New Research Clarifying How Stem Cells Help Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients

New Research Clarifying How Stem Cells Help Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients

A group of researchers in China who have recently observed positive effects of stem cells on patients with rheumatoid arthritis have now conducted an experiment that helps clarify exactly how these stem cells may contribute to improved symptoms in this particular patient population. The group uses umbilical cord stem cells, which are stem cells that have demonstrated immune regulatory functions because the immune system is implicated in rheumatoid arthritis.

Rheumatoid arthritis is characterized by inflammation and subsequent damage to the joints. The synovium is a type of connective tissue located in synovial joints like knees and elbows and is where the majority of the inflammation occurs. A specific protein, called cadherin-11 that is present in some of the cells in the lining of the synovium has been hypothesized to be an important culprit in rheumatoid arthritis because the protein can lead to inflammation and thus destruction of bones and cartilage.

The researchers decided to test whether umbilical cord stem cells may have an impact on cadherin-11, as such an impact could help explain how these cells help patients with rheumatoid arthritis. They therefore looked at fibrolast-like synoviocytes, the cells that express cadherin-11 in the lining of the synovium, in both patients with rheumatoid arthritis and patients with osteopathic arthritis. Because osteopathic arthritis does not involve the same kind of destruction to the synovium that rheumatoid arthritis does, the researchers expected to find less cadherin-11 in the fibroblast-like synoviocytes of the patients with osteopathic arthritis.

Not only did the researchers find, as suspected, that cadherin-11 levels were higher in the fibroblast-like synoviocytes of patients with rheumatoid arthritis, compared to those with osteopathic arthritis, but they also found that umbilical cord stem cells suppressed the cadherin-11 levels in the fibroblast-like synoviocytes from rheumatoid arthritis patients.

These results point to a potential mechanism by which umbilical cord stem cells reduce inflammation and improve symptoms in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Additionally, they provide important information on how to develop treatments that will specifically target the cause of rheumatoid arthritis.

Stem cells are showing promising results for treating Rheumatoid Arthritis. Learn about it here.

 

Reference

Zhao et al. (2015). Umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells inhibit cadherin-11 expression by fibroblast-like synoviocytes in rheumatoid arthritis. Journal of Immunology Research, 2015, 1-10.

Study Shows Stem Cells Help Patients with Lyme Disease and MS

Study Shows Stem Cells Help Patients with Lyme Disease and MS

A recent case study has reported that the use of human embryonic stem cells has helped two patients: one with Lyme disease and the other with multiple sclerosis. Though Lyme disease and multiple sclerosis occur for different reasons – Lyme disease results from tick bites, whereas autoimmunity is the culprit in multiple sclerosis –  the two conditions are hard to distinguish clinically, leading to the idea that they may be able to be treated in similar ways. Both patients with Lyme disease and those with multiple sclerosis display neurological conditions such as problems with cognition, vision, sensation, and fatigue.

Traditionally, these diseases have been treated in different ways. Patients with Lyme disease are generally given antibiotics, but the antibiotics are often associated with adverse side effects or are not fully effective. Multiple sclerosis, on the other hand, is often treated with steroids and immunosuppressants, but unfortunately, the treatment regimens for multiple sclerosis often lead to a number of life threatening conditions. As progress has been made applying stem cell therapies to disorders of the nervous system, it has been theorized that stem cells may be able to help with both Lyme disease and multiple sclerosis.

In these case studies, embryonic stem cells were administered to a 30 year old woman with Lyme disease and a 42 year old man with multiple sclerosis. Following their treatment, both patients showed improvement in neurological performance related to muscle strength, cognition, coordination, and stamina. Further, the nervous system of both patients was assessed with both magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). These imaging techniques demonstrated improvements in the brains of the patients.

That stem cells led to both functional and physiological improvements continue to support the idea that stem cells can be used to treat neurological conditions and that they can specifically support the treatment of Lyme disease and multiple sclerosis. As neither patient experienced any adverse side effects related to the stem cell therapy, it appears that there are safe options for applying stem cells in these conditions. Further research will help to clarify specific protocols that can be used to treat Lyme disease and multiple sclerosis patients with stem cells.

Learn more about how adult stem cell therapy can provide an alternative for MS patients who don’t respond to typical drug treatment here.

 

Reference

Shroff, G. (2016). Transplantation of human embryonic stem cells in patients with multiple sclerosis and Lyme disease. American Journal of Case Reports, 17, 944-949.

