Archive for November, 2014

Korean stem cells regenerate coach Hiddinks worn-out knee cartilage NOVEMBER 06, 2014 08:34 Korean stem cells regenerate coach Hiddinks worn-out knee cartilage . NOVEMBER 06, 2014 08:34. . Guus Hiddink, the legendary soccer coach who led the Korean national team to the semifinals at the 2002 World Cup Korea-Japan, has been reborn as a figure symbolizing excellence of Korean stem cell treatment. Hiddink, who was suffering from severe arthritis, had his knee cartilage almost completely worn out. Rejecting recommendations to take an artificial joint surgery by hospitals in the U.S. and Germany, Hiddink chose to take stem cell treatment in Korea. He started treatment in January this year, and was declared as having fully recovered from the illness 10 months later.

The treatment that gave coach Hiddink a second life is Cartistem that is made from cord blood stem cells. Cartistem developed by bio venture firm Medipost received product licensure as treatment for knee cartilage, which has been damaged due to degenerative conditions and repeated injuries, from the Korea Food and Drug Ministry in January 2012. It was the first to receive licensure among stem cell treatments in the world. The treatment is undergoing clinical trials in the U.S. to acquire licensure from the Food and Drug Administration. Despite a highly costly price that is not covered by the national health insurance system, the treatment has been used in more than 1,600 patients thus far.

Stem cell treatments developed in Korea include Hearticellgram, a treatment for cardiac infarction, and Cupistem, a treatment for fistulous opening (a disease that causes holes in tissue between rectums and anus), as well as Cartistem. Hearticellgram and Cupistem use stem cells from tissues of the patients own body. Umbilical cord stem cells and autologous stem cells do not derive from human eggs and hence are free from controversy of bioethics. They are results of steadfast research and investment in stem cells by Korean biotech firms.

In tune with the aging society and a growing number of people with chronic diseases, the bio industry is considered a "cash cow industry of the future." Notably, the stem cell sector that treats abnormal bodily organs is the most promising field. Not only bio powerhouses such as the U.S., Japan and the European Union but also China have jumped into the industry. As research on induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS) recently won the Nobel Prize in physiology and medicine, countries worldwide are having mounting interest in the field. The Korean government should create an environment to enable Korean biotech firms to take a leap forward in the global market, by providing generous support for investment and putting in place prompt and predictable licensure and approval process.

The treatment that gave coach Hiddink a second life is Cartistem that is made from cord blood stem cells. Cartistem developed by bio venture firm Medipost received product licensure as treatment for knee cartilage, which has been damaged due to degenerative conditions and repeated injuries, from the Korea Food and Drug Ministry in January 2012. It was the first to receive licensure among stem cell treatments in the world. The treatment is undergoing clinical trials in the U.S. to acquire licensure from the Food and Drug Administration. Despite a highly costly price that is not covered by the national health insurance system, the treatment has been used in more than 1,600 patients thus far.

Stem cell treatments developed in Korea include Hearticellgram, a treatment for cardiac infarction, and Cupistem, a treatment for fistulous opening (a disease that causes holes in tissue between rectums and anus), as well as Cartistem. Hearticellgram and Cupistem use stem cells from tissues of the patients own body. Umbilical cord stem cells and autologous stem cells do not derive from human eggs and hence are free from controversy of bioethics. They are results of steadfast research and investment in stem cells by Korean biotech firms.

In tune with the aging society and a growing number of people with chronic diseases, the bio industry is considered a "cash cow industry of the future." Notably, the stem cell sector that treats abnormal bodily organs is the most promising field. Not only bio powerhouses such as the U.S., Japan and the European Union but also China have jumped into the industry. As research on induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS) recently won the Nobel Prize in physiology and medicine, countries worldwide are having mounting interest in the field. The Korean government should create an environment to enable Korean biotech firms to take a leap forward in the global market, by providing generous support for investment and putting in place prompt and predictable licensure and approval process.

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CorQuests revolutionary technology is designed to enable cardiologists to take a unique access route directly to the patients left atrium and therefore has the potential to become a major breakthrough innovation for therapeutic indications such as mitral valve disorders and structural heart disease, conditions often linked to heart failure. Specifically, CorQuests novel heart access technology comprises a number of instruments which allows for quick, user friendly and easy trans-thoracic access to the heart, directly into the left atrium, ensuring a minimally invasive approach to deliver numerous existing therapeutic devices.

When CE-marked, the insertion of the heart access sheath into a patients left atrium will allow the deployment of catheters or other necessary instruments for use in the treatment of various indications such as mitral valve occlusion defects. As such, the market potential could be very significant as this new open access route could be used in many existing medical device applications.

Currently in the advanced pre-clinical development phase, Cardio3 BioSciences intends to progress the device through the appropriate clinical and regulatory approval processes, with the aim of obtaining CE mark approval by the end of 2016, which would allow commercialisation in Europe. The first indication to be targeted with the CorQuest technology is expected to be the repair or replacement of the mitral valve.

The CorQuest technology platform is fully complementary with Cardio3 BioSciences C-Cathez and C-Cure programs. The C-Cathez catheter could be passed through CorQuests sheath to deliver C-Cure into the myocardium when the traditional route via the aorta may lead to complications for the patient.

The acquisition of CorQuest and the development of these technologies will not significantly affect the Companys burn rate over the two coming years. However, the acquisition of an extra medical device with a potential to market by 2016, as well as other therapeutic applications, will enable the Company to create multiple short term value creation milestones for its shareholders.

