Collaboration To Advance Potential Stem Cell Assisted Therapy For ALS

Health News from Medical News Today — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 09:00:00 +0100

California Stem Cell, Inc. (CSC) and ALS Therapy Development Institute (ALS TDI) are pleased to announce an extension and expansion of their collaboration aimed at advancing a potential stem cell therapy for ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). This effort will build on work that has already been completed as part of this on-going partnership to understand how stem cells, and their derivatives, may be applied to treatment of this fatal neurodegenerative disease... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

California Stem Cell And ALS Therapy Development Institute Extend Their Collaboration To Advance Potential Stem Cell Assisted Therapy For ALS

Muscular Dystrophy News From Medical News Today — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 09:00:00 +0100

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BMPs: From Bone to Body Morphogenetic Proteins.

Science Signaling — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 01:14:06 +0100

Authors: Obradovic Wagner D, Sieber C, Bhushan R, Börgermann JH, Graf D, Knaus P The family of bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) comprises approximately 30 secreted cytokines that signal through transmembrane serine/threonine kinase receptors. The BMP signaling pathways are fine-tuned on multiple levels: Extracellular antagonists modify ligand activity; several co-receptors enhance or inhibit downstream signaling events through multiple mechanisms; and intracellular molecules further regulate the signaling outcome and mediate crosstalk with other pathways. BMPs affect structures and processes throughout the entire body, ranging from embryonic patterning and development through stem cells and their niches, to tissue homeostasis and regeneration. This comprehensive involvement in v...

High incidence of severe cyclosporine neurotoxicity in children affected by haemoglobinopaties undergoing myeloablative haematopoietic stem cell transplantation: early diagnosis and prompt intervention ameliorates neurological outcome

BioMed Central — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Conclusions: Our experience suggests that paediatric patients with haemoglobinopaties have a high incidence of CSA related neurological events with no correlation between serum CSA levels and neurotoxicity. Prognosis is good following CSA removal. Specific prodromes such as arterial hypertension, headache or visual disturbances occurring in the early post-transplant period should be carefully evaluated with electrophysiological and MRI-based imaging in order to intervene promptly and avoid irreversible sequels. (Source: BioMed Central)

Majority of Parkinson’s Patients Improved After German Stem Cell Treatment

PRWeb: Medical Pharmaceuticals — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 15:19:24 +0100

The XCell-Center, Europe’s leading stem cell therapy provider has released results from a follow-up study of 50 Parkinson’s disease patients treated with autologous bone marrow stem cells. Overall, almost 60% improved following treatment. (PRWeb Feb 4, 2010) Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2010/02/prweb3566214.htm (Source: PRWeb: Medical Pharmaceuticals)

Mandatory registration required for Korean stem cell lines

Nature Medicine — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 14:40:07 +0100

Nature Medicine 16, 137 (2010). doi:10.1038/nm0210-137b Author: D Yvette Wohn (Source: Nature Medicine)

Growth Factor Regulation of Prostaglandin-Endoperoxide Synthase 2 (Ptgs2) Expression in Colonic Mesenchymal Stem Cells [Cell Biology]

Journal of Biological Chemistry — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 14:38:44 +0100

We previously found that a population of colonic stromal cells that constitutively express high levels of prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2 (Ptgs2, also known as Cox-2) altered their location in the lamina propria in response to injury in a Myd88-dependent manner (Brown, S. L., Riehl, T. E., Walker, M. R., Geske, M. J., Doherty, J. M., Stenson, W. F., and Stappenbeck, T. S. (2007) J. Clin. Invest. 117, 258–269). At the time of this study, the identity of these cells and the mechanism by which they expressed high levels of Ptgs2 were unknown. Here we found that these colonic stromal cells were mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). These colonic MSCs expressed high Ptgs2 levels not through interaction with bacterial products but instead as a consequence of mRNA stabilization downstream of...

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Stem-like Cancer Cells Are Inducible by Increasing Genomic Instability in Cancer Cells [Cell Biology]

Journal of Biological Chemistry — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 14:38:43 +0100

The existence of cancer stem cells (CSCs) or stem-like cancer cells (SLCCs) is regarded as the cause of tumor formation and recurrence. However, the origin of such cells remains controversial with two competing hypotheses: CSCs are either transformed from tissue adult stem cells or dedifferentiated from transformed progenitor cells. Compelling evidence has determined the chromosomal aneuploidy to be one of the hallmarks of cancer cells, indicating genome instability plays an important role in tumorigenesis, for which CSCs are believed to be the initiator. To gain direct evidence that genomic instability is involved in the induction of SLCCs, we utilized multiple approaches to enhance genomic instability and monitored the percentage of SLCC in cultured cancer cells. Using side population (S...

Hepatocyte Nuclear Factor-4{alpha} Induces Transdifferentiation of Hematopoietic Cells into Hepatocytes [Cell Biology]

Journal of Biological Chemistry — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 14:38:40 +0100

Hematopoietic stem cells can directly transdifferentiate into hepatocytes because of cellular plasticity, but the molecular basis of transdifferentiation is not known. Here, we show the molecular basis using lineage-depleted oncostatin M receptor β-expressing (Lin–OSMRβ+) mouse bone marrow cells in a hepatic differentiation culture system. Differentiation of the cells was marked by the expression of albumin. Hepatocyte nuclear factor (HNF)-4 was expressed and translocated into the nuclei of the differentiating cells. Suppression of its activation in OSM-neutralized culture medium inhibited cellular differentiation. Ectopic expression of full-length HNF4 in 32D myeloid cells resulted in decreased myeloid colony-forming potential and increased expression of hepatocyte-specifi...

Direct Inhibition of Pumilo Activity by Bam and Bgcn in Drosophila Germ Line Stem Cell Differentiation [Developmental Biology]

Journal of Biological Chemistry — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 14:38:40 +0100

The fate of stem cells is intricately regulated by numerous extrinsic and intrinsic factors that promote maintenance or differentiation. The RNA-binding translational repressor Pumilio (Pum) in conjunction with Nanos (Nos) is required for self-renewal, whereas Bam (bag-of-marbles) and Bgcn (benign gonial cell neoplasm) promote differentiation of germ line stem cells in the Drosophila ovary. Genetic analysis suggests that Bam and Bgcn antagonize Pum/Nos function to promote differentiation; however, the molecular basis of this epistatic relationship is currently unknown. Here, we show that Bam and Bgcn inhibit Pum function through direct binding. We identified a ternary complex involving Bam, Bgcn, and Pum in which Bam, but not Bgcn, directly interacts with Pum, and this interaction is great...

Current Clinical Prospects for Gene and Stem Cell Therapies to treat Cystic Fibrosis and other Genet

Cystic Fibrosis Worldwide — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:35:23 +0100

By Dace Shugg, Bob Williamson (Source: Cystic Fibrosis Worldwide)

Cincinnati Children’s opens stem cell center

bizjournals.com Health Care:Biotechnology headlines — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 10:00:05 +0100

Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center has opened the Pluripotent Stem Cell Facility to provide a central source for human stem cell technologies to area researchers. (Source: bizjournals.com Health Care:Biotechnology headlines)

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Roche Joins Forces With Massachusetts General Hospital And Harvard University To Se Pioneering Stem Cell Technologies For Drug Discovery

Health News from Medical News Today — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 09:00:00 +0100

Roche (SIX: RO, ROG; OTCQX: RHHBY) announced a 3-5 year joint research collaboration with Massachusetts General Hospital (Boston, USA) and Harvard University (Cambridge, USA) that will use stem cell technologies to advance drug discovery in areas of high unmet medical need. The aim is to develop cellular models of disease based on human stem cell lines and to investigate the potential efficacy, safety and toxicology profile of new drug candidates from Roche's compound library. Cell lines will be derived from the tissues of healthy volunteers and from patients with various diseases... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Roche Joins Forces With Massachusetts General Hospital And Harvard University To Se Pioneering Stem Cell Technologies For Drug Discovery

Stem Cell Research News From Medical News Today — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 09:00:00 +0100

Cord Blood-Derived CD133+ Cells Improve Cardiac Function After Myocardial Infarction

Health News from Medical News Today — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 08:00:00 +0100

Researchers at the PontifÃcia Universidade Catolica do Parana and Instituto Carlos Chagas have evaluated the therapeutic potential of purified and expanded CD133+ cells human umbilical cord blood (HUCB)-derived in treating myocardial infarction by intramyocardially injecting them into a rat model. Patients who have high cardiovascular risks have fewer endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) and their EPCs exhibit greater in vitro senescence. HUCB-derived EPCs could be an alternative to rescue impaired stem cell function in the sick and elderly... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Cord Blood-Derived CD133+ Cells Improve Cardiac Function After Myocardial Infarction

Cardiovascular / Cardiology News From Medical News Today — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 08:00:00 +0100

A focus on parietal cells as a renewing cell population.