Stem Cells Showing Promising Results for Rheumatoid Arthritis

Stem Cells Showing Promising Results for Rheumatoid Arthritis

Specifically, the umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells were able to inhibit the proliferation of fibrolast-like synoviocytes cells from rheumatoid arthritis patients. These fibroblast-like synoviocytes are critical components of rheumatoid arthritis. In addition, the umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells reduced levels of cells that promote inflammation and increase the levels of those that fight inflammation.

Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease, meaning that the immune system of those who suffer from rheumatoid arthritis starts to attack the patient’s own body because it mistakenly perceives the body’s own cells as harmful foreign agents. The disease specifically involves the T-cells of the immune system and mainly attacks synovial joints like the knees and elbows.

Stem cells have been proposed to help with the treatment of a number of diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis. Because the current approaches for treating rheumatoid arthritis are expensive and none of them lead to long-term remission, new treatment options are actively sought. There has been evidence to suggest that bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells can help with rheumatoid arthritis, but recently, researchers theorized that umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells may have its own advantages for the use in treating the disease.

The idea for using umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells arose because of the ability of these cells to suppress the immune system. Specifically, these cells have been shown to affect the number of active T-cells, making them an appropriate candidate for opposing the physiological basis of rheumatoid arthritis.

The current study made strides in the technical use of umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells for treating rheumatoid arthritis and also provided evidence that these cells are particularly well-suited for this particular purpose. Specifically, the umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells were able to inhibit the proliferation of fibrolast-like synoviocytes cells from rheumatoid arthritis patients. These fibroblast-like synoviocytes are critical components of rheumatoid arthritis. In addition, the umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells reduced levels of cells that promote inflammation and increase the levels of those that fight inflammation. Finally, these cells also reduced the severity of the disease in a model of arthritis.

These promising results highlight the potential of umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells in medicine – and particularly their potential to aid in the development of treatment options for rheumatoid arthritis. Further research will likely help clarify exactly how these cells can be used in the disease and to what extent they can help rheumatoid arthritis patients.

To find out more about the new research clarifying how stem cells help Rheumatoid Arthritis patients, click here.

 

Reference
Liu et al.. (2010). Therapeutic potential of human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis Research and Therapy, 12(6), R210.

Stem Cells Improving Neurological Function Following TBI

Stem Cells Improving Neurological Function Following TBI

Researchers have recently shown how a specific type of stem cell, called umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells, can improve the neurological function of patients who have experienced traumatic brain injury (TBI). When TBI occurs, the trauma to the head leads the immune system to send cells to the area of injury. The resulting swelling often overwhelms the site of injury, which can cause significant damage to the tissue as a number of brain cells, or neurons, die. The rationale for using stem cells to treat TBI is therefore that by replacing these lost neurons, the functions that are lost as a result of TBI may be restored.

In the current study, published in the journal Brain Research, scientists studied 40 patients who had experienced TBI. Half the patients were selected to act as a control, receiving no treatment, while the other half was given 4 transplantations of umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells through the spine. All 40 patients were evaluated both before any treatment was administered, as well as 6 months later. Specifically, each patient underwent the Fugl-Meyer Assessments (FMA), which assesses balance, motor functioning, and sensation, as well as the Functional Independence Measures (FIM), which tests both motor and cognitive functioning.

Though the control group of patients who did not receive any medical intervention did not improve in their FMA and FIM assessments over the 6 month period, the patients who received the stem cell transplants improved on both measures of functioning. In the FMA, improvements were observed in scores for upper extremity and lower extremity motor performance as well as for balance and sensation. In the FIM, a number of scores increased over the 6 month period for the treatment group, including those for self care, mobility, locomotion, communication, and social cognition.

These results demonstrate the great promise of stem cells generally – and of umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells specifically – for the treatment of symptoms resulting from TBI. Further studies will be needed to help clarify the specific ways that these stem cells may be able to help patients who have suffered a TBI, and studies that involve multiple centers and larger sample sizes of patients are likely to occur in the future to help in the development of relevant treatments.

Both Hyperbaric Oxygen (HBO) treatment and Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSC‘s) have been used as interventions for patients suffering from Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). Find out more in this article.

 

Reference

Wang, S. et al. (2013). Umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cell transplantation significantly improves neurological function in patietns with sequelae of traumatic brain injury. Brain Research, 1532, 76-84.

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