Dr Christian Homsy, CEO of Cardio3 BioSciences, comments: As part of our business strategy of building further on our cardiovascular diseases expertise, we have been actively seeking to acquire technologies that complement our existing medical devices for treating severe heart conditions. This invention is truly novel and may solve one of the very significant issues in mitral valve repair for example. Indeed, today, mitral valve repair procedures require a convoluted access to the valve. This revolutionary technology allows a direct access to the valve, from above, without perforation of the inter-atrial wall or the apex of the heart. The development of this technology will enable Cardio3 BioSciences to build on its leadership position in innovative therapies and devices for cardiovascular diseases.

In addition to the heart access technology, Cardio3 Biosciences acquisition of CorQuest includes a line of medical devices and implants targeted at various structural heart diseases including atrial fibrillation and mitral valve diseases, which will further expand Cardio3 BioSciences cardiovascular therapeutic applications portfolio.

As the heart access sheath is an open technology, the market potential of this new route to the heart and its accompanying line of medical devices and implants could be significant in a global market of cardiac medical devices which is expected to total $65.6 billion in 2015, with an annual growth rate of 9.8%.

Georges Rawadi, VP Business Development at Cardio3 BioSciences comments: Over 20 million invasive cardiac procedures, involving devices, are performed worldwide on an annual basis. This potential new access route to the heart could be used in a substantial proportion of those.

Dr. Didier De Cannire, founder of CorQuest Medical Inc. and technology inventor, further adds:

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Cardio3 Biosciences Acquires CorQuest Medical Inc.

Durham, NC (PRWEB) November 05, 2014

Half of all traumatic injuries to the face result in a loss of teeth and the surrounding tissue and bone that once supported them, which in turn makes these types of injuries very debilitating and difficult to treat. But in a new study published in the latest issue of STEM CELLS Translational Medicine, doctors at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry (UMSoD), Ann Arbor, have found a new way to regenerate a patients jawbone through the use of stem cells.

The procedure, done under local anesthesia, significantly speeds up the healing time relative to that of traditional bone grafting while allowing a patient to experience only a minimal amount of pain.

Part of a larger clinical trial, the findings highlighted in this issue focus on a 45-year-old woman missing seven front teeth plus 75 percent of the bone that once supported them, the result of a blow to her face five years earlier. She was left with severe functional and cosmetic deficiencies, since the missing bone made it impossible for her to have dental implant-based teeth replacements.

Darnell Kaigler, DDS, MS, PhD, an assistant professor of dentistry in the Department of Periodontics and Oral Medicine, was a lead member of the study team. "In small jawbone defects of the mouth created after teeth were extracted, we have placed gelatin sponges populated with stem cells into these areas to successfully grow bone."

Since the sponge material is soft, it does not work in larger areas. Thus, he and his team of researchers decided to try b-tricalcium phosphate (b-TCP) as a scaffold upon which to place the cells instead. "For treating larger jawbone defects, it is important to have a scaffold material that is rigid and more stable to support bone growth," he explained.

They then placed the b-TCP scaffold, which had been seeded with a mixed population of bone marrow-derived autologous stem and progenitor cells 30 minutes prior to treatment at room temperature, into the defective area of the patients mouth during a procedure that requires only local anesthesia. Four months later, 80 percent of her missing jawbone had been regenerated, allowing them to proceed with placing oral implants that supported a dental prosthesis to once again give her a complete set of teeth.

Study team member Sharon Aronovich, DMD, FRCD(C), a clinical assistant professor of dentistry in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at the UMSoD, said, I am very grateful to all the patients and researchers that participated in this study. Thanks to everyone's efforts, we are one step closer to providing patients with a minimally invasive option for implant-based tooth replacement.

As the first report to describe a cell therapy for craniofacial trauma reconstruction, this research serves as the foundation for expanded studies using this approach, said Anthony Atala, M.D., Editor-in-Chief of STEM CELLS Translational Medicine and director of the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine.

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Stem cells help doctors restore womans smile, regenerating bone to hold dental implants

Miami, FL (PRWEB) November 05, 2014

Global Stem Cells Group, its subsidiary Stem Cell Training, Inc. and Dr. J. Victor Garcia have announced plans to conduct the Adipose Derived Harvesting, Isolation and Re-integration Training Course in Barcelona, Spain Nov. 22-23. 2014.

The two-day, hands-on intensive training course, which will be conducted by Garcia, was developed for physicians and high-level practitioners to learn techniques in harvesting and reintegrating stem cells derived from adipose tissue and bone marrow. The objective of the training is to bridge the gap between bench science in the laboratory and the doctors office by teaching effective, in-office regenerative medicine techniques.

For more information, visit the Stem Cell Training, Inc. website, email info(at)stemcelltraining(dot)net, or call 305-224-1858.

About Global Stem Cells Group:

Global Stem Cells Group, Inc. is the parent company of six wholly owned operating companies dedicated entirely to stem cell research, training, products and solutions. Founded in 2012, the company combines dedicated researchers, physician and patient educators and solution providers with the shared goal of meeting the growing worldwide need for leading edge stem cell treatments and solutions.

With a singular focus on this exciting new area of medical research, Global Stem Cells Group and its subsidiaries are uniquely positioned to become global leaders in cellular medicine.

Global Stem Cells Groups corporate mission is to make the promise of stem cell medicine a reality for patients around the world. With each of GSCGs six operating companies focused on a separate research-based mission, the result is a global network of state-of-the-art stem cell treatments.