World Journal of Gastroenterology : WJG — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 04:11:01 +0100

Authors: Karam SM The fact that the acid-secreting parietal cells undergo continuous renewal has been ignored by many gastroenterologists and cell biologists. In the past, it was thought that these cells were static. However, by using (3)H-thymidine radioautography in combination with electron microscopy, it was possible to demonstrate that parietal cells belong to a continuously renewing epithelial cell lineage. In the gastric glands, stem cells anchored in the isthmus region are responsible for the production of parietal cells. The stem cells give rise to three main progenitors: prepit, preneck and preparietal cells. Parietal cells develop either directly from the non-cycling preparietal cells or less commonly via differentiation of the cycling prepit and preneck cell progenitors. Th...

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Influence of the prodrugs 5-fluorocytosine and CPT-11 on ovarian cancer cells using genetically engineered stem cells: tumor-tropic potential and inhibition of ovarian cancer cell growth

Cancer Science — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Recent studies have shown that genetically engineered stem cells (GESTECs) to produce suicide enzymes that convert non-toxic prodrugs to toxic metabolites selectively migrate toward tumor sites and reduce tumor growth. In the present study, we evaluated whether these GESTECs were capable of migrating to human ovarian cancer cells and examined the potential therapeutic efficacy of the gene-directed enzyme prodrug therapy against ovarian cancer cells in vitro. The expression of cytosine deaminase (CD) or carboxyl esterase (CE) mRNA of GESTECs was confirmed by RT-PCR. A modified transwell migration assay was performed to determine the migratory capacity of GESTECs to ovarian cancer cells. GESTECs (HB1.F3.CD or HB1.F3.CE cells) engineered to express a suicide gene (CD or CE) selectively migrat...

Reprogramming of the non-coding transcriptome during brain development

BioMed Central — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

A recent global analysis of gene expression during the differentiation of neuronal stem cells to neurons and oligodendrocytes indicates a complex pattern of changes in the expression of both protein-coding transcripts and long non-protein-coding RNAs.See research article http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2202/11/14. (Source: BioMed Central)

Overview of developmental and reproductive toxicity research in china: History, funding mechanisms, and frontiers of the research

Birth Defects Research Part B: Developmental and Reproductive Toxicology — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Reproductive and developmental toxicology (DART) is the discipline that deals with adverse effects on male and female resulting from exposures to harmful chemical and physical agents. DART research in China boasted a long history, but presently has fallen behind the western world in education and research. The funding mechanisms for DART research in China were similar to that for other toxicological disciplines, and the funding has come from research grants and fellowships provided by national, ministerial, and provincial institutions. Finally, the frontiers of DART research in China could be summarized as follows: (1) use of model animals such as the zebrafish and roundworm, and use of cutting-edge techniques such as stem cell culture, as well as transgenic, metabonomic, and virtual scree...

Long noncoding RNAs in neuronal-glial fate specification and oligodendrocyte lineage maturation

BMC Neuroscience - Latest articles — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Conclusion: This is the first report of long ncRNA expression in neuronal and glial cell differentiation and of the modulation of ncRNA expression by modification of chromatin architecture. These observations explicitly link ncRNA dynamics to neural stem cell fate decisions, specification and epigenetic reprogramming and may have important implications for understanding and treating neuropsychiatric diseases. (Source: BMC Neuroscience - Latest articles)

Monkey hybrid stem cells develop cellular features of Huntington's disease

BMC Cell Biology - Latest articles — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Conclusions: Huntington's disease cellular features is influenced by neural developmental events.These results are the first to demonstrate that a pluripotent stem cell line is able to mimic Huntington's disease progression that parallels neural development, which could be a useful cell model for investigating the developmental impact on Huntington's disease pathogenesis. (Source: BMC Cell Biology - Latest articles)

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Helicobacter pylori-induced activation of beta-catenin involves low density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 6 and Dishevelled

Molecular Cancer — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Conclusion: We analysed the Helicobacter pylori-induced activation of Wnt-signaling factors, and demonstrate for the first time that the canonical Wnt-signalling proteins LRP6 and Dvl2 and Dvl3 are involved in the regulation of beta-catenin. (Source: Molecular Cancer)

TREAT-NMD helps distinguish between the hype of stem cell research and the hope that this science may bring to diseases including Duchenne.www.treat-nmd.eu

Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

In recent years the hype surrounding stem cells and the hope they might bring to patients with incurable diseases has grown at an alarming rate. We need to remember that stem cell treatments which make claims that are not based on valid science and good clinical practice can be unethical and potentially harmful. Clinics providing such stem cell "therapies" and claiming to cure or improve the health of people with neuromuscular disorders (NMDs) without providing scientific proof of these claims, only encourage false hope in patients. Clinics which charge large amounts of money for these therapies may be fraudulent, as they use the hype surrounding stem cells to mislead people for financial gain. There are lots of trials using stem cells for various diseases, but not currently for NMDs, wher...

Failure of xenoimplantation using porcine synovium-derived stem cell-based cartilage tissue constructs for the repair of rabbit osteochondral defects

Journal of Orthopaedic Research — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

The use of xenogeneic tissues offers many advantages with respect to availability, quality control, and timing of tissue harvest. Our previous study indicated that implantation of premature tissue constructs from allogeneic synovium-derived stem cells (SDSCs) facilitated cartilage tissue regeneration. The present study investigated the feasibility of xenoimplantation of SDSC-based premature tissue constructs for the repair of osteochondral defects. Porcine SDSCs were mixed with fibrin gel, seeded in polyglycolic acid (PGA) scaffolds, and cultured in a rotating bioreactor system supplemented for 1 month with growth factor cocktails. The engineered porcine premature tissues were implanted to repair surgically induced osteochondral defects in the medial femoral condyles of 12 rabbits. Three w...

iPS patents around the world

The Scientist — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Technologies using induced pluripotent stem cells are getting stamps of approval from national patent offices. Will this slow or speed progress? (Source: The Scientist)

Understanding the role of asymmetric cell division in cancer using C. elegans

Developmental Dynamics — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Asymmetric cell division is an important process to generate cell diversity and maintain tissue homeostasis. Recent evidence suggests that this process may also be crucial to prevent tumor formation. In the past 30 years, the embryo of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans has proven to be a very powerful model to study the molecular and cellular basis of asymmetric cell division. Understanding this process in Caenorhabditis elegans may thus lead to a better understanding of stem cell function and tumorigenesis in humans. Developmental Dynamics, 2010. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. (Source: Developmental Dynamics)

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The Effect of Intracavernous Injection of Adipose Tissue-Derived Stem Cells on Hyperlipidemia-Associated Erectile Dysfunction in a Rat Model

The Journal of Sexual Medicine — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Conclusions. Hyperlipidemia is associated with abnormalities in both the nerves and endothelium. Treatment with ADSC ameliorates these adverse effects and holds promise as a potential new therapy for ED. Huang Y-C, Ning H, Shindel AW, Fandel TM, Lin G, Harraz AM, Lue TF, and Lin C-S. The effect of intracavernous injection of adipose tissue-derived stem cells on hyperlipidemia-associated erectile dysfunction in a rat model. J Sex Med **;**:**[ndash]**. (Source: The Journal of Sexual Medicine)

Performance of Mouse Neural Stem Cells as a Screening Reagent: Characterization of PAC1 Activity in Medium-Throughput Functional Assays

Journal of Biomolecular Screening — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 23:56:24 +0100

The self-renewal and phenotypic properties of neural stem cells make them an abundant and more physiologically relevant alternative to recombinant cell lines for drug screens to identify ligands acting at neural targets. Here, the authors use high-throughput phenotypic and signaling assays to test the ability of neural stem cells isolated from postnatal mouse hippocampus (mNSCs) to deliver high-content and physiologically relevant data on native peptide receptor activity. The authors find that mNSCs express PAC1 but not the related VPAC1 and VPAC2 receptors. PAC1 promotes both the proliferation of mNSCs and their differentiation into neuronal-like cells. In addition, the authors show that PAC1 stimulates markedly different extracellular signal-regulated kinase signals in mNSCs than in reco...