About Stem Cell Training, Inc.:

Stem Cell Training, Inc. is a multi-disciplinary company offering coursework and training in 35 cities worldwide. Coursework offered focuses on minimally invasive techniques for harvesting stem cells from adipose tissue, bone marrow and platelet-rich plasma. By equipping physicians with these techniques, the goal is to enable them to return to their practices, better able to apply these techniques in patient treatments.

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Global Stem Cells Group to Hold Practical, Hands-on Training Course on Adipose-derived Stem Cell Harvesting, Isolation ...

Eliminating Pediatric Cancer Using T-Cell Immunotherapy
Dr. Michael Jensen, Center Director of Seattle Children #39;s Research Institute #39;s Ben Towne Center for Childhood Cancer Research, gives a talk on Seattle Children #39;s work to eradicate pediatric...

By: SeattleChildrens

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Eliminating Pediatric Cancer Using T-Cell Immunotherapy - Video

There is a need for political support across the spectrum for promoting safe and responsible genetic engineering research, said M. S. Swaminathan, chairman, M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation.

He was addressing students at the 35 annual convocation of Anna University in the city on Wednesday.

Over one lakh students received their degrees in various specialities..

Mr. Swaminathan said that the present moratorium on field trials with recombinant DNA material was a serious handicap.

Agriculture is a State subject and it is very important that agricultural universities and State departments of agriculture are involved in the design and implementation of field trials. It takes nearly 10 years for a new variety to be ready for recommendation to farmers; therefore, speed is of the essence in organising field trials and gathering reliable data on risks and benefits, he said.

He added that public sector research and development institutions should give high priority to the breeding of varieties which can help farmers minimise climate and market risks.

M. Rajaram, vice-chancellor of Anna University, said in addition to imparting education, the university is sensitive to the welfare of society.

The unmanned aerial vehicle, dhaksha, designed and developed by the university, joined the rescue team at Moulivakkam, he said.

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5-Nov-2014

Contact: Kathryn Ryan kryan@liebertpub.com 914-740-2100 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc./Genetic Engineering News @LiebertOnline

"New Rochelle, NY, November 5, 2014The e-incubator, an innovative miniature incubator that is compatible with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), enables scientists to grow tissue-engineered constructs under controlled conditions and to study their growth and development in real-time without risk of contamination or damage. Offering the potential to test engineered tissues before human transplantation, increase the success rate of implantation, and accelerate the translation of tissue engineering methods from the lab to the clinic, the novel e-incubator is described in an article in Tissue Engineering, Part C, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available free on the Tissue Engineering website at http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/full/10.1089/ten.tec.2014.0273 until December 5, 2014."

"In the article "The e-Incubator: A Magnetic Resonance Imaging-Compatible Mini Incubator" , Shadi Othman, PhD, Karin Wartella, PhD, Vahid Khalilzad Sharghi, and Huihui Xu, PhD, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, present the results of a validation study using the device to culture tissue-engineered bone constructs for 4 weeks. The e-incubator is a standalone unit that automatically detects and regulates internal conditions such as temperature, carbon dioxide levels, and pH via a microcontroller. It performs media exchange to feed the cultures and remove waste products. The current design is compatible with MRI to monitor the constructs without removing them from the incubator. With proper adjustments, compatibility with other imaging technologies including computed tomography (CT) and optical imaging is also possible."

""Calibratable, hands-free tissue development environments are becoming increasingly important for the engineering of implantable tissues," says Tissue Engineering Co-Editor-in-Chief Peter C. Johnson, MD, Vice President, Research and Development, Avery Dennison Medical Solutions of Chicago, IL and President and CEO, Scintellix, LLC, Raleigh, NC. "In this new development, noninvasive imaging modalities are added to the spectrum of sensing and environmental capabilities that heretofore have included temperature, humidity, light, physical force, and electromagnetism. This represents a solid advance for the field.""

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About the Journal

"Tissue Engineering is an authoritative peer-reviewed journal published online with Open Access options and in print in three parts: Part A, the flagship, published 24 times per year; Part B: Reviews, published bimonthly; and Part C: Methods, published 12 times per year. Led by Co-Editors-In-Chief Antonios Mikos, PhD, Louis Calder Professor at Rice University, Houston, TX, and Peter C. Johnson, MD, Vice President, Research and Development, Avery Dennison Medical Solutions of Chicago, IL and President and CEO, Scintellix, LLC, Raleigh, NC, the Journal brings together scientific and medical experts in the fields of biomedical engineering, material science, molecular and cellular biology, and genetic engineering. Tissue Engineering is the official journal of the Tissue Engineering & Regenerative Medicine International Society (TERMIS). Complete tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed on at the Tissue Engineering website at http://www.liebertpub.com/ten. "

About the Publisher

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New e-Incubator enables real-time imaging of bioengineered tissues in controlled unit

Supporters of efforts to label GMOs in foods turn out at a rally in Denverin 2013. A ballot measure that would such labels failed to pass by a wide margin Tuesday. Luke Runyon/KUNC/Harvest Public Media hide caption

Supporters of efforts to label GMOs in foods turn out at a rally in Denverin 2013. A ballot measure that would such labels failed to pass by a wide margin Tuesday.

An effort to label genetically modified foods in Colorado failed to garner enough support Tuesday. It's the latest of several state-based GMO labeling ballot measures to fail. UPDATE: A similar measure in Oregon was also defeated by a narrow margin.

Voters in Colorado resoundingly rejected the labeling of foods that contain the derivatives of genetically modified - or GMO crops, with 66 percent voting against, versus 34 percent in favor.

In Oregon the outcome was closer, with fewer than 51 percent voting against the measure. Political ad spending in Oregon was more competitive than in Colorado, where labeling opponents outspent proponents by millions of dollars.

Meanwhile, a proposal in Maui County, Hawaii, skipped the labeling debate altogether. Voters there narrowly approved a moratorium on GMO crop cultivation. The state has been a battleground between biotech firms and food activists. Some Hawaiian farmers grow a variety of papaya genetically engineered to resist a plant virus.

Polling prior to the GMO labeling vote in Colorado was scarce. Polls found Colorado's measure faced an uphill battle in the final weeks before the election. A Suffolk University poll found only 29 percent of registered voters favored the measure, while 49 percent were likely to vote against it. A Denver Post poll was even more damning. According to that poll, 59 percent were opposed to GMO labeling in Colorado, 34 percent in favor.

Colorado's Proposition 105 would've required food companies to label packaged foods with the text "produced with genetic engineering." Oregon's Measure 92 says food labels would need to include the words "genetically engineered." Many processed foods contain soybean oil, corn syrup, refined sugar and cottonseed oil. Those oils and syrups are often derived from GMO crops that farmers have adopted over the last 18 years. Few whole foods, like the ones you see in the produce aisle, are genetically engineered, though some GE varieties of sweet corn, squash and papaya are approved for sale in the U.S.

The failed measures in Colorado and Oregon follow a nationwide trend. Similar ballot questions in California and Washington state were rejected in 2012 and 2013, respectively. This summer, Vermont's governor signed the nation's first GMO labeling requirement into law. It's supposed to take effect in 2016, but a coalition of biotech firms and farmer groups have filed suit to prevent that from happening.

Groups opposed to GMO labeling poured big money into efforts to quash the ballot measures, spending more than $15 million in Colorado alone. In Oregon, opponents of labeling raised more than $18 million, making the ballot measure the most expensive issue campaign in the state's history. Most of that money came from large seed corporations like Monsanto and DuPont Pioneer, and from processed food companies like Pepsi, Land O' Lakes and Smucker's. All of that outside money opened labeling opponents up to criticism of being tied to corporate interests.

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Colorado, Oregon Reject GMO Labeling

A powerful new genetic test that scans for rare childhood diseases is providing faster and more conclusive results than ever before. The test examines the entire genome to identify the single gene mutation that led to the disorder.

When Calvin Lapidus was eight months old, his mother Audrey suspected he was not developing normally, even though his doctors said he was.

By eight months he wasnt sitting up on his own," she recalled. "He wasnt rolling over on his own and he was just missing his milestones.

A frantic odyssey to learn what was wrong led the family to the Clinical Genomics Center at the University of California Los Angeles. The Center had just introduced a test called exome sequencing, an analysis of the entire genome at once, instead of gene by gene. Calvin was its first patient, said Stanley Nelson, a UCLA professor of human genetics and pathology and laboratory medicine.

He described the typical scenario: Children come in with a set of symptoms, a set of problems, a set of issues, and its very difficult for physicians to say which one of 5,000 diseases this patient has.

Some conditions are so rare that a physician may have only seen a few, if any, cases in his or her practice.

Sequencing DNA

The team at the Center extracted and sequenced DNA from blood samples from Calvin and his parents. Then they scanned all the genes simultaneously to find the single mutation that caused the disorder.

Nelson said that on average every location in the genome is examined and re-examined 100 times.

What that means is that we see 50 of the DNA variants that you got from your mom," he said. "We see 50 of the DNA variants that you got from your dad at every single base position in the exome, or in the protein coating part of the genome.

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New Genetic Test Diagnoses Rare Childhood Diseases

Trainers, Pros, Genetics and THE TRUTH!
Online And In Person Training with Bios3: bios3training@gmail.com 5% nutrition (Rich Piana) http://5percentnutrition.com/ GASP and BETTER BODIES CLOTHING https://elite1fitgear.refersion.com/c/1.

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ELK GROVE VILLAGE, Ill., Nov. 5, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A manuscript from the laboratory of Dr. Brian Kaspar of Nationwide Childrens Hospital was recently published in the journal Molecular Therapy. The paper, Improving single injection CSF delivery of AAV9-mediated gene therapy for SMA-a dose response study in mice and nonhuman primates is the first publication resulting from a groundbreaking collaboration between Cure SMA, the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), and Dr. Kaspar.

Beginning in 2010, Cure SMA made a series of grants to Dr. Kaspar to study gene therapy, also called gene transfer. Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is caused by a mutation in the survival motor neuron 1 gene (SMN1). Because of this mutation, the individual does not produce enough survival motor neuron (SMN) protein. Gene transfer may increase SMN levels by using a virus, called a vector, to deliver the SMN1 gene to affected cells. Kaspars laboratory discovered that Adeno-associated virus serotype 9 (AAV9) had the unique ability to cross the blood brain barrier and the Blood-Cerebrospinal Fluid Barrier (CSF).

Dr. Kaspar and his team have studied two approaches for SMA: an injection into a vein, a process known as systemic delivery which is currently in Phase I/2 clinical trials, and delivery directly into the cerebrospinal spinal fluid (CSF), a process known as CSF-delivered gene therapy.