Bioheart Launches First US FDA Approved Clinical Trial that Tests Gene-Modified Stem Cell Therapy in Patients with Congestive Heart Failure

HSMN NewsFeed — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 21:47:39 +0100

SUNRISE, Fla.--(HSMN NewsFeed)--Bioheart, Inc., (OTCBB:BHRT ) announced today that the company has commenced work on its REGEN trial, a Phase I Clinical Trial to test genetically modified MyoCell® in patients suffering from Congestive Heart Failure (CH... Regenerative Medicine, CardiologyBioheart, MyoCell, REGEN trial, stem cell (Source: HSMN NewsFeed)

Scientists, you are fallible. Get off the pedestal and join the common herd

Guardian Unlimited Science — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 21:00:01 +0100

Climatologists above all need to rediscover the virtue of self-criticism - or others will continue to question their evidenceSo scientists are human after all. They are no different from bankers, politicians, lawyers, estate agents and perhaps even journalists. They cheat. They make mistakes. They suppress truth and suggest falsity, especially when a cheque or a plane ticket is on offer. As for self-criticism, that is for you, not me.I am just ready to believe that the antics of the climate change scientists, revealed in this week's Guardian and elsewhere, have no impact on the facts of global warming. But then I must rely on those same scientists to say so. The Yamal-12 larches may be dodgy, the hockey stick limp and the Amazon stats subject to re-evaluation. The date of 2035 for a Himala...

Association of stem cell marker CD133 expression with dissemination of glioblastomas

Urosurgical Review — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 18:11:47 +0100

Abstract Dissemination of glioblastoma was once considered rare but is now increasingly encountered with longer survival of glioblastoma patients. Despite the potential negative impact of dissemination on clinical outcome, however, molecular markers useful for prediction of dissemination risk still remains ill defined. We tested in this study for an association between the expression of stem cell marker CD133 and the risk of dissemination in 26 cases of glioblastoma (16 with dissemination and 10 without dissemination). The protein expression of CD133 was examined by western blot analysis of tumor specimens, and the CD133 expression levels were quantified by densitometry and normalized to β-actin. The results indicated that CD133 expression levels are significantly higher ...

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A phase II pilot study of tacrolimus/sirolimus GVHD prophylaxis for sibling donor hematopoietic stem cell transplantation using 3 conditioning regimens

Blood — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 17:01:42 +0100

Combination tacrolimus and sirolimus graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) prophylaxis for allogeneic transplant in patients conditioned with a fractionated total body irradiation–based regimen has shown encouraging results. We studied this prophylaxis combination in 85 patients receiving a matched-sibling transplant conditioned with 3 different regimens:fludarabine-melphalan (n = 46); total body irradiation–etoposide (n = 28), and busulfan-cyclophosphamide (n = 11). The conditioning regimens were completed on day –4. Sirolimus and tacrolimus were started on day –3 to avoid overlap with conditioning therapy. All patients engrafted, with a median time to neutrophil engraftment of 15 days. The cumulative incidence of acute GVHD grades II to IV and III to IV was 43% and 19%...

Long-term outcome of EBV-specific T-cell infusions to prevent or treat EBV-related lymphoproliferative disease in transplant recipients

Blood — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 17:01:41 +0100

T-cell immunotherapy that takes advantage of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)–stimulated immunity has the potential to fill an important niche in targeted therapy for EBV-related cancers. To address questions of long-term efficacy, safety, and practicality, we studied 114 patients who had received infusions of EBV-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) at 3 different centers to prevent or treat EBV+ lymphoproliferative disease (LPD) arising after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Toxicity was minimal, consisting mainly of localized swelling at sites of responsive disease. None of the 101 patients who received CTL prophylaxis developed EBV+ LPD, whereas 11 of 13 patients treated with CTLs for biopsy-proven or probable LPD achieved sustained complete remissions. The gene-marking compon...

Rho GTPases in hematopoiesis and hemopathies

Blood — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 17:01:41 +0100

Rho family GTPases are intracellular signaling proteins regulating multiple pathways involved in cell actomyosin organization, adhesion, and proliferation. Our knowledge of their cellular functions comes mostly from previous biochemical studies that used mutant overexpression approaches in various clonal cell lines. Recent progress in understanding Rho GTPase functions in blood cell development and regulation by gene targeting of individual Rho GTPases in mice has allowed a genetic understanding of their physiologic roles in hematopoietic progenitors and mature lineages. In particular, mouse gene–targeting studies have provided convincing evidence that individual members of the Rho GTPase family are essential regulators of cell type–specific functions and stimuli-specific pathw...

Adipose tissue is an extramedullary reservoir for functional hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells

Blood — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 17:01:41 +0100

The stromal vascular fraction (SVF) in adipose tissue contains a pool of various stem and progenitor cells, but the existence of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) in the SVF has not been seriously considered. We detected the presence of HSPCs in the SVF by phenotypically probing with Lin–Sca-1+c-kit+ (LSK) and functionally confirming the presence using colony-forming cell assay and assessing the long-term multilineage reconstitution ability after SVF transplantation. The LSK population in the SVF was 0.004% plus or minus 0.001%, and 5 x 105 freshly isolated SVF cells gave rise to 13 plus or minus 4 multilineage colonies. In addition, 0.15% plus or minus 0.03% of SVF cells was home to bone marrow (BM), especially near vascular and endosteal regions, 24 hours after blood ...

A New Title and a New Focus: Cellular Reprogramming

Cloning and Stem Cells — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:18:34 +0100

Cloning and Stem Cells Feb 2010, Vol. 12, No. 1: 1-1. (Source: Cloning and Stem Cells)

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Scientists map epigenome of human stem cells during development

ScienceDaily Headlines — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:16:43 +0100

Singapore and US scientists have mapped major components of the epigenome and DNA methylation for the entire human DNA sequence, and compared three cell types representing three stages of human development. (Source: ScienceDaily Headlines)

Master Stem Cell Transcription Factors and Signaling Regulation

Cloning and Stem Cells — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:16:36 +0100

Cloning and Stem Cells Feb 2010, Vol. 12, No. 1: 3-13. (Source: Cloning and Stem Cells)

Valproic Acid Enhances In Vitro Development and Oct-3/4 Expression of Miniature Pig Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer Embryos

Cloning and Stem Cells — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:15:50 +0100

Cloning and Stem Cells Feb 2010, Vol. 12, No. 1: 67-74. (Source: Cloning and Stem Cells)

DNA Methylation Patterns Reflect Epigenetic Reprogramming in Bovine Embryos

Cloning and Stem Cells — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:15:25 +0100

Cloning and Stem Cells Feb 2010, Vol. 12, No. 1: 33-42. (Source: Cloning and Stem Cells)

Increasing Histone Acetylation of Cloned Embryos, But Not Donor Cells, by Sodium Butyrate Improves Their In Vitro Development in Pigs

Cloning and Stem Cells — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:14:47 +0100

Cloning and Stem Cells Feb 2010, Vol. 12, No. 1: 95-104. (Source: Cloning and Stem Cells)

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Erratum: Correction

Cloning and Stem Cells — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:14:43 +0100

Cloning and Stem Cells Feb 2010, Vol. 12, No. 1: 115-115. (Source: Cloning and Stem Cells)

Generation of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cell Lines from Zona-Free Nuclear Transfer Embryos

Cloning and Stem Cells — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:14:03 +0100

Cloning and Stem Cells Feb 2010, Vol. 12, No. 1: 105-113. (Source: Cloning and Stem Cells)

Rapid Elimination of the Histone Variant MacroH2A from Somatic Cell Heterochromatin after Nuclear Transfer

Cloning and Stem Cells — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:13:57 +0100

Cloning and Stem Cells Feb 2010, Vol. 12, No. 1: 43-53. (Source: Cloning and Stem Cells)

Abnormal Levels of Transcript Abundance of Developmentally Important Genes in Various Stages of Preimplantation Bovine Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer Embryos

Cloning and Stem Cells — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:13:00 +0100

Cloning and Stem Cells Feb 2010, Vol. 12, No. 1: 23-32. (Source: Cloning and Stem Cells)

Pre- and Postimplantation Development of Swine-Cloned Embryos Derived from Fibroblasts and Bone Marrow Cells after Inhibition of Histone Deacetylases

Cloning and Stem Cells — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:12:02 +0100

Cloning and Stem Cells Feb 2010, Vol. 12, No. 1: 85-94. (Source: Cloning and Stem Cells)

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Preferential Loss of Porcine Chromosomes in Reprogrammed Interspecies Cell Hybrids

Cloning and Stem Cells — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:11:23 +0100

Cloning and Stem Cells Feb 2010, Vol. 12, No. 1: 55-65. (Source: Cloning and Stem Cells)

Histone Deacetylase Inhibitors Improve In Vitro and In Vivo Developmental Competence of Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer Porcine Embryos

Cloning and Stem Cells — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:10:13 +0100

Cloning and Stem Cells Feb 2010, Vol. 12, No. 1: 75-83. (Source: Cloning and Stem Cells)

Changes in the DNA Methylation Status of Bovine Embryos from the Blastocyst to Elongated Stage Derived from Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer

Cloning and Stem Cells — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 16:09:54 +0100

Cloning and Stem Cells Feb 2010, Vol. 12, No. 1: 15-22. (Source: Cloning and Stem Cells)

Stem Cell to T Cell: Molecular Anatomy of Commitment

Videocast - All Events — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 15:31:00 +0100

Presented by: Dr. Ellen RothenbergCategory: Wednesday Afternoon LecturesAired date: 02/03/2010 (Source: Videocast - All Events)

Tailored Electroactive and Quantitative Ligand Density Microarrays Applied to Stem Cell Differentiation

Journal of the American Chemical Society — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 15:25:42 +0100

Journal of the American Chemical Society, Volume 0, Issue 0, Articles ASAP (As Soon As Publishable). (Source: Journal of the American Chemical Society)

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Digital transcriptome profiling from attomole-level RNA samples [METHODS AND RESOURCES]

Genome Research — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 15:19:28 +0100

Accurate profiling of minute quantities of RNA in a global manner can enable key advances in many scientific and clinical disciplines. Here we present low quantity RNA sequencing (LQ-RNAseq), a high-throughput sequencing-based technique allowing whole transcriptome surveys from subnanogram RNA quantities in an amplification/ligation-free manner. LQ-RNAseq involves first-strand cDNA synthesis from RNA templates, followed by 3' polyA tailing of the single-stranded cDNA products and direct single molecule sequencing. We applied LQ-RNAseq to profile S. cerevisiae polyA+ transcripts and demonstrate the reproducibility of the approach across different sample preparations and independent instrument runs, and establish the absolute quantitative power of this method through comparisons with other r...

New state-of-the-art technology to accelerate stem cell research

Hospital IT Europe — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 14:37:44 +0100

Stem cell research at the University of California, Riverside is about to gather speed thanks to the establishment of a new Stem Cell Core Facility (SCCF) (Source: Hospital IT Europe)

Stem cell researchers claim some reviewers hamper publication of high quality research

BMJ Online First — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:25:17 +0100

(Source: BMJ Online First)

The Mapping Of The Epigenome Of Human Stem Cells During Development By Scripps Research And GIS Scientists

Health News from Medical News Today — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute and The Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS) led an international effort to build a map that shows in detail how the human genome is modified during embryonic development. This detailed mapping is a significant move towards the success of targeted differentiation of stem cells into specific organs, which is a crucial consideration for stem cell therapy. The study was published in the genomics journal Genome Research on February 4, 2010... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Scientists Map Epigenome Of Human Stem Cells During Development

Health News from Medical News Today — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100

Scientists at The Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS) and The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) led an international effort to build a map that shows in detail how the human genome is modified during embryonic development. This detailed mapping is a significant move towards the success of targeted differentiation of stem cells into specific organs, which is a crucial consideration for stem cell therapy. The study was published in the journal Genome Research on Feb. 4, 2010... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

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The Mapping Of The Epigenome Of Human Stem Cells During Development By Scripps Research And GIS Scientists

Genetics News From Medical News Today — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100

Scientists Map Epigenome Of Human Stem Cells During Development

Genetics News From Medical News Today — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 12:00:00 +0100

Specific microRNA expression during chondrogenesis of human mesenchymal stem cells.

International Journal of Molecular Medicine — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 11:48:39 +0100

In this study, we cultured human MSCs and chondrogenic differentiation MSCs of 3 donors, and investigated the miRNA expression profiles of MSCs and chondrogenic differentiated MSCs from 2 donors by using miRNA microarrays. We found 5 miRNAs were significantly overexpressed in chondrogenic differentiated MSCs in each sample, and 4 were further confirmed by real-time RT-PCR assay in the sample from the third independent donor. We also predicted the confirmed miRNAs corresponding to putative target genes by online software. The results indicated that the overexpressed miRNAs in chondrogenic differentiated MSCs may play a role in the procedure of MSC chondrogenesis, which offers us guidance for further studies. PMID: 20127042 [PubMed - in process] (Source: International Journal of Molecula...

Dynamic changes in the human methylome during differentiation [LETTERS]

Genome Research — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 09:00:39 +0100

DNA methylation is a critical epigenetic regulator in mammalian development. Here, we present a whole-genome comparative view of DNA methylation using bisulfite sequencing of three cultured cell types representing progressive stages of differentiation: human embryonic stem cells (hESCs), a fibroblastic differentiated derivative of the hESCs, and neonatal fibroblasts. As a reference, we compared our maps with a methylome map of a fully differentiated adult cell type, mature peripheral blood mononuclear cells (monocytes). We observed many notable common and cell-type-specific features among all cell types. Promoter hypomethylation (both CG and CA) and higher levels of gene body methylation were positively correlated with transcription in all cell types. Exons were more highly methylated than...

Bio-Matrix Scientific Group's Majority Owned Subsidiary Entest BioMedical Initiates Studies To Support Stem Cell / Laser Regenerative Therapy For COPD

Health News from Medical News Today — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 09:00:00 +0100

Bio-Matrix Scientific Group Inc. (OTCBB: BMSN) announced that its majority owned subsidiary, Entest BioMedical Inc. (OTCBB: ENTB) has initiated studies to support the Company's stem cell / laser regenerative therapy for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). According to a Company spokesperson, Entest has begun to research the effects of Low Energy Near Infrared Radiation on cultured cells as a step toward animal pre-clinical studies for the treatment of COPD. Studies will be an extension of current Entest intellectual property covering enhancement of stem cell growth and activity... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

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Bio-Matrix Scientific Group's Majority Owned Subsidiary Entest BioMedical Initiates Studies To Support Stem Cell / Laser Regenerative Therapy For COPD

Stem Cell Research News From Medical News Today — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 09:00:00 +0100

New State-Of-The-Art Technology To Accelerate Stem Cell Research At UC Riverside

Health News from Medical News Today — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 08:00:00 +0100

Stem cell research at the University of California, Riverside is about to gather speed thanks to the establishment of a new Stem Cell Core Facility (SCCF) - a shared facility providing infrastructure, equipment, and trained personnel for doing stem cell research that ordinarily would not be available in most laboratories. The SCCF, located in Noel Keen Hall, had its grand opening on Friday, Jan. 29... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

New State-Of-The-Art Technology To Accelerate Stem Cell Research At UC Riverside

IT / Internet / E-mail News From Medical News Today — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 08:00:00 +0100

Stem cell research at the University of California, Riverside is about to gather speed thanks to the establishment of a new Stem Cell Core Facility (SCCF) - a shared facility providing infrastructure, equipment, and trained personnel for doing stem cell research that ordinarily would not be available in most laboratories... (Source: IT / Internet / E-mail News From Medical News Today)

Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor Enhances Bone Marrow Mononuclear Cell Homing to the Liver in a Mouse Model of Acute Hepatic Injury

Digestive Diseases and Sciences — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 06:59:38 +0100

Conclusion Transplanted BMMC may home to injured liver, which appears to be enhanced by G-CSF administration. Content Type Journal ArticleCategory Original ArticleDOI 10.1007/s10620-009-1117-5Authors Shi-Zhu Jin, Jilin University Department of Gastroenterology, First Hospital 130021 Changchun ChinaXiang-Wei Meng, Jilin University Department of Gastroenterology, First Hospital 130021 Changchun ChinaXun Sun, Jilin University Department of Pathology, First Hospital 130021 Changchun ChinaMing-Zi Han, Harbin Medical University Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Second Affiliated Hospital 150086 Harbin ChinaBing-Rong Liu, Harbin Medical University Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Second Affiliated Hospital 150086 Harbin ChinaXin-Hong Wang, Jilin Univ...

Role of mast cells, stem cell factor and protease-activated receptor-2 in tubulointerstitial lesions in IgA nephropathy

Inflammation Research — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 06:45:40 +0100

Conclusions Our findings suggest that MC infiltration possibly induced by SCF in renal interstitial tissues seems to be associated with tubulointerstitial fibrosis through PAR-2 in IgA nephropathy. Content Type Journal ArticleCategory Original Research PaperDOI 10.1007/s00011-010-0159-7Authors Hong Liu, Nephrology Institute of Central South University, Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University Division of Nephrology 139#, Renmin Road 410011 Changsha Hunan People’s Republic of ChinaFuyou Liu, Nephrology Institute of Central South University, Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University Division of Nephrology 139#, Renmin Road 410011 Changsha Hunan People’s Republic of ChinaYouming Peng, Nephrology Institute of Central South University, Second Xiangya Ho...

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Symposium on the Future of Therapeutics Inaugurates New UCSF Department

UCSF School of Pharmacy News — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 01:31:40 +0100

February 3, 2010In the first symposium held by the newly minted UCSF Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, researchers described progress in the fields of systems biology, pharmacogenomics, and bioengineering, and how scientists in these fields are working in concert to develop novel diagnostics and therapeutics to effectively and safely diagnose and treat disease. The conference, Picking up the Pace of Therapeutics Research and Application, was held January 26, 2010 at the William J. Rutter Center on the UCSF Mission Bay Campus. Strategies shared included the targeted delivery of therapeutics with nano- and micro-technologies, drug design aimed at biological networks rather than any one metabolic step, and the engineering of cheap but sturdy medical devices to help pati...