Using the data generated with Cure SMA funding on the CSF-delivery of the drug, Dr. Kaspar and his team were able to secure a $4 million grant from NINDS in 2013, to develop this delivery approach for human clinical trials in SMA.

Development of therapies requires collaboration of academics, advocacy, industry, and government-no single party has the resources to do this alone. The collaboration between Dr. Brian Kaspar, Cure SMA, and the NIH is an exciting model in leveraging resources and expertise in the hope of accelerating therapy development for SMA, said Dr. John Porter, PhD, Program Director at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

The results of this research collaboration are the subject of Dr. Kaspars latest article. Using a one-time delivery of the AAV9 carrying the human SMN gene, the researchers found SMA animals, which typically die at 15 days of age, surpassed 280 days median survival, with many animals surviving past 400 days. This is a remarkable extension in survival with normal motor function. Furthermore, the group tested this delivery approach in larger species and found significant targeting of motor neurons throughout the brain and spinal cord.

Dr. Kaspar stated, We are very pleased with the results of this study and are working diligently to advance a CSF route of delivery to human clinical trials for SMA. We are grateful for the support from Cure SMA and NINDS. We stand at an exciting juncture in SMA research and clinical translation with strong will to see effective therapies for all those with SMA.

We are excited to see expansion of the gene therapeutic program and the potential to advance this route of delivery to patients with SMA. The latest results supports further development of a CSF-delivered gene therapy treatment, said Jill Jarecki, PhD, Cure SMAs research director.

Current Clinical Trials for SMA Gene Therapy

The technology for both systemic and CSF-delivered gene therapy has been licensed to AveXis, a clinical stage biotechnology company. AveXis and Nationwide Childrens Hospital are currently collaborating on a Phase I/2 clinical trial testing the systemic delivery method in infants with SMA. The trial (NCT02122952) opened for enrollment in Columbus, Ohio in April 2014 and is currently recruiting in the dose-escalation phase of the trial.

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CSF-Delivered Gene Therapy Shows Promise for Spinal Muscular Atrophy

Stem Cell Research Therapy Explained - From MS to Spinal Injury
Stem cell treatment and research towards curing illness--from multiple sclerosis to spinal injury--is detailed by Dr. Neil Riordan. The American medical industry, obstructions to research in...

By: TheLipTV

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Stem Cell Research & Therapy Explained - From MS to Spinal Injury - Video

Freeport, Grand Bahama (PRWEB) November 05, 2014

Okyanos is the first to receive regulatory approval from the National Stem Cell Ethics Committee (NSEC) to provide adult stem cell therapy in its new state-of-the-art facility and has now begun treating patients. The licensing includes approval for cardiac cell therapy, as well as cell therapy for tissue ischemia, autoimmune diseases, and other chronic neurological and orthopedic conditions. The licensing criteria requires that approved protocols be supported by peer-reviewed papers showing substantial evidence of safety and efficacy.

"As the leader in cell therapy, Okyanos is very proud to bring a new standard of care and a better quality of life to patients who are looking for new options for unmet healthcare needs. said Matt Feshbach, CEO and co-founder of Okyanos. Adipose (fat)- derived stem and regenerative cells (ADRCs) are known to restore blood flow, modulate the immune system, reduce inflammation and prevent further cell death after a wound, helping the body begin the process of healing itself.

Adult stem cell therapy has emerged as a new treatment alternative for those who want to live a more normal life but are restricted in these activities due to their medical conditions. Just 50 miles from the US shore, Okyanos cell therapy is available to patients with severe heart disease including coronary artery disease (CAD) and congestive heart failure (CHF) as well as patients with auto-immune diseases, orthopedic, neurological and urological conditions. Okyanos cell therapy is performed in their new state-of-the-art facility built to exceed U.S. surgical center standards.

With the regulatory and licensing approvals for adult stem cell therapy, Okyanos is the first to treat patients with cell therapy for severe heart disease and other unmet medical conditions based on a combination of internationally approved cell processing technology, technical papers, clinical trials and in-clinic use which provide the basis for a new standard of care.

Patients can contact Okyanos at http://www.okyanos.com or by calling toll free at 1-855-659-2667.

About Okyanos: (Oh key AH nos) Based in Freeport, Grand Bahama, Okyanos brings a new standard of care and a better quality of life to patients with coronary artery disease, tissue ischemia, autoimmune diseases, and other chronic neurological and orthopedic conditions. Okyanos Cell Therapy utilizes a unique blend of stem and regenerative cells derived from patients own adipose (fat) tissue which helps improve blood flow, moderate destructive immune response and prevent further cell death. Okyanos is fully licensed under the Bahamas Stem Cell Therapy and Research Act and adheres to U.S. surgical center standards. The literary name Okyanos, the Greek god of the river Okyanos, symbolizes restoration of blood flow.

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Okyanos Treats First Patients with Cell Therapy

Mark and Mindy Ammons lost their 2-year-old son, Christopher, in 1988 to neuroblastoma, an aggressive childhood cancer. In 2009, Mindy Ammons donated her own stem cells to a woman with cancer. And this weekend, the family's youngest son will prepare a bone marrow donor registry in memory of his oldest brother as an Eagle Scout project.

Family photo

Bone marrow donation is close to the heart for the Ammons family of Provo.

Mark and Mindy Ammons lost their 2-year-old son, Christopher, in 1988 to neuroblastoma, an aggressive childhood cancer. In 2009, Mindy Ammons donated her own stem cells to a woman with cancer. And this weekend, the familys youngest son will lead a bone marrow registry drive as an Eagle Scout project in memory of his oldest brother.