Histone H3 lysine 4 methylation is associated with the transcriptional reprogramming efficiency of somatic nuclei by oocytes

BioMed Central — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Conclusion: We conclude that H3K4me2 and me3 are likely to be important for the efficient reprogramming of pluripotency genes in somatic nuclei by amphibian oocytes and that Aurora B kinase is required for H3S10 phosphorylation which is induced in transplanted somatic cell nuclei. (Source: BioMed Central)

ATF2 maintains a subset of neural progenitors through CBF1/Notch independent Hes-1 expression and synergistically activates the expression of Hes-1 in Notch-dependent neural progenitors

Journal of Neurochemistry — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

J. Neurochem. (2010) 10.1111/j.1471-4159.2010.06574.x Hes-1 and Hes-5 are downstream effectors of Notch signaling that are known to be involved in different aspects of neural stem cell proliferation and differentiation. Evidence has emerged that Hes-1 expression can be regulated by alternate signaling pathways independent of canonical Notch/CBF1 interaction. This context-dependent differential regulation of Hes-1 expression in neural progenitor gains a lot of importance as it would help in its exponential expansion without the requirement of interaction from neighboring cells during development. Here, we have clearly demonstrated the existence of a population of neural progenitors with Notch/CBF1-independent Hes-1 expression in vitro. Further analysis demonstrated the role of FGF2 in activ...

Isolation and cultivation of human keratinocytes from skin or plucked hair for the generation of induced pluripotent stem cells

Nature Protocols — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Authors: Trond Aasen & Juan Carlos Izpisúa Belmonte The ease of generating induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells, and possibly their properties after reprogramming, depends on the origin of the somatic cell starting population. Reprogramming of keratinocytes is both faster and more efficient compared with fibroblasts, although more care is required when isolating, culturing (Source: Nature Protocols)

Women With Breast Cancer May Benefit From Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation

Cancercompass News: Breast Cancer — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Compared to conventional chemotherapy, autologous stem cell transplantation can extend event-free survival for breast cancer patients. Clinical trials provide proof of this for breast cancer with and without distant metastases. However, there are indications that this type of stem cell transplantation can more frequently give rise to severe complications affecting almost all organ systems. (Source: Cancercompass News: Breast Cancer)

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Disarming Specialized Stem Cells Might Combat Deadly Ovarian Cancer

Cancercompass News: Gynecological Cancer — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Eliminating cancer stem cells (CSCs) within a tumor could hold the key to successful treatments for ovarian cancer, which has been notoriously difficult to detect and treat, according to new findings published this week in the journal Oncogene by Yale School of Medicine researchers. (Source: Cancercompass News: Gynecological Cancer)

Post-hematopoietic stem cell transplant immunization practices in the Pediatric Blood and Marrow Transplant Consortium

Pediatric Blood and Cancer — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

A survey of National Marrow Donor Program transplant centers in 1995 demonstrated a wide range of immunization practices in post-hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) recipients, which led to the 2000 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendations for vaccination after HSCT. We surveyed the principal investigators of the Pediatric Blood and Marrow Transplant Consortium (PBMTC) to identify immunization practice patterns after HSCT and assess compliance with the 2000 CDC guidelines.Approval was obtained from the Medical University of South Carolina Institutional Review Board. A 33 question survey using surveymonkey.com was distributed by email to principal investigators in the PBMTC.Forty-one (40%) of the 102 pediatric HSCT centers participating in the PBMTC responded. ...

Hematopoietic stem cells and retroviral infection

Retrovirology — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Retroviral induced malignancies serve as ideal models to help us better understand the molecular mechanisms associated with the initiation and progression of leukemogenesis. Numerous retroviruses including AEV, FLV, M-MuLV and HTLV-1 have the ability to infect hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells, resulting in the deregulation of normal hematopoiesis and the development of leukemia/lymphoma. Research over the last few decades has elucidated similarities between retroviral-induced leukemogenesis, initiated by deregulation of innate hematopoietic stem cell traits, and the cancer stem cell hypothesis. Ongoing research in some of these models may provide a better understanding of the processes of normal hematopoiesis and cancer stem cells. Research on retroviral induced leukemias and lympho...

Mesenchymal stem cells derived from human umbilical cord ameliorate ischemia/reperfusion-induced acute renal failure in rats.

Biotechnology Letters — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Authors: Cao H, Qian H, Xu W, Zhu W, Zhang X, Chen Y, Wang M, Yan Y, Xie Y Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are candidates for cell therapy of kidney diseases. However, the application of MSC derived from human umbilical cord (UC-MSC) in treating acute renal failure (ARF) has not been reported. UC-MSCs, 10(6), were transplantated via the left carotid artery into ARF rats which was established by clamping bilateral pedicles for 60 min and reperfusing. Serum creatinine and urea nitrogen decreased 4.8 times and 3.6 times as well as caspase-3 and IL-1beta decreased 5.8 times and 9 times compared to control groups, respectively. The percent of proliferative cell nuclear antigen (PCNA)-positive cells (53% +/- 7.5%) was higher than that in the control groups (17% +/- 4.5%). In addition, the tran...

Vorinostat interferes with the signaling transduction pathway of T cell receptor and synergizes with PI3K inhibitors in cutaneous T-cell lymphoma.

Haematologica — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Conclusions These results demonstrate the potential targets of SAHA, underlining the importance of TCR signaling inhibition following vorinostat treatment. Additionaly, we show that combination therapies involving HDACi and inhibitors of PI3K can be potentially efficacious for the treatment of CTCL. PMID: 20133897 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher] (Source: Haematologica)

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Long-term immune deficiency after allogeneic stem cell transplantation: B cell deficiency is associated with late infections.

Haematologica — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Authors: Corre E, Carmagnat M, Busson M, Peffault de Latour R, Robin M, Ribaud P, Toubert A, Rabian C, Socié G In 140 consecutive patients who were 2-year disease-free and underwent myeloablative allogeneic transplantation immune reconstitution was analyzed. A CD4 and CD8 defect was observed involving naive, terminally differentiated, memory and competent cells and above limits values for activated subsets. NK cells normalize at 6 months while we observed expansion of CD19+/CD5+ B cells after 3 months and a persisting defect of memory B cells. Chronic GvHD did not influence significantly those parameters for CD8 subsets while strongly affecting the naïve and competent CD4 subsets. But the most profound impact of chronic GvHD was on B cell subsets especially on the memory B po...

Cooperation between HNF-1{alpha}, Cdx2 and GATA-4 in initiating an enterocytic differentiation program in a normal, human intestinal progenitor cell line.

Am J Physiol Gastroi... — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Authors: Benoit YD, Paré F, Francoeur C, Jean D, Tremblay E, Boudreau F, Escaffit F, Beaulieu JF In the intestinal epithelium, the Cdx, GATA and HNF transcription factor families are responsible for the expression of differentiation markers such as sucrase-isomaltase. Although previous studies have shown that Cdx2 can induce differentiation in rat intestinal IEC-6 cells, no data are available concerning the direct implication of transcription factors on differentiation in human normal intestinal epithelial cell types. We investigated the role of Cdx2, GATA-4 and HNF-1alpha using the undifferentiated human intestinal epithelial crypt cell line HIEC. These transcription factors were tested on proliferation and expression of polarization and differentiation markers. Ectopic expressio...

Effects of CXCR4 Gene Transfer on Cardiac Function After Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury.

The American Journal of Pathology — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Authors: Chen J, Chemaly E, Liang L, Kho C, Lee A, Park J, Altman P, Schecter AD, Hajjar RJ, Tarzami ST Acute coronary occlusion is the leading cause of death in the Western world. There is an unmet need for the development of treatments to limit the extent of myocardial infarction (MI) during the acute phase of occlusion. Recently, investigators have focused on the use of a chemokine, CXCL12, the only identified ligand for CXCR4, as a new therapeutic modality to recruit stem cells to individuals suffering from MI. Here, we examined the effects of overexpression of CXCR4 by gene transfer on MI. Adenoviruses carrying the CXCR4 gene were injected into the rat heart one week before ligation of the left anterior descending coronary artery followed by 24 hours reperfusion. Cardiac function ...

Generation of a Novel Transgenic Mouse Model for Bioluminescent Monitoring of Survivin Gene Activity in Vivo at Various Pathophysiological Processes. Survivin Expression Overlaps with Stem Cell Markers.

The American Journal of Pathology — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Authors: Li F, Cheng Q, Ling X, Stablewski A, Tang L, Foster BA, Johnson CS, Rustum YM, Porter CW Survival has been implicated to play an important role in various pathophysiological processes. However, because of a lack of appropriate animal models, the role and dynamic expression of survivin during pathophysiology are not well defined. We generated a human survivin gene promoter-driven luciferase transgenic mouse model (SPlucTg) so that dynamic survivin gene activity can be monitored during various pathophysiological conditions using in vivo imaging. Our results show that, consistent with survivin positivity in testis, luciferase activity in normal SPlucTg mice was detected in the testis of male mice. Furthermore, similar to the known requirement of transient expression of survivin f...

High resolution electron transfer dissociation (ETD) studies of unfractionated intact histones from murine embryonic stem cells using online capillary LC separation: determination of abundant histone isoforms and post-translational modifications.

Molecular and Cellular Proteomics : MCP — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

We present an online reversed phase liquid chromatography (LC) tandem mass spectrometry approach for the separation of intact, unfractionated histones and a high resolution mass analyzer, the Orbitrap, with electron transfer dissociation (ETD) capabilities to detect and record accurate mass values for the molecular and fragment ions observed. From a single LC-ETD run, this strategy permits the identification of the most abundant intact proteins, determination of the isoforms present, and the localization of post-translational modifications. PMID: 20133344 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher] (Source: Molecular and Cellular Proteomics : MCP)

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BJUI Mini Reviews - Application of mesenchymal stromal cells in urological diseases

UroToday — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 23:05:00 +0100

This review provides an insight into stem cell hierarchy, defines the properties of MSCs and summarizes recent reports of their... (Source: UroToday)

Endoplasmic reticulum stress induced by tunicamycin and antagonistic effect of Tiantai No.1 (天泰1号) on mesenchymal stem cells

Chinese Journal of Integrative Medicine — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 17:46:10 +0100

Conclusion Tiantai No.1 might attenuate the cell apoptosis induced by ERS injury, and thus protect the neurons against AD. Content Type Journal ArticleCategory Experimental ResearchDOI 10.1007/s11655-010-0041-zAuthors Zheng-zhi Wu, Shenzhen Hospital of Southern Medical University Shenzhen, Guangdong Province 518033 ChinaYing-hong Li, Shenzhen Hospital of Southern Medical University Shenzhen, Guangdong Province 518033 ChinaAndrew C. J. Huang, UCLA Larry Hillblom Islet Research Center, David Geffen School of Medicine Los Angeles CA 90024 USAMing Li, Shenzhen Hospital of Southern Medical University Shenzhen, Guangdong Province 518033 ChinaXiao-li Zhang, Shenzhen Hospital of Southern Medical University Shenzhen, Guangdong Province 518033 ChinaJi-guo Wang, Shenzhen Hospital ...

Phenotyping male infertility in the mouse: how to get the most out of a 'non-performer'

Human Reproduction Update — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 16:32:25 +0100

CONCLUSION With the increased rate of genetically modified mouse production, the generation of mouse models with unexpected male infertility is increasing. This manuscript will help to ensure that the maximum amount of information is obtained from each mouse model and, by extension, will facilitate the knowledge of both normal fertility processes and the causes of human infertility. (Source: Human Reproduction Update)

Experimental stem cell treatment arrests acute lung injury in mice, study shows

ScienceDaily Headlines — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 16:19:55 +0100

Stem cell researchers exploring a new approach for the care of respiratory diseases report that an experimental treatment involving transplantable lung cells was associated with improved outcomes in tests on mice with acute lung injury. The lung cells were derived from human embryonic stem cells. (Source: ScienceDaily Headlines)

3-D scaffold provides clean, biodegradable structure for stem cell growth

ScienceDaily Headlines — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 16:19:55 +0100

A natural material derived from crustacean shell and algae supports the growth of human embryonic stem cells. (Source: ScienceDaily Headlines)

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Clean, biodegradable structure for stem cell growth

Medicineworld.org: New Article Alert — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 14:04:47 +0100

Medical scientists were shocked to discover that virtually all human embryonic stem cell lines being used in 2005 were contaminated. Animal byproducts used to line Petri dishes had left traces on the human cells. If those cells had been implanted in a human body they likely would have been rejected by the patient's immune system........ (Source: Medicineworld.org: New Article Alert)

3-D Scaffold Provides Clean, Biodegradable Structure For Stem Cell Growth

Health News from Medical News Today — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 11:00:00 +0100

Medical researchers were shocked to discover that virtually all human embryonic stem cell lines being used in 2005 were contaminated. Animal byproducts used to line Petri dishes had left traces on the human cells. If those cells had been implanted in a human body they likely would have been rejected by the patient's immune system. Even today, with new stem cell lines approved for use in medical research, there remains a risk that these cells will be contaminated in the same way... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

3-D Scaffold Provides Clean, Biodegradable Structure For Stem Cell Growth

Stem Cell Research News From Medical News Today — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 11:00:00 +0100

Medical researchers were shocked to discover that virtually all human embryonic stem cell lines being used in 2005 were contaminated. Animal byproducts used to line Petri dishes had left traces on the human cells. If those cells had been implanted in a human body they likely would have been rejected by the patient's immune system... (Source: Stem Cell Research News From Medical News Today)

Stem Cells Rescue Nerve Cells By Direct Contact

Health News from Medical News Today — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 08:00:00 +0100

Scientists at the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet have shown how transplanted stem cells can connect with and rescue threatened neurons and brain tissue. The results point the way to new possible treatments for brain damage and neurodegenerative diseases. A possible strategy for treating neurodegenerative diseases is to transplant stem cells into the brain that prevent existing nerve cells from dying. The method has proved successful in different models, but the mechanisms behind it are still unknown... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Stem Cells Rescue Nerve Cells By Direct Contact

Transplants / Organ Donations News From Medical News Today — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 08:00:00 +0100

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Effect of Amnion-Derived Cellular Cytokine Solution on Healing of Experimental Partial-Thickness Burns

World Journal of Surgery — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 06:47:52 +0100

Conclusions Amnion-derived cellular cytokine solution accelerates the healing of experimental partial-thickness burns. Based on these findings, a multicenter clinical trial is underway. Content Type Journal ArticleDOI 10.1007/s00268-010-0420-9Authors Wyatt G. Payne, Institute for Tissue Regeneration, Repair, and Rehabilitation, Bay Pines Veterans Healthcare System Bay Pines FL USAThomas L. Wachtel, Stemnion, Inc. Pittsburgh PA USACharlotte A. Smith, Stemnion, Inc. Pittsburgh PA USAM. Georgina Uberti, Institute for Tissue Regeneration, Repair, and Rehabilitation, Bay Pines Veterans Healthcare System Bay Pines FL USAFrancis Ko, Institute for Tissue Regeneration, Repair, and Rehabilitation, Bay Pines Veterans Healthcare System Bay Pines FL USAMartin C. Robson, University ...

Scientists map epigenome of human stem cells during development

EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 05:00:00 +0100

(Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore) Singapore and US scientists have mapped major components of the epigenome and DNA methylation for the entire human DNA sequence, and compared three cell types representing three stages of human development. (Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health)

Mechanosensitivity of dental pulp stem cells is related to their osteogenic maturity

European Journal of Oral Sciences — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Kraft DCE, Bindslev DA, Melsen B, Abdallah BM, Kassem M, Klein-Nulend J. Mechanosensitivity of dental pulp stem cells is related to their osteogenic maturity. Eur J Oral Sci 2010; 118: 29[ndash]38. © 2010 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2010 Eur J Oral Sci For engineering bone tissue, mechanosensitive cells are needed for bone (re)modelling. Local bone mass and architecture are affected by mechanical loading, which provokes a cellular response via loading-induced interstitial fluid flow. We studied whether human dental pulp-derived mesenchymal stem cells (PDSCs) portraying mature (PDSC-mature) or immature (PDSC-immature) bone cell characteristics are responsive to pulsating fluid flow (PFF) in vitro. We also assessed bone formation by PDSCs on hydroxyapatite-tricalcium phosphate granu...

Partially erupted third molars as a potential source of infection in patients receiving peripheral stem cell transplantation for malignant diseases: a retrospective study

European Journal of Oral Sciences — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Öhman D, Björk Y, Bratel J, Kristiansson C, Johansson P, Johansson J-E, Brune M, Hasséus B. Partially erupted third molars as a potential source of infection in patients receiving peripheral stem cell transplantation for malignant diseases: a retrospective study. Eur J Oral Sci 2010; 118: 53[ndash]58. © 2010 The Authors. Journal compilation© 2010 Eur J Oral Sci Forty-four patients with malignant diseases for which they received peripheral stem cell transplant therapy (PSCT) were retrospectively studied regarding local and systemic infection originating from around partially erupted third molars (PEMs). Twenty-two patients had one or more PEMs, while 22 patients had none. Data were retrieved from medical and dental records. Systemic and local signs of infection and treatment were asses...