We are in the unique position of having been on both sides of the process, Mindy Ammons said.

In the "Be The Match" flier created for the project, Will Ammons, 13, explains that Christophers only chance of survival was a bone marrow transplant, but sadly, no one in our family was a match, so he had to be his own donor.

Christopher underwent treatment at the UCLA Medical Center where, after five days of chemotherapy, three days of full-body radiation and then surgery, he received his own marrow as a transplant. He died two weeks into the process, just shy of his third birthday.

Over the years, the Ammonses talked about this experience with their children and stayed informed on treatment advances. When it came time for their second oldest son, Jon, to do his Eagle Scout project, he didn't just want to do something to check off on a list. He wanted a meaningful project.

He wanted to do something that would make a difference and was cancer-related," Mindy Ammons said.

They discussed raising money for cancer research but decided that would be like dropping a coin in a well, she said.

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Family honors child's memory through bone marrow registry and stem cell donation

Mark and Mindy Ammons lost their 2-year-old son, Christopher, in 1988 to neuroblastoma, an aggressive childhood cancer. In 2009, Mindy Ammons donated her own stem cells to a woman with cancer. And this weekend, the family's youngest son will prepare a bone marrow donor registry in memory of his oldest brother as an Eagle Scout project.

Family photo

Bone marrow donation is close to the heart for the Ammons family of Provo.

Mark and Mindy Ammons lost their 2-year-old son, Christopher, in 1988 to neuroblastoma, an aggressive childhood cancer. In 2009, Mindy Ammons donated her own stem cells to a woman with cancer. And this weekend, the familys youngest son will lead a bone marrow registry drive as an Eagle Scout project in memory of his oldest brother.

We are in the unique position of having been on both sides of the process, Mindy Ammons said.

In the "Be The Match" flier created for the project, Will Ammons, 13, explains that Christophers only chance of survival was a bone marrow transplant, but sadly, no one in our family was a match, so he had to be his own donor.

Christopher underwent treatment at the UCLA Medical Center where, after five days of chemotherapy, three days of full-body radiation and then surgery, he received his own marrow as a transplant. He died two weeks into the process, just shy of his third birthday.

Over the years, the Ammonses talked about this experience with their children and stayed informed on treatment advances. When it came time for their second oldest son, Jon, to do his Eagle Scout project, he didn't just want to do something to check off on a list. He wanted a meaningful project.

He wanted to do something that would make a difference and was cancer-related," Mindy Ammons said.

They discussed raising money for cancer research but decided that would be like dropping a coin in a well, she said.

Original post:
Family saves lives through bone marrow registry and stem cell donation

A SELFLESS former Rhyl High pupil has met with the man whose life he saved two years ago. David Maguire, 27-years-old, described it as an unreal experience when he met with 65-year-old Peter Threader at the Oriel House in St Asaph - the man who he had donated his bone marrow too in May 2012

Mr Maguire, who works predominately as a learner support worker for Cambian Pengwern College in Rhuddlan, became a member of Anthony Nolan a blood cancer charity and bone marrow register when he was just aged 16 and nine years later, he received a telephone call asking him to come for more blood tests in London.

It was revealed that Mr Maguire was a perfect match for Mr Threader - who lives in Stockport - and had been diagnosed with a form of blood cancer in which the white blood cells affect the red blood cells.

Mr Maguire, of Rhyl South West, who has a brother Kevin, sister Michelle, and parents Dave Morris and Linda Mert, said: I had to have a short course of injections for four days.

I felt a little achy. When I went back to the clinic in London a needle was placed in both arms and I lay back and whilst being treated like royalty. My best mate Silvana came with me and I was hooked up to a special machine for about six hours. They count the stem cells to see whether they have enough, then Silvana and I went back to the hotel to get ready to party. We got back just after 4am so it was not too painful.

Mr Maguire said he was pleased to receive a letter from Mr Threader to say that the transplant had been a success. The men continued to send letters initially just knowing each other as recipient and donor before exchanging details.

After speaking by email for three months, Peter asked would I meet him and I jumped at the chance, Mr Maguire added.

He looked well and healthy. I got a lovely card off his daughter.

It is strange them saying thank you to me as I have been saying thank you for giving me this life experience that money cant buy.

Mr Maguire is now hoping he can encourage more people to sign up to Anthony Nolan.

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Rhyl bone marrow donor and recipient meet two years after life-saving transplant

Cancer Gene Therapy is the essential gene and cellular therapy resource for cancer researchers and clinicians, keeping readers up to date with the latest developments in gene and cellular therapies for cancer. The journal publishes original laboratory and clinical research papers, case reports and review articles. Publication topics include RNAi approaches, drug resistance, hematopoietic progenitor cell gene transfer, cancer stem cells, cellular therapies, homologous recombination, ribozyme technology, antisense technology, tumor immunotherapy and tumor suppressors, translational research, cancer therapy, gene delivery systems (viral and non-viral), anti-gene therapy (antisense, siRNA & ribozymes), apoptosis; mechanisms and therapies, vaccine development, immunology and immunotherapy, DNA synthesis and repair.

Impact Factor: 2.553*

Submit to Cancer Gene Therapy.

Volume 21, No 10 October 2014 ISSN: 0929-1903 EISSN: 1476-5500

2013 impact factor 2.553* 52/122 Medicine, Research & Experimental 58/165 Biotechnology & Applied Micobiology 115/202 Oncology 85/164 Genetics & Heredity

Editor: Steven K. Libutti, M.D.