ASH 2009 meeting report - Top 10 clinically-oriented abstracts in hematopoietic stem cell transplantation

American Journal of Hematology — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

No abstract. (Source: American Journal of Hematology)

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Prosaposin in the secretome of marrow stroma-derived neural progenitor cells protects neural cells from apoptotic death

Journal of Neurochemistry — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

J. Neurochem. (2010) 10.1111/j.1471-4159.2009.06565.x Functionally, adult stem cells not only participate in replication and differentiation to various cell lineages, but also may be involved in rescuing cells from apoptosis. Identifying functional factors secreted by stem cells, as well as their target cells, may advance our understanding of stem cells' multifaceted physiologic functions. Here, we report that mouse bone marrow stromal cell-derived neuroprogenitor cells (mMSC-NPC) provide a protective function by secreting a key factor, prosaposin (PSAP), capable of rescuing mature neurons from apoptotic death. This factor is identified as the lead protein in the secretome of mMSC-NPC cultures by tandem mass spectroscopic profiling, and further validated by western blotting and immunocytoc...

Characterization of mesenchymal stem cells from human vocal fold fibroblasts

The Laryngoscope — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) originally isolated from bone marrow (BM), are fibroblast-looking cells that are now assumed to be present in the stromal component of many tissues. MSCs are characterized by a certain set of criteria, including their growth culture characteristics, a combination of cell surface markers, and the ability to differentiate along multiple mesenchymal tissue lineages. We hypothesized that human vocal fold fibroblasts (hVFF) isolated from the lamina propria meet the criteria established to define MSCs and are functionally similar to MSCs derived from BM and adipose tissue.In vitro study.hVFF were previously derived from human vocal fold tissues. MSCs were derived from adipose tissue (AT), and BM of healthy donors based on their attachment to culture dishes and their...

Tissue regeneration of the vocal fold using bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells and synthetic extracellular matrix injections in rats

The Laryngoscope — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

To determine the effectiveness of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell (BM-MSC) transplantation in isolation or within a synthetic extracellular matrix (sECM) for tissue regeneration of the scarred vocal fold lamina propria.In vitro stability and compatibility of mouse BM-MSC embedded in sECM was assessed by flow cytometry detection of BM-MSC marker expression and proliferation. Eighteen rats were subjected to vocal fold injury bilaterally, followed by 1 month post-treatment with unilateral injections of saline or sECM hydrogel (Extracel; Glycosan BioSystems, Inc., Salt Lake City, UT), green fluorescence protein (GFP)-mouse BM-MSC, or BM-MSC suspended in sECM. Outcomes measured 1 month after treatment included procollagen-III, fibronectin, hyaluronan synthase-III (HAS3), hyaluronidase (HYAL3)...

Stem cells: Big roles for small RNAs

Nature — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Authors: Frank J. Slack Embryonic stem cells can create copies of themselves, but can also mature into almost any type of cell in the body. Tiny gene regulators called microRNAs are now shown to have a role in directing these properties. (Source: Nature)

State University of New York Upstate Medical University Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship Program

ScanGrants feed — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

The State University of New York Upstate Medical University, College of Graduate Studies is offering fellowships for its 2010 Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Program. The aim of the SURF program is to expose undergraduate students to biomedical research. In an intensive ten-week summer program, undergraduates with appropriate faculty help will formulate their own proposal, carry out research under the supervision of one of our faculty, write a research paper and have the opportunity to see their work published. In the process, students will attend research seminars and participate in discussions on alternative careers in research and how to apply to graduate school. Students are given ample opportunities to interact directly with many of our faculty and graduate students. ...

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Activin Bioactivity Affects Germ Cell Differentiation in the Postnatal Mouse Testis In Vivo.

Biology of Reproduction — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Authors: Mithraprabhu S, Mendis S, Meachem SJ, Tubino L, Matzuk MM, Brown CW, Loveland KL The TGFbeta superfamily ligand, activin A controls juvenile testis growth by stimulating Sertoli cell proliferation. Testicular levels are highest in the first postnatal week when Sertoli cells are proliferating and spermatogonial stem cells first form. Levels decrease sharply as Sertoli cell proliferation ceases and spermatogenic differentiation begins. We hypothesized that changing activin levels also affect germ cell maturation. We measured an acute and developmentally-regulated impact of activin on Kit mRNA in co-cultures of Sertoli and germ cells from Day 8, but not Day 4, mice. Both stereological and FACS analyses identified an elevated spermatogonium:Sertoli cell ratio in Day 7 testes from ...

Inflammatory Cytokine-Induced Intercellular Adhesion Molecule-1 and Vascular Cell Adhesion Molecule-1 in Mesenchymal Stem Cells Are Critical for Immunosuppression.

Journal of Immunology — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:00:00 +0100

Authors: Ren G, Zhao X, Zhang L, Zhang J, L'huillier A, Ling W, Roberts AI, Le AD, Shi S, Shao C, Shi Y Cell-cell adhesion mediated by ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 is critical for T cell activation and leukocyte recruitment to the inflammation site and, therefore, plays an important role in evoking effective immune responses. However, we found that ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 were critical for mesenchymal stem cell (MSC)-mediated immunosuppression. When MSCs were cocultured with T cells in the presence of T cell Ag receptor activation, they significantly upregulated the adhesive capability of T cells due to the increased expression of ICAM-1 and VCAM-1. By comparing the immunosuppressive effect of MSCs toward various subtypes of T cells and the expression of these adhesion molecules, we found that the grea...

Diabetes Induced Changes in Rat Mesenchymal Stem Cells

Cells Tissues Organs — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 23:00:00 +0100

Cells Tissues Organs (DOI:10.1159/000281826) (Source: Cells Tissues Organs)

Effect of Chordin-Like 1 on MC3T3-E1 and Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells

Cells Tissues Organs — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 23:00:00 +0100

Cells Tissues Organs (DOI:10.1159/000281825) (Source: Cells Tissues Organs)

3-D scaffold provides clean, biodegradable structure for stem cell growth

uwnews.org | Health and Medicine — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 21:16:14 +0100

A material derived from crustacean shell and algae supports the growth of new stem cells, offering a possible replacement to today's Petri dishes lined with animal byproducts. (Source: uwnews.org | Health and Medicine)

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Omitted Figure Reference and Sentence in: Propagation of Human Spermatogonial Stem Cells In Vitro [Correction]

JAMA — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 20:51:34 +0100

(Source: JAMA)

Progression from a stem cell-like state to early differentiation in the C. elegans germ line [Developmental_Biology]

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 20:33:04 +0100

Controls of stem cell maintenance and early differentiation are known in several systems. However, the progression from stem cell self-renewal... (Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences)

Direct contacts between extracellular membrane-proximal domains are required for VEGF receptor activation and cell signaling [Biochemistry]

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 20:33:01 +0100

Structural analyses of the extracellular region of stem cell factor (SCF) receptor (also designated KIT) in complex with SCF revealed... (Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences)

MicroRNA let-7b regulates neural stem cell proliferation and differentiation by targeting nuclear receptor TLX signaling [Applied_Biological_Sciences]

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 20:33:00 +0100

Neural stem cell self-renewal and differentiation is orchestrated by precise control of gene expression involving nuclear receptor TLX. Let-7b, a... (Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences)

National Institutes Of Health Approves Wisconsin H1 Stem-Cell Line For Continued Use In Federally Funded Research

Health News from Medical News Today — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 19:00:00 +0100

The WiCell Research Institute, a private nonprofit that has advanced stem cell science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and served researchers around the world since 1999, can continue to provide stem cell scientists one of the earliest and most popular human embryonic stem cell (hESC) lines in the field for their use in federally funded research projects. Today (Jan. 29), the National Institutes of Health (NIH) officially approved the H1, also known as the WA1 line, for continued use in research funded by the U.S... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

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National Institutes Of Health Approves Wisconsin H1 Stem-Cell Line For Continued Use In Federally Funded Research

Stem Cell Research News From Medical News Today — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 19:00:00 +0100

The WiCell Research Institute, a private nonprofit that has advanced stem cell science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and served researchers around the world since 1999, can continue to provide stem cell scientists one of the earliest and most popular human embryonic stem cell (hESC) lines in the field for their use in federally funded research projects... (Source: Stem Cell Research News From Medical News Today)

High Level of Perforin Expression in T Cells: An Early Prognostic Marker of the Severity of Herpesvirus Reactivation after Allogeneic Stem Cell Transplantation in Adults

Clinical Infectious Diseases Latest Issue — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 17:10:25 +0100

Conclusion. Perforin‐expressing CD8+ T cells may be useful as an easy‐to‐measure prognostic marker for identifying patients at risk for severe viral reactivation very soon after SCT. (Source: Clinical Infectious Diseases Latest Issue)

Are stem cell scientists sabotaging rivals' work?