*2013 Journal Citation Reports, Thomson Reuters, 2014

Following the success of this previous study on p53, Cancer Gene Therapy has published another groundbreaking review on this molecule. An overview of results supported by The International Agency for Research on Cancer (part of the World Health Organization), the review highlights the biological properties of mutant p53, including novel molecular targets for the development of future cancer therapies.

Announcing Cancer Gene Therapy Open Cancer Gene Therapy now offers authors the option to publish their articles with immediate open access upon publication. Open access articles will also be deposited on PubMed Central at the time of publication and will be freely available immediately. Find out more from the press release or our FAQs page.

Latest research highlights and reviews from the NPG family of journals

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Cancer Gene Therapy - Nature

Scientists have found a pattern of genetic 'switches' - chemical marks that turn genes on or off -- that are linked to breast cancer's spread to the brain, according to research presented at the National Cancer Research Institute Cancer Conference in Liverpool today (Wednesday).

The researchers, based at the University of Wolverhampton, studied 24 breast cancers that had spread to the brain, along with samples from the original breast tumour, and found a handful of genes with faulty switches.

Crucially, two of the genetic switches became faulty early on in the development of breast cancer, suggesting they may be an early warning signal for tumours that will spread to the brain. The scientists are now working to develop a blood test that might be able to detect these signals at an early stage, before the disease has spread.

Up to 30 per cent of breast cancers will eventually spread to the brain, often many years after the first tumour was treated. Tackling secondary brain tumours with radiotherapy and surgery has limited success, with most women surviving just seven months after the brain metastasis has been diagnosed.

By comparing chemical switches, known as DNA methylation, between the original breast cancer and the secondary brain tumour the researchers were able to narrow down from 120 potential candidates to find a 'signature' for cancers that had spread.

Study author Dr Mark Morris, based at the University of Wolverhampton, said: "Each year the number of women whose breast cancer spreads to the brain is increasing. While we know many of the genetic changes behind breast cancer, we know very little about why the disease can spread to the brain.

"By identifying the genes that are switched off or on in breast cancers before they spread to the brain we hope to be able to develop a blood test to spot this change. There's also potential for our findings to be used as a starting point to develop treatments that might prevent the spread."

Each year almost 50,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK and around 11,600 die from the disease.

Dr Abeer Shaaban, member of the NCRI Breast Clinical Studies Group, said: "Tackling the problem of brain metastases is one of the greatest challenges facing breast cancer researchers. This is an intriguing new angle to explore which underlines the importance of understanding how genes are controlled as cancer grows and spreads. We're understanding more and more about cancer's biology and this is opening exciting new avenues of research that could lead to new tests and treatments."

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Gene 'switches' could predict when breast cancers will spread to the brain

BI280 Chapter 10 Genetic Engineering - Part 1 of 1

By: Heidi Bulfer

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BI280 Chapter 10 Genetic Engineering - Part 1 of 1 - Video

BI280 Chapter 10 Genetic Engineering - Part 2 of 2

By: Heidi Bulfer

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BI280 Chapter 10 Genetic Engineering - Part 2 of 2 - Video

Microfluidics Enables Practical Applications of Genetic Engineering:Synthetic Biology Advances

By: MIT Industrial Liaison Program (ILP)

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Microfluidics Enables Practical Applications of Genetic Engineering:Synthetic Biology Advances - Video

Phayronet ltd
Phayronet combines for medical benefits nanotechnology capabilities together with the achievements of genetic engineering. It develops the future direction of biomedical engineering developments....

By: Phayronet Ltd

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Phayronet ltd - Video

The big agribusiness companies have achieved regulatory capture of government agenciesbut not in the way that many people think. At the urging of industry, since the 1980s federal agencies have over-regulated genetically engineered plants, animals and microorganismsat great cost to U.S.-based R&D and, ultimately, to consumers.

Its no secret that although the Internet has vastly enriched our lives in many respects, it has downsidesless interpersonal interaction, more anonymous snarkiness, online harassment and even cyber-stalking.

The net has also made it difficult to stop or correct the promulgation of misinformation, as I have learned to my dismay: A valid observation I made to a New York Times reporter for a 2001 article on the regulation of genetic engineering has been repeatedly taken out of context and misrepresented by activists. It continues to appear anewstill out of context and misconstrued13 years later.

Here is the portion of the original article that is often quoted on anti-genetic engineering websites (such as here and here):

Even longtime Washington hands said that the control this nascent [agbiotech] industry exerted over its own regulatory destinythrough the Environmental Protection Agency, the Agriculture Department and ultimately the Food and Drug Administrationwas astonishing. In this area, the U.S. government agencies have done exactly what big agribusiness has asked them to do and told them to do, said Dr. Henry Miller, a senior research fellow at the Hoover Institution, who was responsible for biotechnology issues at the Food and Drug Administration from 1979 to 1994.

Sounds like a Eureka! moment, right? A former senior regulatorrevealing an egregious example of what economists call regulatory captureagencies that were created to act in the public interest instead advancing the interests of the industry or sector they oversee by implementing too-lenient regulation. (Economics Nobel Laureate George Stigler developed this concept.) Thats what activistsand even somejournalists who failed to do their homeworkwould have you believe.

That excerpt has been misrepresented to imply that companies applying the molecular techniques of genetic engineering to agriculture (the exemplar of which was, and is, Monsanto) wanted, and got, less regulatory scrutiny than was warranted, possibly putting consumers and the environment at risk.