New Scientist - Health — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 17:06:00 +0100

An international group of senior stem cell researchers this week warned that it may be happening, although they are short of evidence (Source: New Scientist - Health)

Bio-Matrix Scientific Group's Majority Owned Subsidiary Entest BioMedical Initiates Studies to Support Stem Cell / Laser Regenerative Therapy for COPD

HSMN NewsFeed — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 16:29:07 +0100

Every 4 Minutes an American Dies of COPD 24 Million Americans Have COPD and 12 Million Don't Know It $170 Billion over the Next 5 Years Will Be Spent Treating COPD SAN DIEGO, CA - (HSMN NewsFeed) - Bio-Matrix Scientific Group Inc. (OTC.BB:BMSN ) a... Regenerative MedicineBio-Matrix Scientific Group, Entest BioMedical, stem cell, COPD (Source: HSMN NewsFeed)

In the AIBS Webstore

Public Policy Reports — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 16:16:03 +0100

“COMMUNICATING SCIENCE: A PRIMER FOR WORKING WITH THE MEDIA” Evolution, climate change, stem cell research — Scientists are frequently called upon to provide expert information on hot button issues that pervade the daily news headlines, yet most find themselves woefully unprepared for the bright lights of the television studio or leading questions from a newspaper journalist. A new publication from AIBS, “Communicating Science: A Primer for Working with the Media,” by Holly Menninger and Robert Gropp in the Public Policy Office, will prepare scientists for successful and effective media interviews. Recognizing that many scientists are reluctant to engage in media outreach, “Communicating Science” outlines compelling reasons for scientists to inte...

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Become an Advocate for Science: Join the AIBS Legislative Action Center

Public Policy Reports — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 16:16:03 +0100

Quick, free, easy, effective, impactful! Join the AIBS Legislative Action Center today! The American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS) has launched the AIBS Legislative Action Center. The online resource allows biologists and science educators to quickly and effectively influence policy and public opinion. The AIBS Legislative Action Center is located at www.aibs.org/public-policy/legislativeactioncenter.html. This new tool is made possible through contributions from the Society for the Study of Evolution, American Society for Limnology and Oceanography, Association of Ecosystem Research Centers, and the Botanical Society of America. Each day lawmakers must make tough decisions about science policy. For example, what investments to make in federal research programs, biodiversity c...

The role of genetic diversity in cancer

Journal of Clinical Investigation — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 16:14:14 +0100

The role of genetic heterogeneity within neoplasms is increasingly recognized as important for understanding the dynamics of cancer progression, cancer stem cells, and therapeutic resistance, and there is interest in intratumoral heterogeneity measurements as potential biomarkers for risk stratification. In this issue of the JCI, Park et al. characterize this genetic diversity in carcinoma in situ and in invasive regions from 3 types of human breast cancers and lay the groundwork for translation of these measures to the clinic. (Source: Journal of Clinical Investigation)

CXCR1 blockade selectively targets human breast cancer stem cells in vitro and in xenografts

Journal of Clinical Investigation — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 16:14:14 +0100

We report here the development of a strategy to target these breast cancer stem cells (CSCs) through blockade of the IL-8 receptor CXCR1. CXCR1 blockade using either a CXCR1-specific blocking antibody or repertaxin, a small-molecule CXCR1 inhibitor, selectively depleted the CSC population in 2 human breast cancer cell lines in vitro. Furthermore, this was followed by the induction of massive apoptosis in the bulk tumor population via FASL/FAS signaling. The effects of CXCR1 blockade on CSC viability and on FASL production were mediated by the FAK/AKT/FOXO3A pathway. In addition, repertaxin was able to specifically target the CSC population in human breast cancer xenografts, retarding tumor growth and reducing metastasis. Our data therefore suggest that CXCR1 blockade may provide a novel me...

Cellular and genetic diversity in the progression of in situ human breast carcinomas to an invasive phenotype

Journal of Clinical Investigation — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 16:14:14 +0100

Intratumor genetic heterogeneity is a key mechanism underlying tumor progression and therapeutic resistance. The prevailing model for explaining intratumor diversity, the clonal evolution model, has recently been challenged by proponents of the cancer stem cell hypothesis. To investigate this issue, we performed combined analyses of markers associated with cellular differentiation states and genotypic alterations in human breast carcinomas and evaluated diversity with ecological and evolutionary methods. Our analyses showed a high degree of genetic heterogeneity both within and between distinct tumor cell populations that were defined based on markers of cellular phenotypes including stem cell–like characteristics. In several tumors, stem cell–like and more-differentiated c...

Stem cells rescue nerve cells by direct contact

ScienceDaily Headlines — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 16:00:00 +0100

Scientists in Sweden have shown how transplanted stem cells can connect with and rescue threatened neurons and brain tissue. The results point the way to new possible treatments for brain damage and neurodegenerative diseases. (Source: ScienceDaily Headlines)

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Bio-Matrix Scientific Group Inc. : Bio-Matrix Scientific Group's Majority Owned Subsidiary Entest BioMedical Initiates Studies to Support Stem Cell / Laser Regenerative Therapy for COPD

Market Wire - Pharmaceuticals and Biotech — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 15:00:00 +0100

SAN DIEGO, CA (MARKET WIRE) Bio-Matrix Scientific Group Inc. (OTCBB: BMSN) announced that its majority owned subsidiary, Entest BioMedical Inc. (OTCBB: ENTB) has initiated studies to support the Company's stem cell / laser regenerative therapy for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). (Source: Market Wire - Pharmaceuticals and Biotech)

Stem cells rescue nerve cells by direct contact

Pharmacy Europe — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 14:16:54 +0100

Scientists at the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet have shown how transplanted stem cells can connect with and rescue threatened neurons and brain tissue. (Source: Pharmacy Europe)

Skymark Research Initiates Independent Research Coverage on Stem Cell Therapy International, Inc.

Medical News (via PRIMEZONE) — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 14:00:00 +0100

CALGARY, Alberta, Feb. 2, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Skymark Research, a leading provider of small- and micro-cap independent investment research, today initiated coverage on Stem Cell Therapy International, Inc. (OTCBB:SCII). Skymark Research is currently offering a complimentary trial subscription. To view our research go to: www.skymarkresearch.com (Source: Medical News (via PRIMEZONE))

New Nanoscopic Material Enables Cartilage To Do What It Doesn't Do Naturally

Stem Cell Research News From Medical News Today — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 13:00:00 +0100

New Nanoscopic Material Enables Cartilage To Do What It Doesn't Do Naturally

Health News from Medical News Today — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 13:00:00 +0100

Northwestern University researchers are the first to design a bioactive nanomaterial that promotes the growth of new cartilage in vivo and without the use of expensive growth factors. Minimally invasive, the therapy activates the bone marrow stem cells and produces natural cartilage. No conventional therapy can do this. The results will be published online the week of Feb. 1 by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). "Unlike bone, cartilage does not grow back, and therefore clinical strategies to regenerate this tissue are of great interest," said Samuel I... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

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Ten-year post-transplant survival similar between stem cell, bone marrow transplantation in leukemia patients

HemOncToday.com — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 11:00:00 +0100

(Source: HemOncToday.com)

Translational Regenerative Medicine Forum Sets Stage For Accelerating Therapies To Patients

Health News from Medical News Today — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 10:00:00 +0100

The Regenerative Medicine Foundation has announced the first annual Translational Regenerative Medicine Forum to be held April 6-8, 2010 at the Benton Convention Center in Winston-Salem. The forum seeks to advance the field of regenerative medicine and health care innovation through the sharing of scientific discoveries, clinical and corporate best practices and business models... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Translational Regenerative Medicine Forum Sets Stage For Accelerating Therapies To Patients

Medical Devices News From Medical News Today — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 10:00:00 +0100

Predifferentiated Adult Stem Cells and Matrices for Cardiac Cell Therapy [REVIEW PAPER]

Asian Cardiovascular and Thoracic Annals — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 09:27:46 +0100

Stem cell therapy is a major field of research worldwide, with increasing clinical application, especially in cardiovascular pathology. However, the best stem cell source and type with optimal safety for functional engraftment remains unclear. An intermediate cardiac precommitted phenotype expressing some of the key proteins of a mature cardiomyocyte would permit better integration into the cardiac environment. The predifferentiated cells would receive signals from the environment, thus achieving gradual and complete differentiation. In cell transplantation, survival and engraftment within the environment of the ischemic myocardium represents a challenge for all types of cells, regardless of their state of differentiation. An alternative strategy is to embed cells in a 3-dimensional struct...