Actually, my statement was intended to convey exactly the opposite, as was clear from verbiage in the article that preceded the passage quoted above:

Although the Reagan administration had been championing deregulation across multiple industries, Monsanto had a different idea: the company wanted its new technology, genetically modified food, to be governed by rules issued in Washingtonand wanted the White House to champion the idea. There were no products at the time, Leonard Guarraia, a former Monsanto executive who attended the [Vice President George H.W.] Bush meeting, recalled in a recent interview. But we bugged him for regulation. We told him that we have to be regulated.

The genetically improved varieties that had been crafted for centuries with older, less precise, less predictable techniques of genetic modification neither needed nor received any government review or imprimatur for field trials or commercialization. Butfor its new varieties crafted with state-of-the art molecular techniques, the big agribusiness companies wanted sui generis regulatory requirements that would be far in excess of what scientific considerations and the principles of sound regulation dictated. And as the Times article related, [T]he White House complied, working behind the scenes to help Monsantolong a political power with deep connections in Washingtonget the regulations that it wanted.

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Lies, Damn Lies And Genetic Engineering

Genetically engineering tumors in mice, a technique that has dominated cancer research for decades, may not replicate important features of cancers caused by exposure to environmental carcinogens, according to a new study led by UC San Francisco scientists. In addition to pointing the way to better understanding of environmental causes of cancer, the findings may help explain why many patients do not benefit from, or develop resistance to, targeted drug therapies.

In the new research, reported November 2, 2014 in the advance online edition of Nature, a team led by UCSF graduate student Peter M.K. Westcott found that chemically induced lung tumors in mice carry hundreds of point mutationsdeleterious alterations of single letters in the genomethat are not present in tumors induced by genetic engineering. The researchers demonstrated that chemically induced tumors display a starkly different mutational landscape even when chemicals cause a tumor-initiating mutation that is identical to that created by direct genetic manipulation.

Since the 1980s, when genetic engineering came along, the mouse model community has been working on genetically engineered canceryou put a gene in or take a gene out, and you get a tumor, said Allan Balmain, PhD, the Barbara Bass Bakar Distinguished Professor in Cancer Genetics at UCSF and senior author of the study. But its only now that were beginning to analyze what has happened between that first engineered change and the ultimate development of an aggressive tumor.

The new work made use of next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology, which allows researchers to analyze the genomic sequence of tumors or of normal tissue letter-by-letter. For the Nature study, the group used a form of NGS known as whole-exome sequencing, which comprehensively analyzes the portion of the genome that contains the code for producing proteins.

The findings dovetail well with those from NGS-based studies of human tumors, such as The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) initiative spearheaded by the National Cancer Institute and National Human Genome Research Institute, which have revealed mutational signatures, some of which can be definitively tied to environmental exposures. For example, distinctive patterns of point mutations are now known to differentiate lung cancer in smokers from that affecting non-smokers.

The results are also consistent with observations that tumors arising in human organs that are most directly exposed to environmental carcinogensthe skin, gastrointestinal system, and lungsare more prone to point mutations than more protected organs such as the brain, breast, and prostate gland.

We humans smoke cigarettes, drink alcohol, and spend too much time in the sun, all of which cause us to accumulate point mutations that are major determinants of the behavior of tumors, especially of how a tumor responds to therapy, said Balmain, co-leader of the Cancer Genetics Program at UCSFs Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center. All this heterogeneity is being missed with genetically engineered tumors, because they dont reflect these environmental effects.

But only a very small number of the 25 mutational signatures revealed by NGS in human tumors so far have been convincingly tied to environmental exposures, Balmain said, so there is much to learn. Other very unusual, very specific signatures have been seen in human studies that remain obscure. Theyre like a smoking gunwe know theyre caused by something environmental, but were not sure what.

To date most epidemiological research on environmental causes of cancer has relied on patients and families to recall and document dietary habits, alcohol and tobacco use, or occupational exposures, and the rise of NGS offers an opportunity to approach these questions more rigorously, said Balmain.

To that end, Balmains research group is embarking on a collaboration with the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, which maintains a collection of thousands of mouse and rat tumors caused by exposure to suspected human carcinogens. Through NGS analyses of that collection, the research team hopes to find mutational signatures that can be correlated with those seen in human cancer.

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Environmental Carcinogens Leave Distinctive Genetic Imprints in Tumors

Election judges check signatures on ballots at the Denver Election Headquarters in downtown Denver, November 04, 2014. Closes races in Colorado are drawing a last minute rush to vote on election day. (RJ Sangosti, The Denver Post)

Voters dished up rejection for Proposition 105, labeling of genetically modified foods, with 35 percent of votes counted.

The measure would have required labels for GMOs foods produced with genetic engineering or containing genetically modified ingredients. More than 68 percent of voters said no to labeling.

Most processed foods sold in America include GMO ingredients such as corn syrup, corn oil, soybean crops and sugar.

Supporters of GMO labeling, such as Right to Know Colorado, Whole Foods and Natural Grocers, said it would give consumers a choice about what they serve their families.

It's a label, not a ban, alerting people to an unnatural manipulation of food, they argued.

Opponents of Prop 105 said the measure would create new costs and red tape for farmers, food manufacturers and grocery stores and consequently would run up grocery bills and cost taxpayers millions for the government oversight.

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Colorado Prop 105: GMO food fight won by opponents of labeling